[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 5252 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 5252
To amend title 18, United States Code to require accountability in
deferred prosecution agreements, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
September 25, 2024
Mr. Welch (for himself and Mr. Hawley) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 18, United States Code to require accountability in
deferred prosecution agreements, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Hold Corporate Criminals Accountable
Act of 2024''.
SEC. 2. ACCOUNTABILITY IN DEFERRED PROSECUTION AGREEMENTS.
Section 3161(h)(2) of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(1) by striking ``Any'' and inserting ``(A) Any''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(B)(i) If the defendant described in subparagraph (A) is
a person other than an individual, the court may not approve an
agreement described in that subparagraph unless the court
determines that the agreement is in the public interest.
``(ii) In determining whether to approve an agreement under
clause (i), the court shall consider the following factors:
``(I) The reasonableness of punitive measures,
including financial penalties.
``(II) Compliance terms or safeguards within the
agreement.
``(III) Effective independent monitoring of
agreement terms to ensure compliance by the defendant.
``(IV) Cooperation of the defendant with law
enforcement, including identifying culpable individuals
related to the conduct at issue.
``(V) The underlying goals of the substantive law
violation and whether the agreements contains terms
unreleated to those goals.
``(VI) Collateral consequences related to the
agreement.
``(VII) The impact of the offense on the public,
including victims of the offense.
``(VIII) The effects of the agreement on the
regulatory scheme.
``(IX) The effects of the agreement on applicable
statutes of limitations and other time-related
interests.
``(X) The appropriateness of any restitution.
``(XI) The adequacy and specificity of public
admissions regarding the conduct at issue.
``(XII) Prior criminal investigations and
prosecutions of the defendant.
``(XIII) Any other compelling reasons to affirm or
reject the agreement.''.
SEC. 3. EMPIRICALLY BASED COMPLIANCE MONITORING.
(a) In General.--Any person other than an individual who is placed
on probation or enters into a deferred prosecution agreement that
contains a condition of compliance monitoring shall employ independent
monitoring that uses objective and methodologically sound metrics.
(b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Attorney General shall publish a report on efforts by the
Department of Justice to identify guidelines and increase the use of
compliance monitoring described in subsection (a) through criminal
prosecutions.
SEC. 4. TRANSPARENCY REQUIREMENTS ON FEDERAL AGENCIES TO ENTER INTO
DEFERRED PROSECUTION AGREEMENTS.
(a) Requirements for Settlement Agreements.--
(1) In general.--Chapter 3 of title 5, United States Code,
is amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 307. Information regarding settlement agreements
``(a) Definition.--In this section, the term `covered settlement
agreement' means a settlement agreement (including deferred prosecution
agreements and nonprosecution agreements) that is entered into by an
Executive agency that--
``(1) relates to an alleged violation of Federal civil or
criminal law;
``(2) involves an agreement to defer prosecution or
withhold prosecution of the alleged violation; and
``(3) requires the payment of a total of not less than
$1,000,000 by 1 or more non-Federal persons.
``(b) Information To Be Posted Online.--
``(1) Requirement.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), the
head of each Executive agency shall make publicly
available in a searchable format in a prominent
location on the website of the Executive agency--
``(i) a list of each covered settlement
agreement entered into by the Executive agency,
which shall include, for each covered
settlement agreement--
``(I) the date on which the parties
entered into the covered settlement
agreement;
``(II) the names of the parties
that settled claims under the covered
settlement agreement;
``(III) a description of the claims
each party settled under the covered
settlement agreement;
``(IV) the amount each party
settling a claim under the covered
settlement agreement is obligated to
pay under the settlement agreement;
``(V) the total amount the settling
parties are obligated to pay under the
settlement agreement;
``(VI) for each settling party--
``(aa) the amount, if any,
the settling party is obligated
to pay that is expressly
specified under the covered
settlement agreement as a civil
or criminal penalty or fine;
and
``(bb) the amount, if any,
that is expressly specified
under the covered settlement
agreement as not deductible for
purposes of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986; and
``(VII) a description of where
amounts collected under the covered
settlement agreement will be deposited,
including, if applicable, the deposit
of such amounts in an account available
for use for 1 or more programs of the
Federal Government; and
``(ii) a copy of each covered settlement
agreement entered into by the Executive agency.
``(B) Confidentiality provisions.--The requirement
to disclose information or a copy of a covered
settlement agreement under subparagraph (A) shall apply
to the extent that the information or copy (or portion
thereof) is not subject to a confidentiality provision
that prohibits disclosure of the information or copy
(or portion thereof).
``(2) Period.--The head of each Executive agency shall
ensure that--
``(A) information regarding a covered settlement
agreement is publicly available on the list described
in paragraph (1)(A)(i) for a period of not less than 5
years, beginning on the date of the covered settlement
agreement; and
``(B) a copy of a covered settlement agreement made
available under paragraph (1)(A)(ii) is publicly
available--
``(i) for a period of not less than 5
years, beginning on the date of the covered
settlement agreement; or
``(ii) for a covered settlement agreement
under which a non-Federal person is required to
pay not less than $50,000,000, for a period of
not less than 10 years, beginning on the date
of the covered settlement agreement.
``(c) Public Statement.--If the head of an Executive agency
determines that a confidentiality provision in a covered settlement
agreement, or the sealing of a covered settlement agreement, is
required to protect the public interest of the United States, the head
of the Executive agency shall issue a public statement stating why such
action is required to protect the public interest of the United States,
which shall explain--
``(1) what interests confidentiality protects; and
``(2) why the interests protected by confidentiality
outweigh the public's interest in knowing about the conduct of
the Federal Government and the expenditure of Federal
resources.
``(d) Requirements for Written Public Statements.--Any written
public statement issued by an Executive agency that refers to an amount
to be paid by a non-Federal person under a covered settlement agreement
shall--
``(1) specify which portion, if any, of the amount to be
paid under the covered settlement agreement by a non-Federal
person--
``(A) is expressly specified under the covered
settlement agreement as a civil or criminal penalty or
fine to be paid for a violation of Federal law; or
``(B) is expressly specified under the covered
settlement agreement as not deductible for purposes of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986;
``(2) if no portion of the amount to be paid under the
covered settlement agreement by a non-Federal person is
expressly specified under the covered settlement agreement as a
civil or criminal penalty or fine, include a statement
specifying that is the case; and
``(3) describe in detail--
``(A) any actions the non-Federal person shall take
under the covered settlement agreement in lieu of
payment to the Federal Government or a State or local
government; and
``(B) any payments or compensation the non-Federal
person shall make to other non-Federal persons under
the covered settlement agreement.
``(e) Confidentiality.--The requirement to disclose information
under subsection (d) shall apply to the extent that the information to
be disclosed (or portion thereof) is not subject to a confidentiality
provision that prohibits disclosure of the information (or portion
thereof).
``(f) Reporting.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than January 31 of each year,
the head of an Executive agency that entered into a covered
settlement agreement during the previous calendar year shall
submit to each committee of Congress with jurisdiction over the
activities of the Executive agency a report indicating--
``(A) how many covered settlement agreements the
Executive agency entered into during that previous
calendar year;
``(B) how many covered settlement agreements the
Executive agency entered into during that previous
calendar year that had any terms or conditions that are
required to be kept confidential;
``(C) how many covered settlement agreements the
Executive agency entered into during that previous
calendar year for which all terms and conditions are
required to be kept confidential;
``(D) the total amount of attorney fees, costs, and
expenses paid to non-Federal persons under settlement
agreements (including consent decrees) of the Executive
agency during that previous calendar year; and
``(E) the number of settlement agreements
(including consent decrees) between the Executive
agency and non-Federal persons that involve regulatory
action or regulatory changes, including the
promulgation of new rules, during that previous
calendar year.
``(2) Availability of reports.--The head of an Executive
agency that is required to submit a report under paragraph (1)
shall make the report publicly available in a searchable format
in a prominent location on the Web site of the Executive
agency.''.
(2) Technical and conforming amendment.--The table of
sections for chapter 3 of title 5, United States Code, is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``307. Information regarding settlement agreements.''.
(b) Review of Confidentiality of Settlement Agreements.--Not later
than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller
General of the United States shall submit to Congress a report
regarding how Executive agencies (as defined under section 105 of title
5, United States Code) determine whether the terms of a settlement
agreement or the existence of a settlement agreement will be treated as
confidential, which shall include recommendations, if any, for
legislative or administrative action to increase the transparency of
Government settlements while continuing to protect the legitimate
interests that confidentiality provisions serve.
SEC. 5. EXTENSION OF STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR CERTAIN CRIMES.
Section 3282 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding
at the end the following:
``(c) Financial Institutions.--Except as otherwise expressly
provided by law, no person other than an individual shall be
prosecuted, tried, or punished for any offense involving a financial
institution, corporation, or a subsidiary of a financial institution or
corporation unless the indictment is found or the information is
instituted within 10 years next after such offense shall have been
committed.''.
SEC. 6. INVESTIGATION OF FULLY CULPABLE INDIVIDUALS.
Section 3553(e) of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(1) by striking ``Upon'' and inserting the following:
``(1) In general.--Upon''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(2) Providing assistance.--Any person other than an
individual seeking a sentence below a level established by
statute as a minimum sentence under this subsection shall
provide assistance to the Government in identifying and fully
investigating employees or former employees involved in the
offense.''.
<all>