S.Amdt. 463

SA 463. Mr. DeMINT submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill H.R. 1, making supplemental appropriations for job preservation and creation, infrastructure investment, energy efficiency and science, assistance to the unemployed, and State and local fiscal stabilization, for fiscal year ending September 30, 2009, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

At the appropriate place, insert the following:

SEC. ___. BAN ON EXECUTIVE IMPLEMENTATION OF EARMARKS.

(a) Regulations.--Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this section, the head of each Federal department or agency shall promulgate regulations to--

(1) prohibit their department or agency from making decisions to commit, obligate, or expend funds for any earmark this is not based on the text of laws, including in any report of a committee of Congress, joint explanatory statement of a committee of conference of the Congress, statement of managers concerning a bill in the Congress, or any other non-statutory statement or indication of views of the Congress, or a House, committee, Member, officer, or staff thereof; and

(2) prohibit their staff from allowing oral or written communications concerning earmarks to supersede statutory criteria, competitive awards, or merit-based decision making.

(b) Public Availability of Requests.--Not later than 15 days after receipt, the head of a Federal department or agency shall make publicly available on the Internet any written communications (or a transcription or summary of an oral communication) from the Congress, or a House, committee, Member, officer, or staff thereof, recommending that funds be committed, obligated, or expended by the agency or department on any earmark.

(c) Definition.--In this section, the term “earmark” shall include the meaning of the term “congressionally directed spending item” in paragraph 5 of rule XLIV of the Standing Rules of the Senate and the term “congressional earmark” in paragraph 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives.