“A bill to require the President to publish a statement of reasons for pardons, and for other purposes.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section defines, for purposes of the Act, (1) "executive clemency" as any exercise by the President of the pardon power under Article II, Section 2, clause 1 of the U.S. Constitution, including any pardon, commutation, reprieve, or remission of a fine; and (2) "victim" as that term is defined in 34 U.S.C. 20141(e) (i.e., a person directly and proximately harmed as a result of a federal offense).
This section requires the President, on the date of granting executive clemency, to publish in the Federal Register and on the President's official website a written explanation of the reasons for the grant.
This section establishes duties for the Pardon Attorney concerning potential grants of executive clemency by the President. Specifically, it (1) directs the Pardon Attorney, upon becoming aware of any such consideration, to prepare a Justice Impact Statement—including descriptions of victim contact efforts, required determinations, and any victim statements—and provide it to the President and Congress within 30 days; (2) requires Department of Justice and Executive Office of the President employees to immediately notify the Pardon Attorney of any such consideration; (3) mandates reasonable efforts to solicit victim written statements and opinions, and opinions from the Attorney General, Secretary of Homeland Security, and relevant law enforcement officials on impacts to investigations or prosecutions; and (4) requires completion and submission of the statement even if after clemency is granted.
This section amends the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (LDA) to include lobbying contacts pertaining to potential grants of executive clemency—defined as pardons, commutations of sentence, reprieves, or remissions of fine—within the definition of lobbying activities. (As background, the LDA generally requires semiannual registration and quarterly reporting of lobbying contacts with covered legislative and executive branch officials by lobbyists who spend at least 20% of their time on such activities.) It further (1) expands the definition of lobbyist to encompass any individual employed or retained for services including at least one such contact, regardless of the percentage of time spent on lobbying (thus eliminating the standard 20% threshold); (2) requires registration within two days of the first such contact or employment/retention for such purpose, regardless of total income or expenses; and (3) mandates reports within two days of each such contact.
This section directs the Pardon Attorney to conduct a study on compliance with this Act, beginning 180 days after enactment and every other year thereafter, and to submit a report to Congress by April 1 of each year following each study's completion containing the study's findings and recommendations to improve compliance.
This section declares the provisions of the Act and its amendments severable, such that the invalidity of any provision, amendment, or its application to any person or circumstance does not affect the remaining provisions, amendments, or their application to any other person or circumstance.