H.R. 8363 (116th)

Protecting Our Democracy Act

referredUnited States· United States Congress· EN

Introduced

23 September 2020

Last action

23 September 2020 · Introduced

Status

Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Reform, and in addition to the Committees on the Judiciary, the Budget, Transportation and Infrastructure, Rules, Foreign Affairs, Ways and Means, Intelligence (Permanent Select), and House Administration, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

Summary

Protecting Our Democracy Act This bill addresses issues involving (1) abuses of presidential power; (2) checks and balances, accountability, and transparency; and (3) foreign interference in elections. Specifically, regarding abuses of presidential power, the bill requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the President to submit to Congress specified materials relating to certain pardons; prohibits self-pardons by the President; suspends the statute of limitations for any federal offense committed by a sitting President or Vice President; prohibits the acceptance of foreign or domestic emoluments, authorizes civil actions by Congress concerning foreign emoluments, and requires the President to make certain disclosures; and sets forth provisions regarding enforcement authority of the Office of Government Ethics and Office of Special Counsel jurisdiction. To address checks and balances, accountability, and transparency, the bill, among other things authorizes specified actions to enforce congressional subpoenas, requires appropriations to be made available for obligation in a timely manner, imposes limits on presidential declarations of emergencies, requires DOJ to maintain a log of communications between it and the White House regarding certain investigations, requires cause for removal of inspectors general, increases whistleblower protections, reauthorizes the Merit Systems Protection Board, and establishes penalties for political appointees who engage in prohibited political activities. To protect against foreign interference in elections, the bill requires federal campaign reporting of foreign contacts, requires federal campaigns to establish a foreign contacts compliance policy, and specifies that foreign donations to political campaigns and candidates of nonpublic information relating to a candidate are prohibited.

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Timeline

23 September 2020
Introduced
Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Reform, and in addition to the Committees on the Judiciary, the Budget, Transportation and Infrastructure, Rules, Foreign Affairs, Ways and Means, Intelligence (Permanent Select), and House Administration, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Source: IntroReferral
23 September 2020
Referred
Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management.
Source: Committee
23 September 2020
Introduced
Introduced in House
Source: IntroReferral
23 September 2020
Introduced
Introduced in House
Source: IntroReferral

Votes

No vote records are attached yet.

Versions

Introduced in House · 23 September 2020 · Download file

Documents

3 official files

Introduced in House (text)

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Introduced in House (text)
Introduced in House · EN · 23 September 2020
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Introduced in House (PDF)
Introduced in House · EN · 23 September 2020
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Introduced in House
summary · EN · 23 September 2020
Open at official source
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Related records

related to → To amend title 5, United States Code, to allow whistleblowers to disclose information to certain recipients.
related to → Inspector General Protection Act
related to → No President is Above the Law Act of 2020
related to → Prohibiting Foreign Election Assistance Act of 2019
related to → Inspector General Independence Act
related to → Abuse of the Pardon Prevention Act
related to → Merit Systems Protection Board Empowerment Act of 2020
related to → Whistleblower Protection Improvement Act of 2020
related to ← Protecting Our Democracy Act

Showing 9 of 15 related records.

Sources

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Official source: https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/8363
Open data entity: https://api.congress.gov/v3/bill/116/hr/8363
us · 116-hr-8363 · source updated 13 January 2026