HR.3308 - Taxpayer Transparency Act Of 2013

Received In The Senate And Read Twice And Referred To The Committee On Homeland Security And Governmental Affairs.
February 27th 2014 @ 12:00 AM

On Motion To Suspend The Rules And Pass The Bill, As Amended Agreed To By Voice Vote.
February 26th 2014 @ 12:39 PM

Debate - The House Proceeded With Forty Minutes Of Debate On H.r. 3308.
February 26th 2014 @ 12:25 PM

Considered Under Suspension Of The Rules.
February 26th 2014 @ 12:25 PM

Mr. Farenthold Moved To Suspend The Rules And Pass The Bill, As Amended.
February 26th 2014 @ 12:25 PM

Placed On The Union Calendar, Calendar No. 266.
February 25th 2014 @ 2:25 PM

Reported (amended) By The Committee On Oversight And Government Reform. H. Rept. 113-358.
February 25th 2014 @ 2:25 PM

Ordered To Be Reported (amended) By Voice Vote.
February 11th 2014 @ 12:00 AM

Committee Consideration And Mark-up Session Held.
February 11th 2014 @ 12:00 AM

Referred To The House Committee On Oversight And Government Reform.
October 22nd 2013 @ 12:00 AM

H.R.3308 or the Taxpayer Transparency Act of 2013 is a bill to ensure that information indicting the way federal documents are produced and paid for be included on the document.

H.R.3308 or the Taxpayer Transparency Act of 2013 requires that federal agencies include wording indicating that their advertising and educational printed, audio, video and email messages are being paid for at the expense of taxpayer funds.   There are exceptions included for advertisements to solicit contractors for federal contracts and for employment retention materials for the armed services. 

H.R.3308 would likely impact every federal agency, as they would need to change their multi-media communications with the public to include a disclosure. 

H.R.3308 or the Taxpayer Transparency Act of 2013 was written in response to recent large advertising campaign purchases by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to promote the Affordable Care Act (ACA) or Obamacare. H.R.3308 will require that most communications from federal agencies to the public will contain a disclosure stating the source of the funding paying for the advertisement or educational information.

There are two exceptions in H.R.3308 for these mandatory disclosers and they include materials advertising a federal contract to possible contractors and materials for armed service employment retention. 

H.R.3308 sponsor Rep. Billy Long (R-MO) spoke about the legislation and the need he felt for funding disclosure on federal agency materials.

“I believe Americans have the right to know how the government spends their dollars. The Taxpayer Transparency Act requires the Executive Branch to be transparent when using tax dollars to promote federal programs by including a disclaimer that the advertisement or promotional material is paid for by the taxpayers.”

H.R.3308 is co-sponsored by 112 House Republican Representatives. 

H.R.3308 was introduced on October 22, 2013 by sponsor Rep. Billy Long (R-MO) and referred to the Committee on Government Oversight and Reform.  The Committee will hold a mark-up hearing on February 11, 2014 to consider H.R.3308.

The Committee on Government Oversight and Reform is scheduled to hold a mark-up hearing on H.R.3308 on February 11, 2014.  It is likely this legislation will be reported by the Committee and head to the House floor for consideration.  

The White House has taken no official position on H.R.3308.  

No CBO report ordered yet!

Section 1: Titles H.R.3308 the Taxpayer Transparency Act of 2013.

Section 2: Explains the regulations for federal agencies when communicating with the public.

Section 2a: States that federal agencies must identify the funding source for their advertisements.

Section 2b: Explains specifically how printed, radio, audio, video and email materials will need to disclose their funding source.

Section 2c: Lists exceptions for these disclosure requirements, which include an advertisement for a federal contract and armed service employment retention materials.

Section 2d: Provides definitions for terms used in the text of H.R.3308.

Section 2e: Directs that funds used for federal agency advertising must be from the advertisement budget for that agency.

Congress’ power to consider such a bill is found in the necessary and proper and spending clauses of the US Constitution.

“To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States or in any Department or Officer thereof.”

Article I, Section 8

“No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law; and a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time.”

Article I, Section 9

Amendments

There are currently no amendments.

Related Bills  

There is currently an identical bill in the Senate, S.1921 from sponsor Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO) and is currently awaiting consideration in the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. 

Link to source documents, including:

Sponsor Press Release: http://long.house.gov/press-releases/long-americans-have-the-right-to-know-how-the-government-spends-their-dollars/

H.R.3308 is approximately 5 pages long, and has a Flesch-Kincaid readability score of 33.3 out of 100. Higher scores indicate material that is easier to read; lower numbers designate passages that are more difficult to comprehend.