PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.
H.R.4245 / 113th Congress

Transparency in Government Act of 2014

Referred to the Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet.

Official summary

Version 00 · Introduced in House · Mar 13, 2014

Transparency in Government Act of 2014 - Amends the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 and the Rules of the House of Representatives to expand disclosure requirements for the personal financial information of Members of Congress and for foreign travel, gifts, earmarks, and representational allowances. Requires the Comptroller General (GAO) to study the effect of written requests by Members of Congress to executive agencies to carry out and provide funding for projects and activities.

Requires each congressional committee to: (1)  post on its website the schedule for public hearings and markups conducted by each committee, and (2) submit to the Clerk of the House of Representatives a complete list of all public hearings and markup schedules of the committee and its subcommittees for posting on the House website.

Requires the Clerk and the Secretary of the Senate to post on their respective websites voting record information for each Member of Congress.

Showing the opening paragraphs of the official summary.

Read full official summaryShow less

Public Access to Congressional Research Service Reports Resolution of 2014 or the Congressional Research Service Electronic Accessibility Resolution of 2014 - Requires the Clerk of the House of Representatives, in consultation with the Congressional Research Service (CRS), to establish and maintain a centralized, searchable, bulk downloadable, electronic database consisting of CRS issue briefs, reports, authorization of appropriation products and appropriation products, and similar material intended or available for general congressional distribution. Exempts from public disclosure information that is determined to be confidential or any document that is the product of a confidential research request made by a Member, officer, employee, or office of the House of Representatives and that is not intended for distribution.

Lobbyist Disclosure Enhancement Act - Directs the Attorney General to establish the Lobbying Disclosure Act Enforcement Task Force, which shall have primary responsibility for investigating and prosecuting each case referred to the Attorney General under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995.

Amends the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 to require: (1) expedited online registration of lobbyists, (2) more frequent disclosure of contributions made by lobbyists, and (3) a system for assigning an identification number to each lobbyist who is required to register or report under such Act. Requires lobbyists registered under such Act to complete an ethics training program.

Amends the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 to require the USAspending.gov website to provide specified information on federal awards.

Requires each agency Inspector General to conduct an annual audit of the data used on USAspending.gov and report on such audit to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

Requires OMB to: (1) revise its guidance to federal agencies on reporting federal awards, and (2) ensure that the unique identifier used to link information about an award recipient is also used to link information about that recipient on the Federal Awardee Performance Integrity Information System.

Amends the Duncan Hunter National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009 to require information about individuals receiving awards or grants to be maintained on the Federal Awardee Performance Integrity Information System for 10 years.

Requires: (1) every advertisement or other communication paid for by a federal agency to include a prominent notice that the agency has paid for such advertisement or communication, (2) disclosure of White House visitor logs with personal information redacted, (3) online disclosure of OMB budget justifications, (4) disclosure of draft proposed or final rules by the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, and (4) online disclosure of tax information of nonprofit organizations and registration information of foreign agents.

Requires each federal agency to: (1) make available in an electronic format its completed responses to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, and (2) use FOAIonline to log, track, and publish all FOIA requests received by the agency.

Directs the Comptroller General to: (1) conduct a study of the effect on the U.S. Supreme Court of video recording oral arguments and making those recordings publicly available on the website of the Court, and (2) conduct an audit of the public access to court electronic records system (Pacer) maintained by the Administrative Office of the United States Courts.

Requires the Chief Justice of the United States to ensure that the audio of an oral argument made before the Supreme Court is recorded and made publicly available on the website of the Court at the same time that it is recorded.

Requires the U.S. Judicial Conference to post on its website any report filed by a judicial officer.

Read the summary on Congress.gov
PlainBill analysis is coming later. This page presents official source data. We have not yet published a PlainBill explanation for this bill.

Who introduced it

Rep. Quigley, Mike [D-IL-5] · D–IL

Committees

  • Judiciary Committee
  • Ways and Means Committee
  • Ethics Committee
  • Committee on House Administration
  • Rules Committee
  • Oversight and Government Reform Committee
1 cosponsorship records, including any withdrawals

Actions

A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.

  1. Referred to the Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet.

  2. Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committees on Rules, House Administration, the Judiciary, Ethics, and Ways and Means, 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.

  3. Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committees on Rules, House Administration, the Judiciary, Ethics, and Ways and Means, 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.

  4. Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committees on Rules, House Administration, the Judiciary, Ethics, and Ways and Means, 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.

  5. Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committees on Rules, House Administration, the Judiciary, Ethics, and Ways and Means, 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.

  6. Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committees on Rules, House Administration, the Judiciary, Ethics, and Ways and Means, 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.

  7. Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committees on Rules, House Administration, the Judiciary, Ethics, and Ways and Means, 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.

  8. Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR H2364)

  9. Introduced in House

  10. Introduced in House

Bill text & related measures

Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.

Related bills identified by Congress.gov

No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.

Source last updated: Aug 12, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.

Explore the bill from different angles

Choose a perspective, copy a prompt, and paste it into your preferred AI. Each prompt includes the bill version and available official source links, and asks for counterarguments as well as supporting evidence.

Neutral evidence review

Objective

Analyze H.R.4245 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.

View full prompt & sources
Fairness and public impact

Progressive lens

Examine H.R.4245 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.

View full prompt & sources
Institutions and government scope

Conservative lens

Examine H.R.4245 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.

View full prompt & sources
Individual rights and government power

Liberty lens

Examine H.R.4245 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.

View full prompt & sources