Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Congressional Oversight Act”.
Congressional Oversight Act
A BILL
To require access to Federal facilities by Member of Congress, and for other purposes.
Sec. 2 Access to Federal buildings required for Members of Congress
Findings— The Congress finds the following:
Members of Congress have a responsibility to conduct oversight and investigations over the agencies of the Federal Government.
Members of Congress must determine appropriate funding levels for the agencies of the Government.
Certain agencies have self-determined that they have the power to deny Members of Congress access to Federal facilities.
Members have the right and duty to inspect and observe any Federal agency, building, or facility at a time of their choosing and upon twenty-four hours’ notice.
Requirement— The head of an agency must grant access to the Federal facility for which a Member of Congress has provided proper notice in accordance with subsection (c).
Proper notice— For purposes of this section, proper notice means a Member of Congress has submitted a written notice (including by email, fax, or hand delivery) to an agency that—
the Member intends to visit a facility of the agency at least 24 hours before the time of the intended visit;
includes a description of the date and time of the visit, the facility to be visited, and the purpose of the visit; and
may be submitted to the head of the agency.
Agency defined— The term agency has the meaning given that term in section 101 of title 31, United States Code.