Establishment of Office of Congressional Workplace Rights

There is established, as an independent office within the legislative branch of the Federal Government, the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights. The Office shall have a Board of Directors. The Board shall consist of 5 individuals appointed jointly by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Majority Leader of the Senate, and the Minority Leaders of the House of Representatives and the Senate, who are authorized to take such steps as they consider appropriate to ensure the timely appointment of the members of the Board consistent with the requirements of this section. Appointments of the first 5 members of the Board shall be completed not later than 90 days after January 23, 1995. The Chair shall be appointed from members of the Board jointly by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Majority Leader of the Senate, and the Minority Leaders of the House of Representatives and the Senate. Selection and appointment of members of the Board shall be without regard to political affiliation and solely on the basis of fitness to perform the duties of the Office. Members of the Board shall have training or experience in the application of the rights, protections, and remedies under one or more of the laws made applicable under section 1302 of this title. No individual who engages in, or is otherwise employed in, lobbying of the Congress and who is required under the Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act 11 See References in Text note below. to register with the Clerk of the House of Representatives or the Secretary of the Senate shall be eligible for appointment to, or service on, the Board. No member of the Board appointed under subsection (b) may hold or may have held the position of Member of the House of Representatives or Senator, may hold the position of officer or employee of the House of Representatives, Senate, or instrumentality or other entity of the legislative branch (other than the Office), or may have held such a position (other than the position of an officer or employee of the General Accounting Office Personnel Appeals Board,22 See Change of Name note below. an officer or employee of the Office of Fair Employment Practices of the House of Representatives, or officer or employee of the Office of Senate Fair Employment Practices) within 4 years of the date of appointment. A vacancy on the Board shall be filled in the manner in which the original appointment was made. Except as provided in paragraph (2), membership on the Board shall be for 5 years. A member of the Board may be reappointed, but no individual may serve as a member for more than 2 terms. Of the members first appointed to the Board— A member of the Board may serve after the expiration of that member’s term until a successor has taken office. Any member of the Board may be removed from office by a majority decision of the appointing authorities described in subsection (b), but only for— In removing a member of the Board, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate shall state in writing to the member of the Board being removed the specific reasons for the removal. Each member of the Board shall be compensated, for each day (including travel time) during which such member is engaged in the performance of the duties of the Board, at a rate equal to the daily equivalent of the lesser of— The rate of pay of a member may be prorated based on the portion of the day during which the member is engaged in the performance of Board duties. Each member of the Board shall receive travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for employees of agencies under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, for each day the member is engaged in the performance of duties away from the home or regular place of business of the member. The Office shall— The Board and the Office shall be subject to oversight (except with respect to the disposition of individual cases) by the Committee on Rules and Administration and the Committee on Governmental Affairs 2 of the Senate and the Committee on House Oversight 2 of the House of Representatives. The Office shall be open for business, including receipt of requests for counseling under section 1402 of this title, not later than 1 year after January 23, 1995. Members of the Board and officers and employees of the Office shall file the financial disclosure reports required under subchapter I of chapter 131 of title 5 with the Clerk of the House of Representatives. Subject to the rules issued by the applicable committee pursuant to paragraph (2): The Office shall prepare and submit to Congress, and publish on the public website of the Office, an annual report regarding payments from the account described in section 1415(a) of this title that were the result of claims alleging a violation of part A of subchapter II (referred to in this subsection as “covered payments”). The reporting required under this paragraph shall— for a covered payment, or the portion of a covered payment, not described in paragraph (2)— The reporting required under this paragraph— Not later than 180 days after December 21, 2018, the Committee on House Administration of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Rules and Administration of the Senate shall each issue rules establishing the content, format, and other requirements for the reporting required under paragraph (1)(B)(i) with respect to— The rules issued under subparagraph (A)— In preparing, submitting, and publishing the reports required under paragraph (1), the Office shall ensure that the identity or position of any claimant is not disclosed. In carrying out paragraph (3), the Executive Director, in consultation with the Board, may make an appropriate redaction to the data included in the report described in paragraph (1) if the Executive Director, in consultation with the Board, determines that including the data considered for redaction may lead to the identity or position of a claimant unintentionally being disclosed. The report shall note each redaction and include a statement that the redaction was made solely for the purpose of avoiding such an unintentional disclosure of the identity or position of a claimant. The Executive Director shall retain a copy of the report described in paragraph (1), without redactions. In this subsection, the term “claimant” means an individual who received an award or settlement, or who made an allegation of a violation against an employing office, under part A of subchapter II. The Office shall establish and maintain a program for the permanent retention of its records, including the records of preliminary reviews, mediations, hearings, and other proceedings conducted under subchapter IV.