Sponsors
The bill strengthens transparency and tightens revolving‑door and post‑employment rules to reduce undue influence and improve accountability, at the cost of restricting post‑government job opportunities, increasing compliance and enforcement burdens, and raising privacy and legal‑certainty concerns.
All Americans (taxpayers): the bill reduces opportunities for undue influence by banning former lawmakers from lobbying Congress and extending cooling-off periods, lowering corruption risk and improving legislative integrity.
Reporters, watchdogs, researchers, and the public: makes lobbying data easier to find and analyze (single searchable site, downloadable/API access, and centralized disclosures), increasing transparency and enabling faster accountability.
Taxpayers and compliant actors: strengthens enforcement (including making violations punishable under 18 U.S.C. §216 and raising penalties) to deter unlawful or undisclosed lobbying and improve accountability.
Former Members of Congress and congressional staff: will lose or see sharply curtailed post‑employment opportunities (lobbying and related representation) for multiple years, reducing income and career options.
Prospective public servants and congressional offices: longer bans and hiring restrictions could deter qualified candidates from entering or staying in public service and shrink the experienced talent pool for congressional offices, potentially raising recruitment costs and reducing expertise available to legislators.
All parties interacting with Congress: broad or vague language (e.g., “appearing before,” “intent to influence,” and the scope of restrictions) could spawn litigation, chill legitimate interactions, and create uncertainty about lawful activity.
Based on analysis of 7 sections of legislative text.
Prohibits former Senators, Representatives, and certain senior congressional staff from lobbying Congress for life and lengthens several shorter post-employment cooling-off periods to six years. Requires a joint, searchable public lobbyist disclosure website, new annual filings by large lobbying firms listing former covered officials they employ, a six-year hiring bar for lobbyists who had substantial contacts with a Member or committee, and raises a civil penalty to $500,000. Includes a small appropriation to build the website and directs disclosures to the U.S. Attorney for enforcement review.
Bans former Senators and Representatives from lobbying Congress for life, lengthens some cooling-off periods to 6 years, creates a joint lobbyist database, tightens hiring and disclosure rules, and raises penalties to $500,000.
Introduced May 21, 2025 by Michael F. Bennet · Last progress May 21, 2025