GARD Act

This bill tightens how foreign gifts to U.S. officials and candidates are tracked and shared with the public. Agencies must send a combined list of these gifts—and what happened to them—to the Office of Government Ethics and the State Department, making oversight easier. It adds candidates for President, Vice President, and Congress to the reporting rules, and it bars accepting gifts from any “country of concern” named by the State Department .

The bill also updates reporting. The annual deadline moves to May 15. Reports must include more detail, like the gift’s U.S. market value, tracking numbers, and where the gift ends up (for example: bought by the recipient, sent to the National Archives, kept for official use, or transferred) . Agencies must make these gift lists publicly accessible within 120 days of the law taking effect, similar to how financial disclosure reports are public, and a $200 late fee applies if a required statement is over 30 days late (with possible waivers for good cause).

Key points

• Who is affected: Federal employees and candidates for President, Vice President, and Congress; gifts from foreign individuals or entities are covered.
• What changes: Agencies share combined gift lists with ethics and State officials; stricter details in reports; public access required; late fees for late filings; ban on gifts from “countries of concern” .
• When: Applies to people who must file within 30 days after the law is enacted; agencies must enable public access within 120 days.