Cramer: Good Government Reforms Included in Legislation Passed Today

Press Release

Congressman Kevin Cramer supported legislation passed by the House of Representatives today focusing on strengthening federal government policies and procedures.

H.R. 4361, the Government Reform and Improvement Act, incorporated text of seven previously introduced bills addressing various good government reforms approved earlier this year by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. It enhances federal cybersecurity by allowing agency heads to take timely and appropriate action to limit, restrict, or prohibit employee access to any website determined to present a security risk. This denial of access could be implemented without first being subject to collective bargaining. The bill requires the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to create guidelines to prohibit access to pornographic or explicit websites from a federal computer.

It extends to two years the length of a probationary period before an appointment as a supervisor or manager becomes final, and tightens performance accountability and probationary periods for senior-level federal employees. It requires the OMB to issue an annual report on the use of "official time" by federal employees, which is time spent performing union work in lieu of regularly assigned duties. It prohibits federal agencies from proposing or finalizing major "midnight rules" during a moratorium period after Election Day through Inauguration Day. The bill also amends Internal Revenue Service laws to require the agency to maintain all "preserved record" material for at least three years.

"The provisions in this bill will make government employees more accountable to American taxpayers," said Cramer. "It incorporates a broad array of common-sense reforms which will increase transparency and improve the service of government agencies."

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