The House Judiciary Committee is at the forefront of some of the most significant issues facing our nation, including protecting constitutional freedoms and civil liberties, oversight of the U.S. Departments of Justice and Homeland Security, legal and regulatory reform, innovation, competition and anti-trust laws, terrorism and crime, and immigration reform.
The lists below highlight the work done by the House Judiciary Committee and its five subcommittees in the 114th Congress within the framework of aggressive oversight of the Obama Administration, promoting fiscal responsibility, relief from excessive regulation, and encouraging innovation, to name a few.
Downloadable PDF versions: 114th Congress (updated 12/8/16); 114th Congress Accomplishments, 1st Session, 114th Congress Accomplishments, 2nd Session
For a comprehensive look at the legislative action by the Committee, click here.
AGGRESSIVE OVERSIGHT of the OBAMA ADMINISTRATION
COMMITTEE ACTION: Oversight hearing on the Department of Justice (DOJ) with Attorney General Loretta Lynch.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Oversight hearing on the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Created the Task Force on Executive Overreach to examine the breakdown of the separation of powers and checks and balances that has led to the unprecedented increase in presidential power.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Two hearings examining misconduct by the IRS Commissioner John Koskinen.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Oversight hearing on the federal court system.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 5063 – (Rep. Goodlatte) The Stop Settlement Slush Funds Act blocks the Justice Department from forcing private companies to send money to the Administration’s liberal pet projects.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Oversight hearing on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with Secretary Jeh Johnson.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Oversight hearing on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) with Director Sarah Saldana.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Oversight hearing on the U.S. Copyright Office with Register of Copyrights Maria Pallante.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Oversight hearing on the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Oversight hearing on the unconstitutionality of the President’s executive overreach on immigration.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Oversight hearing on the Administration’s proposal to transition oversight over the Internet’s domain name system away from the U.S. and to an international corporation.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Oversight hearing on the FCC’s net neutrality rule to regulate broadband Internet service.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Oversight hearing of the antitrust enforcement agencies.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Oversight hearing examining dangerous policies adopted by some state and local governments that refuse to honor the federal government’s authority to enforce immigration laws.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Oversight hearing examining misconduct in federal law enforcement.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Oversight hearing examining the Justice Department’s controversial settlements with Bank of America and Citigroup and their required donations to activist groups.
HOUSE PASSAGE: Amendment to H.R. 2578, the FY16 Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, which blocks the Justice Department from using settlement money to fund pet projects.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Letter sent to the ATF Director about the Administration’s plan to ban a popular bullet used for sport shooting and home protection resulting in the Administration dropping the proposed ban.
PROMOTING FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 2947 – (Rep. Trott) The Financial Institution Bankruptcy Act strengthens our nation’s bankruptcy laws to ensure that shareholders and creditors of a financial institution, not taxpayers, bear the risk and the losses associated with the failure of a financial institution.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Hearing to examine the merits of allowing Puerto Rico’s municipalities access to chapter 9 of the Bankruptcy Code and austerity measures that Puerto Rico should consider.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Successfully included a provision in the House Rules tasking the Judiciary Committee with compiling all applications from State legislatures calling for a convention for proposing amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
AN EFFICIENT and JUST LEGAL SYSTEM
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 1927 – (Rep. Goodlatte) The Fairness in Class Action Litigation Act strengthens federal rules to help ensure actual victims receive just compensation.
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 3624 – (Rep. Buck) The Fraudulent Joinder Prevention Act addresses litigation abuse by giving federal judges greater discretion to remove innocent local defendants from lawsuits.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 3765 – (Rep. Poe) The ADA Education and Reform Act encourages greater access under the Americans with Disabilities Act by giving small business owners an opportunity to fix the problem before a lawsuit is filed.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 526 – (Rep. Farenthold) The Furthering Asbestos Claim Transparency (FACT) Act brings transparency to asbestos litigation practices.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 758 – (Rep. Smith) The Lawsuit Abuse Reduction Act (LARA) requires mandatory sanctions for attorneys who file frivolous lawsuits.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 1927 – (Rep. Goodlatte) The Fairness in Class Action Litigation Act strengthens federal rules to help ensure actual victims receive just compensation.
A FAIR IMMIGRATION SYSTEM THAT WORKS for AMERICA
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 4731 – (Rep. Labrador) The Refugee Program Integrity Restoration Act reforms the refugee program by curbing fraud and strengthening public safety and national security.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 5203 – (Rep. Forbes) The Visa Integrity and Security Act strengthens visa security, curbs fraud, and enhances the integrity of the immigration system.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 3636 – (Rep. Walters) The Oversee Visa Integrity and Stakeholder Advisories Act makes an important improvement to the O visa program which will provide needed transparency while helping to combat fraud.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Hearing examining the swell of unaccompanied alien minors and family units crossing the southwest border and the Administration’s lack of vetting of unaccompanied children’s sponsors in the U.S.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Hearing examining the EB-5 investor visa program, which – while intended to create jobs and inject capital into the U.S. economy – has become plagued with fraud and abuse and poses security concerns.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Hearing examining the significant public safety threat posed by criminal aliens and the victims they have left in their wake as a result of the Obama Administration’s abandonment of immigration enforcement.
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 3009 – (Rep. Hunter) The Enforce the Law for Sanctuary Cities Act withholds federal grants from states or localities that refuse to comply with federal immigration laws.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 1147 – (Rep. Smith) The Legal Workforce Act requires E-Verify nationwide and helps employers determine who is lawfully here and who can accept employment.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 1153 – (Rep. Chaffetz) The Asylum Reform and Border Protection Act reverses many of the Obama Administration’s policies that have contributed to the crisis on our southern border, such as weak standards for asylum claims that enable the Administration’s rubberstamping of fraudulent applications and policies that prevent Border Patrol agents from accessing federal lands along the border.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 1148 – (Rep. Gowdy) The Michael Davis, Jr. and Danny Oliver in Honor of State and Local Law Enforcement Act strengthens interior enforcement by allowing states to enforce our immigration laws.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 1149 – (Rep. J. Carter) The Protection of Children Act ensures that unaccompanied alien minors who make the dangerous journey to the U.S. are safely returned home.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Letter sent to Secretary Johnson regarding rampant fraud in the Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) program.
THE FREEDOM to PROSPER: PROTECTING AMERICANS’ LIBERTIES
SIGNED INTO LAW (P.L. 114-126): H.R. 1428 – (Rep. Sensenbrenner) The Judicial Redress Act strengthens partnerships with our allies by giving covered foreign citizens the ability to seek judicial redress in U.S. courts to ensure that their privacy is protected when they give similar rights to U.S. citizens.
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 699 – (Rep. Yoder) The Email Privacy Act makes necessary updates to current law to protect Americans’ digital privacy and provide law enforcement with tools needed for its investigations.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Committee continued working on a bipartisan initiative to reform a variety of criminal justice issues, including over-criminalization, sentencing reform, prison and reentry reform, protecting citizens through improved criminal procedures and policing strategies, and civil asset forfeiture reform. As part of the initiative the Committee passed the following bills in 2016:
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 3406 – (Rep. Sensenbrenner) The Second Chance Reauthorization Act helps prisoners who have completed their sentence to successfully return to society.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 1854 – (Rep. D. Collins) The Comprehensive Justice and Mental Health Act promotes public safety and community health by facilitating collaboration among criminal justice, juvenile justice, mental health treatment, and substance abuse systems.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 5283 – (Rep. Sensenbrenner) The Due Process Act strengthens protections for Americans’ property through civil asset forfeiture reform.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 759 – (Rep. Chaffetz) The Corrections and Recidivism Reduction Act reforms the federal prison system, strengthens public safety, enhances prison security, and provides inmates the help they need.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 320 – (Rep. Sensenbrenner) The Rapid DNA Act updates current law to allow Rapid DNA analysis machines to be used at local police stations. This technology expedites DNA analysis for suspect identification purposes.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 68 – (Rep. Jackson Lee) The Juvenile Accountability Block Grant Reauthorization Act reauthorizes a federal grant program targeted at reducing crime among youth.
SIGNED INTO LAW (P.L. 114-109) : H.R. 2048 – (Rep. Sensenbrenner) The USA FREEDOM Act reforms our intelligence–gathering programs operated under FISA, including ending the bulk collection of Americans data.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Committee launched a bipartisan initiative to reform a variety of criminal justice issues, including over-criminalization, sentencing reform, prison and reentry reform, protecting citizens through improved criminal procedures and policing strategies, and civil asset forfeiture reform.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Hearing held on First Amendment protections on public college and university campuses.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Hearing on ensuring the protection of religious liberty in the U.S.
SECURITY FOR CITIZENS and BUSINESSES
SIGNED INTO LAW (P.L. 114-115): H.R. 228 – (Rep. LoBiondo) The Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program Reauthorization reauthorizes the bulletproof vest program for state and local law enforcement officers.
SIGNED INTO LAW (P.L. 114-133): H.R. 472 – (Rep. McKinley) The Eric Williams Correctional Officer Protection Act allows trained Bureau of Prisons officers to use pepper spray to reduce acts of violence committed by prisoners.
SIGNED INTO LAW (P.L. 114-180): H.R. 2137 – (Rep. D. Collins) The Federal Law Enforcement Self Defense Protection Act ensures that federal officers are able to defend and protect themselves on and off-duty.
SIGNED INTO LAW (P.L. 114-154): H.R. 3380 – (Rep. Marino) The Transnational Drug Trafficking Act combats drug trafficking and the importation of chemicals used to make illicit drugs in the U.S.
AWAITING PRESIDENT’S SIGNATURE: H.R. 5046 – (Rep. Sensenbrenner) The Comprehensive Opioid Abuse Reduction Act combats the opioid epidemic by establishing a streamlined, comprehensive opioid abuse grant program, which includes training and resources for first responders and law enforcement, drug courts, and residential abuse treatment.
AWAITING PRESIDENT’S SIGNATURE: H.R. 4985 – (Rep. Katko) The Kingpin Designation Improvement Act protects classified information in court proceedings involving drug kingpins.
AWAITING PRESIDENT’S SIGNATURE: H.R. 5052 – (Rep. McCarthy) The Opioid Program Evaluation Act increases the transparency and accountability of the comprehensive opioid abuse grant program.
AWAITING PRESIDENT’S SIGNATURE: H.R. 5048 – (Rep. Guinta) The Good Samaritan Assessment Act requires GAO to study state and local Good Samaritan laws that protect caregivers, law enforcement personnel, and first responders from criminal or civil liability.
AWAITING PRESIDENT’S SIGNATURE: H.R. 4584 – (Rep. J. Carter) The POLICE Act allows law enforcement and medical personnel across the country to use federal grant funds to train for active shooter situations.
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 4240 – (Rep. Jackson Lee) The No Fly for Foreign Fighters Act ensures the terrorist watchlist is operating efficiently and effectively in light of evolving threats from ISIS.
AWAITING PRESIDENT’S SIGNATURE: H.R. 3394 – (Rep. Posey) The Clarifying Amendment to Provide Terrorism Victims Equity Act allows the blocked assets of foreign terrorist drug dealers to be used to compensate victims of terrorist attacks that they perpetrated.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 3892 – (Rep. Diaz-Balart) calls on the Administration to recognize the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 5578 – (Rep. Walters) The Survivors’ Bill of Rights Act provides protections and access to a legal process for survivors of sexual assault.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Hearing examining ways to preserve the benefits of strong encryption – including the protection of Americans’ privacy and information security – while also ensuring law enforcement has the tools needed to keep us safe and prevent crime.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Created a bipartisan encryption working group with the House Energy and Commerce Committee to examine the complicated legal and policy issues surrounding encryption.
SIGNED INTO LAW: H.R. 1269 (P.L. 114-12) – (Rep. Reichert) The Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu National Blue Alert Act tracks down those who attack law enforcement officers.
SIGNED INTO LAW (P.L. 144-22): H.R. 181 – (Rep. Poe) The Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act boosts support and protection for domestic human trafficking victims by increasing and streamlining law enforcement resources, enhancing victims’ services, and strengthening our laws to ensure that both buyers and sellers engaged in sex trafficking are held accountable for their crimes.
SIGNED INTO LAW (P.L. 144-22): H.R. 159 – (Rep. Paulsen) The Stop Exploitation Through Trafficking Act provides incentives to states to adopt safe harbor laws that treat trafficked minors as victims, rather than as criminals or delinquents.
SIGNED INTO LAW (P.L. 144-22): H.R. 285 – (Rep. Wagner) The Stop Advertising Victims of Exploitation Act criminalizes those who knowingly advertise or profit from advertisements that offer the commercial exploitation of minors and trafficking victims.
SIGNED INTO LAW (P.L. 144-22): H.R. 350 – (Rep. Noem) The Human Trafficking Prevention, Intervention, and Recovery Act launches a review that will look into federal and state trafficking prevention activities in order to identity best practices to stop human trafficking.
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 1656 (Rep. Goodlatte) The Secret Service Improvements Act reforms the U.S. Secret Service in order to restore it as an exceptional law enforcement agency.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.Con.Res.13 – (Rep. McKinley) calls on the Administration to designate the Taliban as a terrorist organization.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Hearing on domestic terrorism and the increasing threat posed by the Islamic State.
PROTECTING AMERICAN VALUES
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 4676 – (Rep. Rooney) The Preventing Crimes Against Veterans Act protects veterans from financial predators who target them for their own financial gain.
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 7 – (Rep. C. Smith) The No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act provides that the federal government should not make taxpayers pay for abortions or insurance coverage that includes abortion.
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 889 – (Rep. Chabot) The Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act allows U.S. museums and schools to borrow foreign government-owned artwork and cultural artifacts.
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 36 – (Rep. Franks) The Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act bans abortions with limited exceptions in the U.S. after 20 weeks post fertilization.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Launched an investigation into allegations that Planned Parenthood abortion doctors altered abortion procedures in order to harvest the organs and body parts of aborted children for money.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Letter sent to Attorney General Lynch demanding that DOJ investigate potential violations of the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act by Planned Parenthood.
COMMITEEE ACTION: Led the reading of the U.S. Constitution on the House floor at the start of the 114th Congress.
RELIEF from EXCESSIVE REGULATION
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 1155 – (Rep. J. Smith) The Searching for and Cutting Regulations that are Unnecessarily Burdensome (SCRUB) Act institutes an independent regulatory review commission to examine regulatory programs that could be repealed to reduce unnecessary regulatory burdens.
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 712 – (Rep. D. Collins) The Sunshine for Regulatory Decrees and Settlements Act prevents secret settlement deals between federal agencies and pro-regulatory plaintiffs that result in new federal regulations for everyone.
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 1759 – (Rep. Ratcliffe) The All Economic Regulations are Transparent Act requires bureaucrats to provide more timely detailed information and greater transparency regarding planned or proposed regulations and prevents new rules from taking effect if they fail to do so.
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 690 – (Rep. Luetkemeyer) The Providing Accountability Through Transparency Act requires any new proposed regulation to include a 100-word, plain-language summary of the rule online.
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 4321 – (Rep. Ratcliffe) The Separation of Powers Restoration Act restores the proper balance of power by requiring federal courts to once again carefully scrutinize agencies’ interpretations and decisions regarding the statutes passed by Congress.
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 427 – (Rep. T. Young) The Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act requires Congressional approval for any federal regulations that have an impact of $100 million or more before they can go into effect.
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 185 – (Rep. Goodlatte) The Regulatory Accountability Act requires federal bureaucrats to adopt the least costly method of implementing a law.
HOUSE PASSAGE: H.R. 527 – (Rep. Chabot) The Small Business Improvements Act requires federal agencies to better assess the impacts of their regulations on small business and to look for ways to reduce unnecessary burdens.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 348 – (Rep. Marino) The Responsibly and Professionally Invigorating Development (RAPID) Act streamlines the federal permitting process so that new construction and energy projects are not tied up in years of regulatory red tape.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 1155 – (Rep. J. Smith) The Searching for and Cutting Regulations that are Unnecessarily Burdensome (SCRUB) Act institutes an independent regulatory review commission to examine regulatory programs that could be repealed to reduce unnecessary regulatory burdens.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 1759 – (Rep. Ratcliffe) The All Economic Regulations are Transparent Act requires bureaucrats to provide more timely detailed information and greater transparency regarding planned or proposed regulations and prevents new rules from taking effect if they fail to do so.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 712 – (Rep. D. Collins) The Sunshine for Regulatory Decrees and Settlements Act prevents secret settlement deals between federal agencies and pro-regulatory plaintiffs that result in new federal regulations for everyone.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 690 – (Rep. Luetkemeyer) The Providing Accountability Through Transparency Act requires any new proposed regulation to include a 100-word, plain-language summary of the rule online.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 1643 – (Rep. L. Smith) The Digital Goods and Services Tax Fairness Act prevents consumers from paying multiple taxes on the purchase of online goods.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 2584 – (Rep. Chabot) The Business Activity Tax Simplification Act prohibits states and localities from imposing taxes on businesses who have limited activities in the state.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 2315 – (Rep. Bishop) The Mobile Workforce State Income Tax Simplification Act sets clear boundaries for states seeking to impose taxes on nonresidents who travel into the state to work.
ENCOURAGING INNOVATION
SIGNED INTO LAW: H.R. 235 – (Rep. Goodlatte/Chabot) The Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act permanently bans taxes on Internet access.
SIGNED INTO LAW (P.L. 114-153): H.R. 3326 – (Rep. D. Collins) The Defend Trade Secrets Act creates a federal civil remedy for stealing trade secrets that will help American innovators protect their intellectual property from theft.
COMMITTEE PASSAGE: H.R. 9 – (Rep. Goodlatte) The Innovation Act curbs patent litigation abuses.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Continued review of U.S. Copyright law.