S. 3415: Government Transparency and Recordkeeping Act of 2012

112th Congress · introduced 2012-07-19 · Government Operations and Politics · Latest: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2012-07-19 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Inhofe, James M. [R-OK] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Government Transparency and Recordkeeping Act of 2012

Plain summary

Government Transparency and Recordkeeping Act of 2012 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to make available to Congress and the public all records of individual payments made since January 1, 2003, from a permanent appropriation of funds (commonly referred to as the Judgment Fund) available to the federal government to pay certain final judgments, awards, and compromise settlements (including appropriate attorney's fees, interest, and costs under the Equal Access to Justice Act [EAJA]) resulting from claims against the United States. Requires the publicly available records to be updated annually to include payments made during the previous year. Requires such records, including a payment breakdowns showing the specific amount of the damages, interest, and attorneys' fees, to be maintained on a publicly accessible Internet website. Prohibits records from being made available under this Act if: (1) the payment was not the result of any executive branch, federal agency, or instrumentality statutory or regulatory approval or permit related case, court order, consent decree, or settlement; or (2) the disclosure of the information is otherwise prohibited by law or court order, or is not in the best interest of national security.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Government Transparency and Recordkeeping Act of 2012

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)

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The strongest published arguments

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Inhofe, James M. [R-OK] · 2 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

John Barrasso (R-WY)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (3)

Appropriation: Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Securities: Financial investments that can be bought and sold, such as stocks and bonds.
Statute: A written law passed by a legislature. A statute can be changed by a later law; changing a constitution needs an amendment.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-112s3415.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/112/s>

Record fed-us-cong112-s3415 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong112 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong112