H.R. 838: Security in Bonding Act of 2015

114th Congress · introduced 2015-02-10 · Finance and Financial Sector · Latest: Referred to the Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform, Commercial And Antitrust Law.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2015-02-10 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. Hanna, Richard L. [R-NY-22] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Referred to the Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform, Commercial And Antitrust Law. 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

Security in Bonding Act of 2015

Plain summary

Security in Bonding Act of 2015 Revises requirements related to assets pledged by a surety and to surety bond guarantees subject to the Small Business Investment Act of 1958. (A surety bond is a three-party instrument between a surety who agrees to be responsible for the debt or obligation of another, a contractor, and a project owner.) Declares that if another applicable law or regulation permits the acceptance of a bond from a surety that is not subject to specified federal law, and is based on a pledge of assets by the surety, the assets pledged by such surety shall: (1) consist of eligible obligations given as security instead of surety bonds; and (2) be submitted to the government official required to approve or accept the bond, who shall deposit the assets with a depository (the Secretary of the Treasury, a federal reserve bank, or a depository designated by the Secretary). Amends the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 to increase from 70% to 90% of the loss incurred and paid by a surety authorized to issue bonds (subject to Small Business Administration [SBA] guarantee) the SBA's guarantee of surety bonds. The SBA is required, under the guarantee, to indemnify a surety, under the Small Business Investment Program, against loss from a breach of the terms of a bid bond, payment bond, performance bond, or ancillary bonds, by a principal on any total work order or contract amount at the time of bond execution that does not exceed $6.5 million, as adjusted for inflation. Requires the Comptroller General (GAO) to study: all instances during the 10-year period before enactment of the Act in which a surety bond proposed or issued by a surety in connection with a federal project was: (1) rejected by a federal contracting officer; or (2) accepted by one, but was later found to have been backed by insufficient collateral or to be otherwise deficient or with respect to which the surety did not perform; the consequences to the federal government, subcontractors, and suppliers of the instances; and the percentages of all federal contracts that were awarded to new startup businesses (including new startups that are small disadvantaged businesses or disadvantaged business enterprises), small disadvantaged businesses, and disadvantaged business enterprises as prime contractors in the two-year period before and the two-year period after enactment of this Act, together with an assessment of the impact of this Act and its amendments upon such percentages.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House), 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

Security in Bonding Act of 2015

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

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

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Hanna, Richard L. [R-NY-22] · 5 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Grace Meng (D-NY), Rick W. Allen (R-GA)

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 (5)

Authorization: A law that creates or continues a government program and says what it may do, often with a suggested spending ceiling. An authorization alone does not provide money; a separate appropriation does.
Bond: A way to borrow money. A government sells bonds to raise money now and promises to pay it back with interest over time. Bonds repaid from taxes often need voter approval.
Obligation: A binding promise by a government agency to pay money, for example by signing a contract or awarding a grant. Spending data such as USAspending.gov counts money when it is obligated, which can be before it is actually paid out.
Rulemaking: The process agencies use to write regulations that carry out laws passed by Congress or a legislature. Usually an agency publishes a proposed rule, takes public comments, then publishes a final rule.
Securities: Financial investments that can be bought and sold, such as stocks and bonds.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-114hr838.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/114/hr>

Record fed-us-cong114-hr838 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong114 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong114