Golden introduces six new bills to strengthen government integrity and fight corruption

WASHINGTON — Congressman Jared Golden (ME-02) today announced the introduction of six bills designed to reduce the ability of elected officials to leverage their position for personal profit, reduce the influence of foreign actors in American politics, close dark money loopholes and increase transparency in political spending. 

“The United States Government belongs to the people and its chief purpose should be to serve the common good — public service should never be about personal enrichment” Golden said. “The government, including Congress, should serve the people, not powerful special interests, multinational corporations, foreign entities and whoever can write the biggest checks.

“These six bills, along with other good government policies I have introduced in Congress would go a long way toward restoring integrity, fighting corruption, increasing transparency and reducing the role of foreign entities, corporations and dark money in our politics.” 

The bills introduced today by Golden include: 

• The Lifetime Lobbying Ban Act, which would repeal the current one- or two-year waiting period for former members of Congress to work as a federal lobbyist and replace it with a permanent ban. Today, the number of former members working as lobbyists is greater than the number of members of the House of Representatives. 
• Congressional and Executive Foreign Lobbying Ban, which would ban retired members of Congress, senior executive branch officials and high-ranking military officials from lobbying on behalf of foreign interests. High-ranking members of both parties have engaged in this practice, from former Obama US Attorney General Loretta Lynch lobbying on behalf of a Chinese drone company to retired US Army Lieutenant General Michael Flynn lobbying on behalf of Turkey, including while working on Trump’s 2016 campaign.
• Stop Foreign Payoffs Act, which would ban members of Congress, presidents, vice presidents and Cabinet secretaries — as well as their close family members — from earning a salary or holding investments in foreign businesses for as long as the official is in office. This practice is similarly widespread.
• Crack Down on Dark Money Act, which would end the ability of mega-donors to launder secret political activity through 501(c)(4) nonprofits by reducing the cap on political activity by those nonprofits from 50 percent of all spending to 10 percent and requiring them to disclose all donors of $5,000 or more if they spend even one cent on politics. Dark money spending by 501(c)(4) nonprofits has skyrocketed, with a total of roughly $842 million spent from 2010 through 2022. 
• Consistent Labeling for Political Ads Act, which would increase transparency in online political advertising by requiring social media platforms to make ad labels “sticky,” meaning they would appear on paid political content regardless of how it is shared or where it appears. Today, paid content on social media is labeled “sponsored” or “promoted,” but those labels currently drop off if a user shares the post.
• Fighting Foreign Influence Act, which would require tax-exempt organizations, including think tanks, to disclose high-dollar gifts from foreign governments or political parties, impose a lifetime ban on foreign lobbying by former presidents, vice presidents, senior military officials and require political campaigns to verify online donors have a valid US address. Between 2000 and 2022, at least 90 former members of Congress registered as foreign agents, with a majority having worked on behalf of authoritarian regimes.

The legislation complements nine bills Golden has introduced or co-sponsored this Congress as part of his Government Integrity & Anti-Corruption Plan. The plan would dramatically reform American campaign finance law, introduce strong guardrails against corruption by public officials and release special interests’ chokehold on the political and electoral system. Among other legislation, it includes: 
 

• Term Limits Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which would establish a three-term limit for members of the House and a two-term limit for senators.
• TRUST in Congress Act, which would prohibit members of Congress, their spouses and dependent children from owning or trading stocks while the member is in office, except through a qualified blind trust.
• The Democracy for All Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which would overturn the Citizens United decision, make clear that the Constitution does not restrict Congress’ ability to limit campaign spending, distinguish between actual people and corporations, limit corporate campaign spending and clear the path for states enacting public campaign financing systems.

“Since day one, Congressman Golden has stood up to special interests to put Mainers' voices front and center in our government,” said Tiffany Muller, president of End Citizens United. “He’s seen, first-hand, how corporate special interests and shadowy mega-donors have silenced the power of working families by spending unfathomable amounts of money to buy access and influence in Washington. His comprehensive package of anti-corruption reforms builds on his promise to restore power back to the people. We thank Congressman Golden for his continued leadership in the fight to keep our government transparent and accountable to the people.” 

“Congressman Golden is leading crucial efforts to strengthen our democracy and restore Americans' faith in our government,” said Anna Kellar, executive director of Maine Citizens for Clean Elections. “In particular, by sponsoring the Stop Foreign Funds in Elections Act and by cosponsoring The Democracy for All Amendment, which calls for an anti-corruption amendment to the U.S. Constitution, Rep Golden is reflecting the will of Maine voters, who affirmed their support for those policies at the ballot last year by 83 percent.”

For more background on the 15-bill Government Integrity & Anti-Corruption Plan, including the six new pieces of legislation announced today, click here. 

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