text: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS.
  
      (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Congressional 
  Foreign Travel Reform Act of 2010''.
      (b) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
              (1) The 56-year-old Mutual Security Act governs the current 
          procedures and reporting requirements associated with the 
          expending of foreign currencies for foreign travel by members 
          of Congress and their staffs.
              (2) A recent Congressional Research Service (CRS) 
          memorandum finds that ``there are no requirements regarding the 
          disclosure of international travel by Members of Congress or 
          their staffs that contain records of all international travel 
          that might be taken.''.
              (3) This memorandum also finds that--
                      (A) the current travel disclosure requirements 
                  ``may be of limited utility'' when trying to assess the 
                  amount Congress spends on foreign travel;
                      (B) some foreign travel disclosures ``. . . 
                  identify annual expenditures for an entity, rather than 
                  quarterly,'' as is required by the law;
                      (C) some disclosures contain ``. . . typographical 
                  and mathematics errors'';
                      (D) the current disclosure requirements for 
                  Congressional foreign travel ``. . . might raise 
                  questions about the accuracy of reported destinations, 
                  participants or expenditures''; and
                      (E) the current reporting requirements for 
                  Congressional foreign travel ``. . . may reduce the 
                  suitability and reliability'' of the following data: 
                  ``number of trips taken, number of congressional 
                  travelers, destinations and the number of times a 
                  destination was visited, purposes of travel, benefits 
                  of travel and the extent of expenditures for 
                  congressional travel.''.
              (4) In April 2010 Roll Call reported that these travel ``. 
          . . accommodations are made by the State Department and billed 
          back to a government account that automatically refills itself 
          and has no spending limit attached.''.
              (5) In March 2010 the Wall Street Journal reported that 
          while congressional rules require any unused per diem received 
          for congressional travel must be paid back, this rule is rarely 
          followed.
              (6) The ``Questions and Answers'' section of the Official 
          Foreign Travel Guide for the U.S. Congress advises Members of 
          Congress that they ``. . . may keep any `excess' funds'' from a 
          per diem allowance.
              (7) The CRS memorandum finds that from the only public 
          available records on Congressional foreign travel, the House of 
          Representatives went from spending $1,557,162 on foreign travel 
          in 1994 to $9,303,709 in 2009, and that the amount the House 
          has spent on travel has nearly doubled since 2006. Furthermore, 
          these amounts do not take into account the use of military 
          aircraft.
              (8) In June 2010 Roll Call reported that ``Members of 
          Congress routinely fail to report millions of dollars' worth of 
          costs . . . on foreign trips'', and that the ``total spent on 
          foreign travel has skyrocketed in the past decade.''
  
  SEC. 2. REQUIRING CONGRESS TO OBTAIN AND PAY FOR LOCAL CURRENCIES USED 
                TO PROVIDE PER DIEMS TO MEMBERS AND EMPLOYEES OF CONGRESS 
                ON OFFICIAL FOREIGN TRAVEL.
  
      (a) Obtaining and Paying for Local Currency Per Diems for Members 
  and Employees on Official Foreign Travel.--
              (1) In general.--The House of Representatives and Senate 
          may obtain local currencies of foreign nations for the purpose 
          of providing a per diem allowance to a Member, officer, or 
          employee of the House of Representatives or Senate who is on 
          official foreign travel, if the individual obtains an 
          authorization under paragraph (2) to receive such an allowance.
              (2) Authorization described.--An individual wishing to 
          receive a per diem allowance under paragraph (1) shall obtain 
          an authorization--
                      (A) from the Speaker of the House of 
                  Representatives, in the case of a Member, officer, or 
                  employee of the House;
                      (B) from the chairman of a standing or select 
                  committee of the House of Representatives, in the case 
                  of a member or employee of that committee;
                      (C) from the President of the Senate, the President 
                  pro tempore of the Senate, the majority leader of the 
                  Senate, or the minority leader of the Senate, in the 
                  case of a Member, officer, or employee of the Senate;
                      (D) from the chairman of a standing, select, or 
                  special committee of the Senate, in the case of a 
                  member or employee of that committee or of an employee 
                  of a member of that committee; and
                      (E) from the chairman of a joint committee of the 
                  Congress, in the case of a member or employee of that 
                  committee.
              (3) Limit on amount.--The amount of local currency provided 
          for the use of an individual under this subsection may not 
          exceed--
                      (A) the equivalent of $75 per day per person; or
                      (B) the maximum per diem allowance established 
                  under the authority of subchapter I of chapter 57 of 
                  title 5, United States Code, for employees of the 
                  United States Government while traveling in a foreign 
                  country,
          whichever is greater, exclusive of the actual cost of 
          transportation.
              (4) Repayment of unused amounts.--Any individual to whom 
          the House of Representatives or the Senate provides a per diem 
          under this subsection shall return to the House of 
          Representatives or the Senate (as the case may be) any per diem 
          provided to the Member or employee which remains unexpended as 
          of the conclusion of the travel. Any amount returned in 
          accordance with the previous sentence shall be transferred to 
          the Secretary of the Treasury, who shall use such amount for 
          the purposes of deficit reduction.
              (5) Authorization of appropriations.--There are authorized 
          to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary for obtaining 
          local currencies under this subsection, of which--
                      (A) the amounts necessary for obtaining local 
                  currencies for the use of any individual whose pay is 
                  disbursed by the Chief Administrative Officer of the 
                  House of Representatives shall be appropriated from the 
                  applicable accounts of the House of Representatives; 
                  and
                      (B) the amounts necessary for obtaining local 
                  currencies for the use of any individual whose pay is 
                  disbursed by the Secretary of the Senate shall be 
                  appropriated from the contingent fund of the Senate.
              (6) Definitions.--In this subsection--
                      (A) any reference to a ``Member'' of the House of 
                  Representatives includes a Delegate or Resident 
                  Commissioner to the Congress; and
                      (B) the term ``official foreign travel'' means any 
                  travel outside of the United States for which the costs 
                  (including the costs of transportation, lodging, meals, 
                  and related expenses) may be covered by appropriated 
                  funds, including official funds of the House of 
                  Representatives or Senate, under law or the Rules of 
                  the House of Representatives or the Standing Rules of 
                  the Senate.
      (b) Conforming Amendments.--
              (1) Repeal existing authority.--Section 502(b) of the 
          Mutual Security Act of 1954 (22 U.S.C. 1754(b)) is amended by 
          striking paragraph (1).
              (2) Maintenance of existing reporting requirements.--
          Section 502(b)(3)(A) of such Act (22 U.S.C. 1754(b)(3)(A)) is 
          amended by striking ``an authorization under paragraph (1)'' 
          and inserting ``an authorization under section 2(b) of the 
          Congressional Foreign Travel Reform Act of 2010.''.
      (c) Effective Date.--This section and the amendments made by this 
  section shall apply with respect to fiscal year 2011 and each 
  succeeding fiscal year.
  
  SEC. 3. ENHANCED DISCLOSURE AND OTHER RESTRICTIONS RELATING TO MEMBER 
                TRAVEL UNDER RULES OF HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
  
      (a) Reporting Requirements for Official Foreign Travel by House 
  Members and Employees.--
              (1) Statement required prior to undertaking travel.--A 
          Member or employee of the House of Representatives may not 
          undertake any official foreign travel unless, not later than 14 
          days prior to the date on which the travel begins, the Member 
          or employee prepares and makes available for public inspection 
          in accordance with subsection (b) a statement containing the 
          following information:
                      (A) A statement of worthiness regarding the purpose 
                  of the travel, including a description of how the 
                  travel relates to the Member's or employee's official 
                  duties.
                      (B) A tentative itinerary for each day of the 
                  travel, including a list of the locations the Member or 
                  employee intends to visit and any individuals with whom 
                  the Member or employee intends to meet.
                      (C) The names of any other individuals who are 
                  accompanying the Member or employee during the travel, 
                  without regard to whether such individuals are Members 
                  or employees of the House.
                      (D) The amount of the per diem the Member or 
                  employee requested to be provided for the travel, and 
                  whether the amount is greater than the standard per 
                  diem provided under chapter 57 of title 5, United 
                  States Code.
                      (E) A description of the aircraft to be used for 
                  transportation for the travel, and the Member's or 
                  employee's best estimate of the costs of using such 
                  aircraft.
              (2) Statement required after completion of travel.--Not 
          later than 14 days after completing any official foreign 
          travel, the Member or employee who undertook the travel shall 
          prepare and make available for public inspection in accordance 
          with subsection (b) a statement containing the following 
          information:
                      (A) A statement detailing the value, worthiness, 
                  and educational benefit to the Member or employee of 
                  the travel.
                      (B) The actual itinerary for the travel, including 
                  a comprehensive statement of travel times, meetings, 
                  and other activities carried out during the travel.
                      (C) The actual cost of the travel, itemized by the 
                  costs of--
                              (i) transportation (including the 
                          identification of the providers of the 
                          transportation);
                              (ii) lodging (including the identification 
                          of the providers of the lodging); and
                              (iii) meals (including the identification 
                          of the providers of the meals).
                      (D) How much, if any, of the per diem provided for 
                  the travel was unspent.
              (3) Exception for information affecting national 
          security.--A Member or employee may exclude from a statement 
          prepared under this subsection any information which is 
          classified or the disclosure of which would adversely affect 
          national security, so long as the Member includes documentation 
          in support of the exclusion in the statement prepared under 
          this subsection.
      (b) Publication Requirements for Reports.--Each statement required 
  to be prepared under subsection (a) with respect to official foreign 
  travel of a Member or employee of the House of Representatives shall be 
  made available for public inspection as follows:
              (1) The statement shall be submitted for publication in the 
          Congressional Record.
              (2) The statement shall be posted on the official public 
          website of the Clerk of the House of Representatives.
              (3) The statement shall be posted on the official public 
          website of the authorizing office.
              (4) In the case of a statement submitted with respect to 
          travel of a Member, the statement shall be posted on the 
          official public website of the Member.
              (5) In the case of a statement submitted with respect to 
          travel of an employee, the statement shall be posted on the 
          official public website of the employee's employing office.
      (c) Prohibiting Vacation Stopovers During Travel.--A Member or 
  employee of the House of Representatives may not undertake a vacation 
  stopover for annual leave at any point during official foreign travel.
      (d) Restrictions on Travel by Employees.--
              (1) Travel by employees of members.--An employee of the 
          House of Representatives whose employing office is the office 
          of a Member may not undertake any official foreign travel 
          unless--
                      (A) the authorizing office for the travel is the 
                  office of the Member;
                      (B) the travel is undertaken by the employee to 
                  accompany the Member on the Member's own official 
                  foreign travel; and
                      (C) no other employee of the office accompanies the 
                  Member on such travel.
              (2) Travel by employees of committees.--An employee of the 
          House of Representatives whose employing office is the office 
          of a committee of the House of Representatives may not 
          undertake any official foreign travel unless--
                      (A) the authorizing office for the travel is the 
                  office of the committee;
                      (B) the travel is undertaken by the employee to 
                  accompany a Member who serves on the committee on the 
                  Member's own official foreign travel; and
                      (C) the number of employees accompanying the 
                  Members of the committee on such travel does not exceed 
                  the number of Members of the committee who are 
                  participating in such travel.
              (3) Exception for certain travel.--This subsection does not 
          apply with respect to travel to a military installation or 
          travel to a theater of operations of the Armed Forces.
      (e) Requiring Efforts To Reduce Expenses; Return of Unspent Per 
  Diem.--Each Member and employee of the House of Representatives who 
  undertakes official foreign travel shall--
              (1) take such actions as may be necessary to reduce the 
          costs incurred for such travel; and
              (2) return any per diem provided to the Member or employee 
          which remains unexpended as of the conclusion of the travel.
      (f) Regulations.--This section shall be carried out in accordance 
  with regulations promulgated by the Committee on House Administration 
  of the House of Representatives.
      (g) Definitions.--In this section, the following definitions apply:
              (1) The term ``authorizing office'' means, with respect to 
          a Member or employee of the House of Representatives, the 
          office which is authorized under law or the Rules of the House 
          of Representatives to approve the use of appropriated funds, 
          including official funds of the House of Representatives, for 
          official travel outside of the United States by the Member or 
          employee.
              (2) The term ``Member of the House of Representatives'' 
          includes a Delegate or Resident Commissioner to the Congress.
              (3) The term ``official foreign travel'' means any travel 
          outside of the United States for which the costs (including the 
          costs of transportation, lodging, meals, and related expenses) 
          may be covered by appropriated funds, including official funds 
          of the House of Representatives, under law or the Rules of the 
          House of Representatives.
      (h) Statement of Rulemaking Authority of House of 
  Representatives.--This section is enacted by Congress as an exercise of 
  the rulemaking power of the House of Representatives and shall be 
  considered a part of the rules of the House of Representatives, with 
  full recognition of the constitutional right of the House to change 
  this section at any time, in the same manner and to the same extent as 
  in the case of any other rule of the House.
target: Congressional Foreign Travel Reform Act of 2010 - Authorizes the House of Representatives and the Senate to obtain local currencies of foreign nations to provide a per diem allowance to a Member, officer, or employee of each chamber on official foreign travel, if the individual obtains an authorization to receive such an allowance from the appropriate specified congressional officer or committee chairman.
  
  Limits such local currency to up to the equivalent of $75 per day per person, or the authorized maximum per diem allowance for federal employees while traveling in a foreign country, whichever is greater, exclusive of the actual cost of transportation.
  
  Prohibits any Member or employee of the House from undertaking any official foreign travel unless, within 14 days before and within 14 days after such travel, the individual prepares and makes available for public inspection a specified statement containing certain travel-related information.
  
  Prohibits a vacation stopover for annual leave at any point during official foreign travel.
  
  Specifies restrictions on official foreign travel by Member and House committee employees, except travel to a military installation or to a theater of operations of the Armed Forces.
  
  Requires Members of the House and employees who undertake official foreign travel to: (1) take necessary actions to reduce travel costs; and (2) return any per diem remaining unexpended at conclusion of the travel.
feat_title: To require that any local currencies used to provide per diems to Members and employees of Congress for official foreign travel for a fiscal year be obtained by Congress and paid for using funds appropriated for salaries and expenses of Congress for the fiscal year, to enhance the disclosure of information on official foreign travel of Members, officers, and employees of the House of Representatives, and for other purposes.