# 119-hr-1688: Hatch Act Enforcement Transparency and Accountability Act

119-hr-1688, Hatch Act Enforcement Transparency and Accountability Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Garcia, Robert [D-CA-42] (D-CA); status introduced (as of 2026-04-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1688
- As of: 2026-04-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-1688
- Congress: 119
- Title: Hatch Act Enforcement Transparency and Accountability Act
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2025-02-27
- Sponsor: Rep. Garcia, Robert [D-CA-42] (D-CA)
- Cosponsors: 5
- Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2026-04-21

## Summary

**This bill would boost _transparency and accountability in Hatch Act enforcement_ by redefining who counts as a noncareer employee, forcing regular congressional notices when investigations are declined, and requiring long-term public data on enforcement activity.** - Congress and oversight would get routine notice when the Office of Special Counsel declines to investigate a noncareer employee. Reports must be submitted every 180 days and include the complaint and the name and position of the employee involved. - Noncareer employees would be more clearly defined for enforcement purposes. The bill would require detailed written explanations when OSC chooses not to present a complaint to the Merit Systems Protection Board and would include names and positions for not-investigated allegations in a confidential annual addendum. - The public and researchers would gain access to anonymized enforcement data. OSC must publish and keep at least 10 fiscal years of demographic and outcome statistics including race, sex, ethnicity, national origin, and disability. The Office of Personnel Management, agencies, and the Presidential Personnel Office must supply existing demographic information on request.

## Cosponsors (5)

- Rep. Quigley, Mike [D-IL-5] (D-IL), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Landsman, Greg [D-OH-1] (D-OH), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Ross, Deborah K. [D-NC-2] (D-NC), 2025-04-01T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Min, Dave [D-CA-47] (D-CA), 2025-05-01T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Fletcher, Lizzie [D-TX-7] (D-TX), 2025-10-17T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- More transparency in Hatch Act enforcement: benefit, low. This bill would require the Office of Special Counsel (OSC) to share more data on Hatch Act cases. OSC would publish yearly, anonymized stats for career and noncareer staff, including counts of allegations, investigations, and cases sent to the Merit Systems Protection Board, and demographics (race…
- Clarifies career and noncareer employee rules: cost, low. This bill would add clear definitions for Hatch Act enforcement. It would define a “career” employee and a “noncareer” employee, including categories such as certain Presidential appointees, noncareer Senior Executive Service, comparable executive systems without merit-based appointment, and other…

## Related bills

- 119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act
- 119-hr-7977: Energy Bills Relief Act
- 119-hr-7853: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026
- 119-hr-5862: American Energy Independence and Affordability Act
- 119-hr-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act
- 119-hr-20: Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2025

## Sources
- [119-hr-1688 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/1688)

## Related
- [119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7973)
- [119-hr-7977: Energy Bills Relief Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7977)
- [119-hr-7853: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7853)
- [119-hr-5862: American Energy Independence and Affordability Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-5862)
- [119-hr-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-51)
- [119-hr-20: Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-20)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1688 (as of 2026-04-21).