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119-hr-7934119th CongressWALLET

Settlement Agreement Information Database Act of 2026

Sponsored By: Representative Palmer, Gary J. [R-AL-6]

In Committee

Summary

Creates a centralized public database of certain federal settlement agreements to show who paid what and which government units were involved. The bill sets rules for what counts as a covered settlement and what data agencies must publish.

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  • Federal agencies must publish covered settlement agreements and specific data fields, provide a copy of each agreement, and follow standards the Office of Management and Budget and the Attorney General issue within one year. Agencies must also certify existing databases and report annually on withheld items.
  • Settlements are covered if they require payments of at least $10 million, appoint a special master or monitor, involve a State or local government, or are designated by the OMB Director. The law excludes certain tax, criminal plea, and personnel matters.
  • The public gets machine readable records that list payment amounts, fines, alleged statutes, execution dates, projected durations, and involved State or local units, subject to confidentiality and Freedom of Information Act exemptions.

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Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

1 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.

More public access to big settlements

If enacted, each federal agency that signs a large or covered settlement would have to create and keep a public, searchable online database and post a copy of each covered settlement. Agencies would have two years to publish these databases. OMB, with the Attorney General, would issue guidance within one year on common data fields, nonproprietary machine-readable formats, update frequency (at least annually), and a uniform URL standard. A settlement would be "covered" if it requires $10,000,000 or more in payments when signed, names a special master or monitor, involves a State or local government, or is designated by the OMB Director; certain types like most tax matters, Federal personnel actions, plea bargains, and specified programs would be excluded. Agencies could withhold information covered by confidentiality provisions, court orders, classified material, or FOIA exemptions, and they would report to Congress annually on any covered settlements they did not disclose and which FOIA exemptions were applied.

Sponsors & CoSponsors

Sponsor

Palmer, Gary J. [R-AL-6]

AL • R

Cosponsors

  • Rep. Mfume, Kweisi [D-MD-7]

    MD • D

    Sponsored 3/16/2026

Roll Call Votes

No roll call votes available for this bill.

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