Protecting Our Democracy Act

Protecting Our Democracy Act

This bill addresses issues involving (1) abuses of presidential power; (2) checks and balances, accountability, and transparency; and (3) election integrity and security.

Specifically, regarding abuses of presidential power, the bill

• requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the President to submit to Congress specified materials relating to certain pardons,
• prohibits presidential self-pardons,
• suspends the statute of limitations for federal offenses committed by a sitting President or Vice President,
• prohibits the acceptance of foreign or domestic emoluments, and
• sets forth provisions regarding Office of Government Ethics and Office of Special Counsel jurisdiction and enforcement authority.

To address checks and balances, accountability, and transparency, the bill

• authorizes specified actions to enforce congressional subpoenas,
• imposes limits on presidential declarations of emergencies,
• requires DOJ to maintain a log of specified communications between it and the White House,
• requires cause for removal of inspectors general,
• increases whistleblower protections, and
• requires a candidate for President or Vice President to provide copies of tax returns for the 10 most recent taxable years to the Federal Election Commission.

To address election integrity and security, the bill

• requires federal campaign reporting of foreign contacts,
• makes various changes to requirements concerning foreign donations to political campaigns and candidates and foreign contributions to online electioneering communications,
• prohibits distribution of materially deceptive audio or visual media prior to an election (i.e., deepfakes), and
• establishes a program to support states and localities transition to ranked choice voting systems.

Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. All summary versions on Congress.gov