Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley pushed to strengthen federal anti-corruption laws after the U.S. Supreme Court made it easier for state and local officials to accept gratuities for official actions. Merkley reintroduced the Stop Corrupt Gratuities Act, which would restore public trust in state and local government officials by clearly banning corrupt payments, veiled gifts, or the exchange of any valuables intended to influence decision-makers.
“Gratuities that change hands after the completion of an official action are bribes, plain and simple,” said Merkley. “This practice threatens the integrity of our democratic institutions and undermines the public’s trust in government. We need clear rules that put the public interest ahead of corrupt pay-to-play schemes. My Stop Corrupt Gratuities Act provides a straightforward fix to strengthen our federal anti-corruption laws.”
The legislation responds to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2024 decision Snyder v. United States, which stemmed from the corrupt actions of the former mayor of Portage, Indiana, who awarded a $1.1 million contract to purchase garbage trucks and then accepted a $13,000 gratuity from the same truck company afterward. The Supreme Court ultimately ruled that state officials may accept gratuities from people who wish to reward them for their official actions, weakening federal anti-corruption statutes.
The Stop Corrupt Gratuities Act is included in Merkley’s recently introduced For Our Republic Act, a 10-part legislative action plan to stand up to Trump’s authoritarian playbook.
The bill is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Peter Welch (D-VT).
Merkley’s Stop Corrupt Gratuities Act is also supported by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) and Public Citizen.
“The Supreme Court has systematically chipped away at anti-corruption laws over the past several decades, opening the door to bribery and extortion of public officials,” said Debra Perlin, Vice President of Policy, CREW. “Congress has the power to reverse this trend and undo the Court’s disastrous anti-corruption jurisprudence. CREW is proud to endorse the Stop Corrupt Gratuities Act and encourages Congress to restore trust in government by passing this commonsense legislation.”
“The Supreme Court struck a blow to state and local anti-corruption laws by ruling that a large, financial gratuity given to a lawmaker in appreciation for an official act after the fact does not constitute a bribe. That is nonsense. A bribe in exchange for an official act or a government contract is a bribe, regardless of whether it is given before or after the fact. Sen. Merkley’s Stop Corrupt Gratuities Act would restore the commonsense anti-corruption measure by clarifying that any gratuity as a reward for an official act or government contract is indeed a bribe, whether given before or after the official action,” said Craig Holman, Ph.D., Public Citizen.
Full text of the bill can be found by clicking here.
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