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House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., introduced bipartisan legislation to stop all government agencies, including the CFPB, from requiring defendants to donate money to outside groups as part of their settlement agreements with the federal government.

Goodlatte said he noticed a need for this bill, H.R. 522, the "Stop Settlement Slush Funds Act of 2017," after a House Judiciary Committee investigation found that the Justice Department had engaged in a "pattern or practice" of using settlements from financial institutions "to funnel money to left-wing activist groups."

He noted that these payments occur outside of the congressional appropriations and oversight process and that the investigation into this practice is ongoing.

Every Republican member of the House Judiciary Committee is an original cosponsor of the bill.

This bill is identical to legislation introduced last year that passed the House by a vote of 241-174.