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HR 7771 116th Congress House Law Administrative law and regulatory procedures Civil actions and liability Evidence and witnesses First Amendment rights Public participation and lobbying

Citizen Participation Act of 2020

Introduced: July 24, 2020 Introduced by: Cohen, Steve Democratic · Tennessee See on congress.gov
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This bill died when the 116th Congress ended
It never became law before the 116th Congress (2019–2020) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 2 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Jul 24, 2020
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Jul 24, 2020
Introduced in House
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 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Citizen Participation Act of 2020

This bill establishes that an act in furtherance of the constitutional right of petition or free speech, without knowledge of falsity or reckless disregard of falsity on the actor's part, shall be immune from civil liability. The bill also contains other related provisions.

The party seeking to overcome this immunity shall have the burden of proving that the party claiming the immunity acted with knowledge of falsity or reckless disregard of falsity.

A party in such a case may file a special motion to dismiss any claim related to an act of petitioning the government or free speech. The court involved shall hear such a motion on an expedited basis.

Furthermore, a party asserting immunity under this bill in state court may remove the case to federal court.

In addition, if a party in such a case in federal court is seeking an order to obtain the personal identifying information of a person, that person may file a special motion to quash the order seeking that personal identifying information.

A party that successfully obtains a special motion to dismiss or motion to quash under this bill shall be entitled to litigation costs, including reasonable attorney's fees.

What's happening now July 24, 2020

Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 1
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 7771: Citizen Participation Act of 2020. 116th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/116-HR-7771/
MLA
"H.R. 7771: Citizen Participation Act of 2020." 116th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/116-HR-7771/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 7771, 116th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/116-HR-7771/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 7771: Citizen Participation Act of 2020](https://openamerica.io/bill/116-HR-7771/)
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