Costello Seeks Ethics Advice
July 24, 2008
Rep. Jerry Costello (D-Ill.) said Wednesday he will ask the House ethics committee whether he may continue to seek earmarks for a community college in his district after his wife was named president of the school last week.
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Rangel Asks For Probe Into Charity Solicitation
July 24, 2008
House Ways and Means Chairman Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y.) filed the first of two formal complaints against himself with the House ethics committee on Wednesday, an unusual move aimed at tamping down allegations the lawmaker has misused his public office.
Broun’s Office Funds Run Low
July 23, 2008
Having nearly expended his annual office budget by midyear, sources said on Tuesday that Rep. Paul Broun (R-Ga.) may be forced to seek assistance to manage the office’s day-to-day functions. At the same time, Broun’s office said it was unaware of any problems.
Former Members Headed to Ethics Panel
July 21, 2008
Former lawmakers are expected to make up at least a third of the new Office of Congressional Ethics, which remains dormant more than a week after it was permitted to begin work as House leaders continue to negotiate over would-be board members.
Activists to Members: Skip Parties
July 17, 2008
Government watchdog activists are appealing to Members to skip lobbyist-sponsored parties at the upcoming national political conventions, arguing that the fetes violate the spirit of House rules despite ethics panel guidance that suggests otherwise.
House Ethics Panel Leaves Funding Unspent
July 16, 2008
The House ethics panel has left significant portions of its annual budget unspent during each of the past five years, a review of House spending records shows.
- Staff Turnover Hobbles Ethics
- Members Dig Into Mortgages
- Conrad, Dodd Deny Wrongdoing in Countrywide Case
- Another ‘Shared’ Aide Investigated
- Illinois Aide Claims Earmarks Credit
Rules on Homes Won’t Change
July 14, 2008
Despite a spate of revelations in recent weeks that House and Senate lawmakers received special deals on mortgages and rental agreements, it appears unlikely Members will be required to divulge the financial details of their homes anytime soon, with little momentum in either chamber to revisit ethics rules before next year.
Hackers Hit 15 Offices in House
July 10, 2008
Computer hackers who infiltrated House computers in late 2006 compromised as many as 50 machines throughout the chamber, according to a memorandum prepared by the Information Systems Security Office.
Teaching Can Pay Off
July 9, 2008
Most part-time university professors are paid quite modestly, but that rule does not appear to apply to some Members of Congress who dabble in academia.
The average adjunct faculty member earns anywhere from $3,000 to $6,000 per course, and possibly as much as $10,000 at the graduate level, according to experts in the field, though universities have wide latitude to set salaries for part-timers.
Moore Staffers Used Office E-mail for Slattery
July 7, 2008
On several occasions this spring, staff members in the office of Rep. Dennis Moore (D-Kan.) used their House e-mail accounts to circulate political information about the Senate campaign of former Rep. Jim Slattery (D-Kan.) in violation of House rules and, potentially, federal law.
Cooper Download Questioned
June 30, 2008
The House has apparently not been contacted by the FBI in regard to allegations that Rep. Jim Cooper (D-Tenn.) improperly downloaded documents from the Web site of a trade group he is investigating, and the trade group making the allegation could provide no independent evidence to support its blockbuster claim that the bureau is investigating the matter.
Biting a Feeding Hand
June 30, 2008
Several Republican lawmakers said last week that they will keep recent campaign contributions from Countrywide Financial — even as those Members call for House investigations into the mortgage company over allegations it gave sweetheart loans to VIP borrowers, including two Senate Democrats.
Two Weeks Until Start Date, Ethics Board Awaits Picks
June 25, 2008
The new Office of Congressional Ethics is authorized to initiate investigations beginning two weeks from today, but House leaders have yet to announce a slate of board members, and many potential nominees said Tuesday that they have not been contacted by House officials.
Ridge Files Very Late for Albania
June 24, 2008
For almost two years former Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge failed to register a nearly half-million-dollar lobbying contract that he had with the government of Albania.
Ridge filed a registration statement on behalf of the country earlier this month after being contacted by the Department of Justice.
Wedding Gifts OK Under Rules
June 23, 2008
Wedding bells chimed for a handful of Members last year — when at least six House lawmakers tied the knot — but there are no telltale toasters, bread-makers or china settings to be found in recently released financial disclosures.
Renzi Colleague Faces Sentence
June 19, 2008
The recent conviction of the alleged co-conspirator in the public corruption case against Rep. Rick Renzi on separate charges in Texas could hand prosecutors a new tool in their case against the Arizona Republican, according to several legal experts.
Earmark Drove Jefferson Case
June 18, 2008
A federal grant that prosecutors claim was misappropriated by family members of Rep. William Jefferson (D-La.) apparently originated as a last-minute Congressional earmark in a 2003 appropriations bill. Though it is not certain that Jefferson requested the money, no other Louisiana lawmakers have taken credit for it.
Members Get Social Security Checks
June 18, 2008
When Rep. Danny Davis (D-Ill.) turned 66 last September, he did what many Americans his age do: He applied to receive Social Security payments.
That put the Illinois lawmaker among the 50 million expected to receive Social Security payments in 2008, according to the agency that oversees the program, but it also puts him in a much smaller group: the handful of Members who are actively reaping the benefits of the New Deal program.
Dodd Denies Special Treatment
June 18, 2008
Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) acknowledged Tuesday that Countrywide Financial informed him in 2003 that his mortgages would be designated as “VIP” accounts, but he denied that he received any unusual benefits from the lender.
Sweeney Ex-Wife’s Role Is Scrutinized
June 12, 2008
Federal investigators appear to be looking into work performed by the ex-wife of former Rep. John Sweeney (R-N.Y.) while she was on the payroll of an Albany lobbying firm with close ties to Sweeney.
Corruption Case Is Far From Over
June 11, 2008
The Justice Department appears to be nearly done with fallen lobbyist Jack Abramoff, but observers say that should provide little comfort for other figures in the sprawling corruption probe.
Exiting Staffers Still Favor K St.
June 11, 2008
Although Congress adopted stringent new rules last fall in an attempt to slow traffic between Capitol Hill and K Street, more than half of the senior House and Senate staffers who have left their posts in recent months have opted for jobs in lobbying, consulting and advocacy.
Murtha’s Cash for Students
June 9, 2008
Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) has steered hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal and private money to a charity run by a Murtha protégé, which has as its primary mission handing out $250 checks to high school students in and around Murtha’s Congressional district.
Indictment Lists Family-Run Business
June 9, 2008
While Rep. William Jefferson (D-La.) was not named in a federal indictment of three family members released last week, the bribery charges against the Congressman are connected to the family fraud case by a family-run business that appears in both indictments.
‘Shared’ Staffers Draw Scrutiny
May 21, 2008
The House Inspector General and Chief Administrative Officer want tighter supervision of the financial and technical staffers who work for multiple Congressional offices following a scandal in which a “shared employee” was caught embezzling money from Member office accounts.
Campaign Work Pays Off for Aides
May 19, 2008
Continuing a tradition that comes with each election cycle, a small number of top Congressional staffers will likely earn more than the Members they work for this year.
Pearce Made Millions on Sale
On Aug. 18, 2003, an executive from Key Energy Services testified during a House natural gas task force field hearing co-chaired by Reps. Steve Pearce (R-N.M.) and Heather Wilson (R-N.M.).
Foreign Gifts Test Rules
May 12, 2008
Even as new ethics restrictions have made it difficult for Members and staff to accept gifts — aside from token baseball caps or T-shirts — one area remains where lawmakers and their staffs can collect trinkets more or less guilt-free: foreign travel.
Rep. Deal’s Staffer Returns Payments
May 1, 2008
Chris Riley, the chief of staff to Rep. Nathan Deal (R-Ga.), has returned more than $90,000 that he was paid by the lawmaker’s campaign committee from 2004 to 2007 because it exceeded the outside income limits set under House rules for top Congressional staff.
Interior Department Probing Alaska Celebration
April 30, 2008
The Interior Department inspector general has opened an investigation into whether federal money was inappropriately used to pay for a celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Alaska Volcano Observatory that recognized its chief patron, Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), according to information obtained by Roll Call.
Profits on Sales Go Unreported
April 8, 2008
Dozens of financial disclosure forms filed by Members of Congress last year were apparently inaccurate, failing to report hundreds of thousands of dollars in income from stock sales and other transactions, but the Members believed their forms were correct because the House ethics committee approved them.
Boehner Urges Probe Of Hurckes
April 3, 2008
House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) said this week the House ethics committee should not wait for a Member of Congress to file an ethics complaint to begin a formal investigation into whether Rep. Dan Lipinski’s (D-Ill.) chief of staff, Jerry Hurckes, has violated House rules governing his dual roles as a House employee and elected local official.
House, DOJ Discuss Raids
April 1, 2008
The House of Representatives and the Justice Department are in negotiations over new protocols and procedures for law enforcement searches of Congressional offices — talks that began in the wake of the controversial May 2006 raid on Rep. William Jefferson’s (D-La.) Capitol Hill office.
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