Warning: New Rules Could Snare Travel Sponsors
Q: I work for an organization that sponsors business events around the country. We frequently invite Members and staff to our events and reimburse their travel expenses when the law allows. (We do not employ or retain lobbyists.) Recently, the House ethics committee created a new form that we, as sponsors, must fill out before Members and staff travel to events for which their expenses will be reimbursed. One of my job responsibilities is to fill out these forms. (Lucky me!) I take care to confirm the accuracy of every entry, which is very time-consuming because the form has 23 of them. My boss has been frustrated by the time and expense involved and has told me to speed it up. He said that I don’t need to be so thorough in my fact-checking because the committee is focused on Members, not sponsors. In fact, he said, the committee doesn’t even have jurisdiction over us. Is my boss right?
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