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1972

1973

1974 1975 1976

1977

1978

1979

1980

OFFICIAL EXPENSES OF MEMBERS

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

For Official Expenses of Members, $39,418,800. This is the category that includes Members' Congressional Allowances except Clerk Hire. I have inserted on page 39 for the record a bar graph summary of the individual cost centers which make up Members' Official Expenses Allowances, together with a preceding nine year history.

Under this allowance each Member is presently entitled to $32,911 plus variable amounts for travel, telecommunications and rental of district office space. These latter amounts depend, respectively, on distance to the farthest point in each District, election of WATS service and cost per minute of telephone toll charges, and GSA cost per square foot of office space. The allowance totals range from a low of $59,810 to a high of $183,911. The average annual allowance is approximately $75,000.

In addition, Members may allocate up to $15,000 annually of unused Clerk Hire funds to their Official Expenses Allowances. As I mentioned in my earlier testimony regarding Members' Clerk Hire, we budget for these "transfers" under Official Expenses of Members and correspondingly reduce our request for Members' Clerk Hire. In 1978 59 per cent of the Members allocated over 2.5 million dollars to Official Expenses.

To assist you in future reviews of the component accounts which make up the category "Official Expenses of Members", the Office of Finance will continue to summarize disbursements by individual cost centers such as travel, constituent communications, telecommunications, etc. This will also enable our office to statistically monitor the spending performance of Members and more accurately identify financial needs. In addition, the Office of Finance will summarize your monthly disbursements by type of expense and include the schedule with your monthly allowance statement. We believe this will greatly facilitate your own office budgeting. These capabilities are incorporated in the computerized financial management system of the House. I would like at this time to discuss each category of the Official Expenses of Members.

NEWSLETTERS

Newsletters.-Of the nearly 39.4 million dollars requested for this line item, $3,602,000 is estimated for Constituent Communications. This does not include your regular Congressional letterhead used in personal correspondence or the franking costs, but rather pertains primarily to newsletters. The disbursements in fiscal year 1978 averaged nearly $278,000 per month or approximately $630 per Member.

COMPUTERS

Computers.-We estimate the Members will spend $3,141,000 for various means of computer support in the operation of their Congressional offices. This account is receiving increased utilization. Effective the beginning of the 96th Congress, the Committee on House Administration required that all contracts for outside computer support be on file with the Committee and the Office of Finance before any 1979 obligations could be paid. This will allow management studies to be conducted on the contract terms, servicing and rates of computer services. This category does not include computer support costs for certain committees or the funding for House Information Systems, which are included under Special and Select Committees.

EQUIPMENT

Equipment. For the purchase, lease and maintenance of Members' electrical and mechanical office equipment, we are including $4,531,000. The actual dollar amount included in each Member's Official Expenses Allowance for leased equipment is $9,000 per year. As you know, your purchased office equipment is limited by an inventory valuation of $5,500 per Member. In addition to the costs of purchased and leased equipment, we also pay for the maintenance of Members' purchased equipment from this appropriation. The repair of leased equipment is handled by the lessor.

The House continued a new program initiated in 1978 whereby the General Services Administration (GSA) would acquire certain equipment for use in Members' district offices. Prior to 1978, Members could lease certain approved items for use in the District, while GSA would provide certain purchased items. Under the present program GSA will purchase equipment previously leased by the Member and charge it against a GSA allowance which is also used for carpeting, furnishing, etc. The U.S. House of Representatives will reimburse GSA from funds provided

within this line item. The reduction in one category is offset by an increase in

another.

POSTAGE

Postage. Another component of the Official Expenses of Members is postage. We are budgeting $261,000 to cover postage which is necessary, in addition to the franking privilege, for Members to perform their official and representational duties.

DISTRICT RENT

District Rent.-The U.S. House of Representatives currently averages over onehalf million dollars per month in payment for district office rent. Our estimate for fiscal year 1980 is $7,666,800 and includes reimbursements to GSA. Built into each Member's Official Expenses Allowance is an amount to lease 2500 square feet of office space at the highest rate in your district as established by GSA. Members may lease private or Federal space. The House reimburses GSA quarterly for space in Federal Buildings. Mr. Chairman, I will place in the record at this time a table of relevant statistics regarding the leasing of district office space which I believe you will find most informative.

TRAVEL

Travel-The portion of Official Expenses of Members pertaining to travel for fiscal year 1980 is $3,214,000. This includes all travel for Members and staff anywhere in the United States or to their district if outside the contiguous United States in performance of their official duties. That portion of each Member's allowance for travel should allow approximately 32 round trips to the district per session. Of course, as with the other component parts we are discussing, a Member may use whatever portion he wishes of his Official Expenses Allowance for travel.

In calendar year 1978, the House paid over 2.1 million dollars for Members' travel and nearly 1 million dollars for travel by staff.

Members and staff may be reimbursed for the direct cost of commercial transportation. Where they are able to charge the expense, Members may authorize direct payments to the carrier or credit card company. Reimbursements for using noncommercial transportation are based on “out of pocket" expenses or mileage in accordance with the following rates per mile: autombile, 17 cents; motorcycle, 15 cents; or private aircraft, 36 cents. Transportation is one of the three variable components of each Member's total annual Official Expenses Allowance and is based on the distance from Washington, D.C. to the farthest point in a Member's district multiplied by applicable decreasing mileage rates. Members within 235 miles of Washington, D.C. have a minimum of $2,250 in their Official Expenses Allowance for travel.

TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Telecommunications. We estimate that the House will spend $10,817,000 out of "Official Expenses of Members" for telecommunications in fiscal year 1980.

Since the telecommunications account covers a variety of costs, I would like, in the limited time available, to highlight our most material amounts.

Our most prominent cost estimate is the WATS which we feel will cost $3,836,000, representing a network of 230 WATS lines. The long distance toll charges which cannot be handled by the WATS network will be $790,200. We estimate an annual cost of $2,282,800 for contract services which represents the cost of equipment used in association with the House Telephone System.

The balance of the total telecommunications budget for 1980 includes telephone message units, the part-time FTS, district office telephone expenses, FTS mileage costs and telegraph expenses.

OFFICE SUPPLIES

Office supplies.-We have included $2,319,000 for office supplies. Each Member's Official Expenses Allowance includes $6,500 per session for stationery and related supplies. It is interesting to note that our estimate is approximately one-half million dollars less than if all Members spent $6,500 per year.

OTHER OFFICIAL EXPENSES

Office expenses.-The last subcategory in Official Expenses of Members covers all other types of expenses which are not specifically summarized in the aforementioned cost centers. These types of disbursements are referred to as just "Official Expenses" on your monthly Member's Allowance Statement. We estimate $3,867,000

will be expended in fiscal year 1980 in this category. Each Member's individual allowance includes $7,000 per session for these types of expenditures.

This concludes the detailed analysis of the component accounts which make up the subcategory "Official Expenses of Members" within "Allowances and Expenses". As I indicated when we first started our testimony on "Allowances and Expenses", even though all these categories, other than Clerk Hire, are one allowance, we feel the dollar amount of this category warrants separate accountability by cost centers. I hope this detail is helpful in your budget analysis and that you will find the monthly summaries by type of expenses equally helpful in your personal Congressional Office budget.

MAXIMUM ALLOWABLE RENT

Mr. BENJAMIN. Bob?

Mr. MICHEL. On the District Office Representatives' accounts, do we have any maximum per square foot allowances there?

Mr. LAWLER. By square foot?

Mr. MICHEL. In the District Office rent that Members pay, is there any maximum ceiling on cost per square foot?

Mr. LAWLER. There isn't a maximum ceiling on the dollar amount you could pay per square foot but there is a maximum ceiling on the dollar amount of the money you have available. That is, if you were to rent space for $14 a square foot but your allowance only had computed in $10 a square foot, you would be taking money that could have been used for some other purpose.

Mr. MICHEL. And the rule still applies that if there is an office or space available in a Federal building, the Member is obliged to have his District Office in that Federal building space before you approve any outside space?

Mr. LAWLER. No, sir; there is no specific regulation that requires that now. The allowance that you would use could be expended for any official purpose and it could include the renting of private space, a mobile home or Federal space.

We might emphasize at this point that payments are made to GSA for the space that you rent. Under the old program, as you remember, the Federal space would have been available in a sense free of charge. But at this point now you are accountable financially for any Federal space that you would lease.

It may be interesting for the committee to note proportionately in fiscal year 1978 the House expended approximately $4 million for Federal space and approximately $2.5 million for private space. Mr. MICHEL. I think that is all I have, Mr. Chairman.

HISTORY OF ALLOWANCES

Mr. CONTE. Mr. Chairman?

Mr. BENJAMIN. Mr. Conte?

Mr. CONTE. I want to compliment you on your graph on page 39. Could you supplement that, with dollar figures?

Mr. HENSHAW. We can do that with no problem; yes, sir.

Mr. CONTE. Thank you.

[The information follows:]

District Office Rental

Official Expessen

Official Telephone Service,

Office Equipment, purchase

Lease and Mainteance Transportation for Members

Transportation for Staff

Stationery

Postage

Compiter and related services

Constituent Communication

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1971

$4,200 4/

1,200

Effective 10/1/75

1,800

5,500

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er 4,200 61 12 round trips/year or $750

lump sum

2 round
trips/year

3,500
910

MEMBER ALLOWANCE C

TEN YEAR COMPARISON ON ANNUAL BASIS

1970-1979

1972

$4,200

1,200

1,800

80,000

80,000

100,000 units 1/ unite / units

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1973

94,200

2,000 2

2,400 I

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1974

$6,000 9/ $6,000

+ three
Federal
Office
Space

+ three
Federal
Office
Space

2,000

3,500
5.500
+1 aut +144
matic
matic
typewrit typewrit-
4,200
4,200 17/ 7,800 187
17 round3/18 round 1/18 round
trips/ tripe/ trips/year
$1123 or
lump sum

year or
6730
lump sum
2 round
trips/

year or
$1175
lump sum
3 round
trips/

Year
3,500
910

year
4,250
910

2,400

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1975

100,000 100,000
units Surita 9/

2,000

1 round
trips/year
3.250
1.140

2,400

5,500 3,500
+ 1 auto-1 auto-
matic

typewrit

matic
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Effective 10/1/73 with carryover 200,000 units accumulated from session to session.
Effective 3/1/74

1976

$6,000

+ three
Federal
Office
Space

2,000

6.500
1,140

2,400

125.000
units 13/

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1977

6,500 1,140 0 1,000 11/ 5,000

0 10/

1978

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2/

1/ Not to exceed $2400 for sot more than 2 official offices
Provision for carryover of unused units not to excred 140,000 units at the end of sesatos
Provision for carryover of unused unita not to exceed 160,000 units at the end of session
Effective August 1, 1971 a maximum of 3 official offices @ 3350/month maximum allowance with rental higher than $200 per month approved by
the Committee on House Administration
Allowance established on Congress basis presented here on session basis
Effective 6/1/71

Effective 10/1/73

1979

1500 square 2500 square 2500 square 2500 square

feet X
highest
G&A rent-
al cost

feet X
highest
CSA rest-
al cost
per square
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feet X
highest
CSA rental
cost per

feet I highest GSA rental cont per

square foot square foot

per square
foot
2,000

7,000

5.200

5,200 16/ 5.200
3,200
15,000 X 15,000 X 15,000 X 15,030 X
the highest the highest the highest the highest
long dist- long dist-
long dist- long dist-
ance tele- ance tele- ance telephone ance telephone
phone rate
phone rate rate from D.C. phone rate
from D.C. from D.C. to Member's to Member's
to Member's to Member's District
District District election of
election of election of WATS reduced
WATS reduc- WATS reduc- this amount
ed this
ed this
in half
in half
in half
5,500 5,500
5,500
• 1 auto- + 1 auto-
matic
matic
typewrit- typewrit-

+ 1 auto-
Gatic
typewrit
er
9,000

Effective March 1, 1975 $250/month unused Clerk Hire funds. Effective 7/29/75 $1,000/month unused Clerk Rire

Effective 6/1/75 $5,000/year

7,000

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13/

Effective 94th Congress - provided 250,000 units accumulated for carryover to next sessier or Congress

14/ Unused Clerk Hire fund (up to $12,000/year) may be transferred to Computer Services
Unused Clerk
Hire Funds (up to $3,000/year) may be transferred to Equipment Lease
Effective August 1, 1977
inctive August 1,

15/

Effective 5/73 transfer of $250/month of unused Clerk Rire to Equipment Lease.

10/

Effective 6/1/74.

197 Effective January 3, 1978, the Committee on House Administration pursuant to the authority stated in 2 U.S.C.57, consolidated all
allowances into one "Members' Official Expenses Allowance" with the exception of the Clerk Hire and Equipment purchase.
20/ Effective January 3, 1978, transfers from Members' Clerk Nire into the official Expenses Allowance may not exceed $15,000 per year.

306A

1960 estimate 19/

7,000

9.900

64 times
rate per
mile from

64 times rate 6 times rate
per alle from per alle from
D.C. re the D.C. to the

by times rate por mile from D.C. to the D.. to the farthest point farthest poist farthest farthest in his District in his Distric polar ta Puter in District bis District 6,500 6.500 211 211 0 14/

0

5,000

5,000

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6,500
211
0

5,500

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