January 23, 2003 | Read Time: 1 minute
By Elizabeth Schwinn
Charities may now pay for travel and lodging for members of the House of Representatives who attend their events, under changes to ethics rules enacted by the House of Representatives this month. In addition, lobbyists are now permitted to send food, including pizza and catered meals, to congressional offices. The changes apply only to the House; the Senate’s ethics rules, which do not allow charities to pay for trips, are unchanged.
Republicans said the revisions to the chamber’s strict ethics rules were cosmetic, but Democrats said they seriously erode ethical standards. The revisions were part of an overall package of rules changes that passed 221 to 203, with all Republicans supporting the changes and all Democrats opposing them.
When Republicans took control of Congress in 1995, they enacted limits on what members could accept from lobbyists and other outside groups. Under those rules, outside interests were barred from paying for lawmakers’ travel and lodging. But now charities may reimburse House members for travel and lodging expenses for fund-raising events of which the net proceeds go to the charity. For example, a charity may pay for a House member to stay at a resort where a charity golf tournament is held. Tax-exempt groups other than charities would still be barred from making such payments.
The 1995 rules also said that House members could not accept a meal or gift exceeding $50. The new provision, dubbed the “pizza rule” by lawmakers, will allow lobbyists to buy perishable food and beverages for members of a lawmaker’s office, as long as each person’s share of the food is worth less than $50.
