As reform bills mount and calls for lobbying reform intensify, members of Congress are beginning to grapple with technical details and a timeframe for legislation. On Jan. 25, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC) held the first of what may be many congressional hearings on lobbying reform. Three panels of witnesses testified, addressing a wide range of issues, including grassroots lobbying disclosure; possible bans on privately sponsored travel and gifts for congressional members and staff; and spending earmarks inserted into appropriation bills. Committee Chairwoman Susan Collins (R-ME) called the hearing a "much needed review of legal lobbying activities," but acknowledged that developing legislation would be difficult. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) has asked her to develop legislation for floor consideration in March. Collins' recognition of the difficulty in passing legislation could become prescient. Since the hearing, Rep. John Boehner (R-OH) was elected the House Majority Leader and has expressed caution about rushing forward with legislation, even as House Democrats introduced legislation. He also has raised concern about proposals that he deems too restrictive, such as a ban on privately funded travel and gifts for congressional staff and members, a proposal put forward by House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL). Additionally, advocacy groups have begun organizing efforts to slow down the lobby reform train. Adding to the challenge is partisan wrangling over the "culture of corruption." The two senators asked to lead efforts in the Senate for their respective parties have gotten into a public feud. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) fired off a testy letter to Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) on Feb. 6 criticizing Obama for withdrawing support for his bill. "I would like to apologize to you," the letter read, "for assuming that your private assurances to me regarding your desire to cooperate in our efforts to negotiate bipartisan lobbying reform legislation were sincere... [P]lease be assured I won't make the same mistake again... I understand how important the opportunity to lead your party's effort to exploit this issue must seem to a freshman Senator, and I hold no hard feelings over your earlier disingenuousness." The interactions between McCain and Obama are likely to be considered minor skirmishes in what should be a hotly contested public debate on addressing congressional integrity. The Collins Hearing HSGAC held the hearing to examine the various government reform proposals that have been introduced in the wake of lobbyist Jack Abramoff's guilty plea. While differing on the details, the common themes are lengthening the amount of time members and senior staff must wait before they can lobby Congress; further restricting or banning gifts from lobbyists; prohibiting lobbyists from paying for or accompanying members on trips; and requiring increased disclosure of lobbying and coalition activities. Although most members and panelists agreed that lobby reform is needed, some members urged caution in rushing to bring legislation to the floor. Sen. George Voinovich (R-OH) voiced his concern that an examination of existing rules is needed, commenting on the "significant confusion" surrounding disclosure requirements. Voinovich, Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Ethics, offered to hold a hearing on the current capacity of the Senate to administer and enforce the existing rules. Reform of campaign fundraising activities and earmarks were on many Senators' minds. Voinovich mentioned the amount of time and energy Senators spend raising money for their campaigns, a concern that was echoed by members and panelists alike. Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM) argued that corruption stems from the growing cost of campaigns and the constant chase to raise funds for re-election bids. He proposed restricting lawmakers' fundraising to their home states and banning contributions from Washington lobbyists. Bill Samuels, director of legislation at the AFL-CIO, framed the issue as an uneven playing field, cautioning against reforms that "heighten the disproportionate influence business already has in Congress." He explained that "political action committees (PACs) set up by corporations outspent labor union PACs by 24-1 in 2004. The imbalance is even worse when it comes to lobbying. In 2000... lobbyists representing business interests outspent workers' representatives by more than 50-1, spending well over $1 billion to influence the outcome of legislation." Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), who introduced S. 2128, the Lobby Reform and Transparency Act, commented that, as lobbying has grown, so have funding earmarks. "We are not going to fix the system until we fix earmarks," he argued. Earlier, Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) put it much more plainly: "until we eliminate earmarking, the process of putting the well heeled above those who aren't able to be in that position... we won't solve the problems. The problem is us." This topic of leveling the playing field also arose during discussion on restrictions on privately funded travel. Dick Clark, vice president of the Aspen Institute, recommended instituting a prohibition on registered lobbyists, or organizations that employ registered lobbyists from paying from travel, although a total ban would be "foolhardy." Both Samuels and John Engler, president of the National Association of Manufacturing, argued in defense of privately funded travel, but advocated different reform mechanisms. Engler encouraged members not to create legislation "limiting the ability of organizations to educate policymakers on the real life impact of their actions." Samuels supported a ban on all privately funded travel with an exception for costs sustained when a member attends an organization's meeting or convention, as long as the meeting or convention is being conducted for reasons unrelated to the member's attendance. This would allow nonprofits to bring members of Congress to their meetings or conventions--an important way for nonprofits to educate members of congress and their staff--regardless of any advocacy work the nonprofit might do. Moving Legislation Forward At the same time, Senate and House leaders have struggled with both the language and timelines for legislation. Sen. Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) proposed a bipartisan task force to create legislation. This was rejected by Sen. Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), who believes it would delay action on the issue. Instead, Reid introduced S. 2180, the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act on Jan. 20. The Democrats have appointed Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) to head up the their reform efforts. He continues to push for committee consideration of S. 2180, although he has expressed his willingness to work with other members in a bi-partisan manner. Reportedly, McCain and Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA), the Senate Republican's point man on government reform legislation, have been working in collaboration with HSGAC to get a bill to Frist by Feb. 27. There is speculation that Frist's "Lobby Reform Working Group" will produce legislation similar to McCain's original proposal. A sticking point, however, may be earmarks. Sen. Trent Lott (R-MS), a member of the Working Group, has started his own bi-partisan initiative to focus on earmarks that does not go as far as McCain's proposal. Lott, Chairman of the Senate Rules and Administration Committee, is holding a hearing on making the legislative process more transparent on Feb. 8. While legislation is moving full steam ahead in the Senate, in the House newly elected House Majority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) is not creating a timeline for legislation. "When we have a bill ready, we'll introduce it, it's as simple as that", he said. Originally, Speaker Hastert appeared to be pushing strongly for travel and gift bans, as well as changes to the earmarking process, but the internal GOP struggle over H.RES.648, a bill introduced by Rep. David Dreier (R-CA) to revoke floor and gym privileges for former members who are registered lobbyists, has forced party leaders to back down on the wider overhaul of lobbying regulations. On Feb. 1, the resolution passed 379-50. On Feb. 1, H.R. 4682, a companion bill to Reid's legislation, was introduced in the House by Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). To date, 161 members have signed on as co-sponsors. The same day the House Government Reform Committee held a hearing that focused on a proposal to bar government officials convicted of crimes related to corruption from receiving government pensions. Witnesses from Common Cause and Public Citizen supported the pension proposal, but maintained that more needs to be done, including disclosure of lobbying contacts and tougher restrictions on the "revolving door," expanding the time former members of Congress and senior staff must wait before they can become registered lobbyists. Republican leadership in both the House and Senate has indicated interest in adding restrictions on independent political committees (527s) to the government and lobby reform bills. Currently, none of the legislation proposed contains such language. While some Democrats have supported restrictions on 527s, most do not support including 527s in the current government reform legislation. In the House, Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD) said he would not support a bill mixing the two issues. New Lobby Reform Legislation H.R. 4682 The Honest Leadership and Open Government Act, sponsored by Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) H.R. 4667 The Lobbying Transparency and Accountability Act of 2006, sponsored by Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick (R-PA) H.R. 4696 Restoring Trust in Government Act , sponsored by Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI) New Earmark Legislation S. 2233 To reform and improve regulation and congressional ethics, sponsored by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) New Disclosure Legislation H. Res. 647 To post travel documents on the Internet, sponsored by Rep. Walter Jones (R-NC)