Multiple House Committees Work on Lobbying Bill
by Guest Blogger, 4/4/2006
Lobby reform will be on the House floor when the member's return from Easter recess, as four of the committees of jurisdiction have scheduled markups on HR 4975, the GOP's bill.
Five committees have jurisdiction over the bill: Government Reform, Administration, Judiciary, Rules and Standards of Official Conduct, as the ethics committee is formally called. Judiciary and Rules will hold markups Wednesday; Government Reform and House Administration will hold their markups a day later.
The Rules Committee:
- limits or ban on gifts/meals
- identification inappropriations bills of member earmarks
- changes to federal lobbying law (PL 104-65), including increased penalties for non-compliance and other portions of the bill related to citizen interaction with government.
- shares jurisdiction over the forfeiture of retirement benefit
- requirement for staff ethics training, and has oversight authority over the House inspector general.
- shares jurisdiction over the proposed forfeiture of retirement benefits by those convicted of corruption while in Congress.
