Multiple House Committees Work on Lobbying Bill

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
The Judiciary Committee:
  • 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.
The Administration Committee
  • shares jurisdiction over the forfeiture of retirement benefit
  • requirement for staff ethics training, and has oversight authority over the House inspector general.
The Government Reform Committee :
  • shares jurisdiction over the proposed forfeiture of retirement benefits by those convicted of corruption while in Congress.
The ethics committee, which has not yet scheduled a markup, has jurisdiction over the proposed changes to “revolving door” rules for members and staff that would require the Clerk of the House to specify for members or staff when a one-year ban on employment related to their legislative work would begin and end.
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