SRES213APR15

TheWeekInCongress.com

Week Ending April 15, 2005

House Resolution 213 a privileged resolution that would create a bipartisan task force to return to ethical rules of the House.

BRIEF

The House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct rides herd of the behavior of House members and can take action to admonish or even bring proceedings to expel a member for unethical and other unacceptable behavior. On day one of the 109^th Congress the majority modified the rules of the committee and pretty much cleaned house, replacing the chairman who then reportedly replaced committee members considered ‘bi-partisan by this Resolution’s supporters.

The Resolution would establish a task force staffed equally by majority and minority members to “make recommendations to restore public confidence in the ethics process” and report the recommendations by June 1, 2005.

Sponsor: Representative Nancy Pelosi (D-CA-8th)

Vote: The Resolution was tabled (killed) by a vote of 218 to 195 (RC 106).

Cost to the taxpayers: No discernible cost.

MORE INFORMATION

S. Res. 213

Whereas, the constitution of the United States authorizes the House of Representatives to ``determine the Rules of its Proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly Behavior, and, with the concurrence of two thirds, expel a Member'';

Whereas, in 1968, in compliance with this authority and to uphold its integrity and ensure that Members act in a manner that reflects credit on the House of Representatives, the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct was established;

Whereas, the ethics procedures in effect during the 108th congress, and in the three preceding Congresses, were enacted in 1997 in a bipartisan manner by an overwhelming vote of the House of Representatives upon the bipartisan recommendation of the ten-member Ethics Reform Task Force, which conducted a thorough and lengthy review of the entire ethics process;

Whereas, in the 109th Congress, for the first time in the history of the House of Representatives, decisions affecting the ethics process have been made on a partisan basis without consulting the Democratic Members of the Committee or of the House;

Whereas, the Chairman of the Committee, and two of his Republican colleagues, were dismissed from the Committee;

Whereas, in a statement to the press, the departing Chairman of the Committee stated ``[t]here is a bad perception out there that there was a purge in the Committee and that people were put in that would protect our side of the aisle better than I did,'' and a replaced Republican Member, also in a statement to the press, referring to his dismissal from the Committee, noted his belief that ``the decision was a direct result of our work in the last session;''

Whereas, the newly appointed chairman of the Committee improperly and unilaterally fired non-partisan Committee staff who assisted in the ethics work in the last session;

Whereas, these actions have subjected the Committee to public ridicule, produced contempt for the ethics process, created the public perception that their purpose was to protect a Member of the House, and weakened the ability of the Committee to adequately obtain information and properly conduct its investigative duties, all of which has brought discredit to the House; now be it

Resolved, that the Speaker shall appoint a bi-partisan task force with equal representation of the majority and minority parties to make recommendations to restore public confidence in the ethics process; and be it further

Resolved, that the task force report its findings and recommendations to the House of Representatives no later than June 1, 2005.

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