Restrictions on the Accesptance of "Officially Connected" Travel Expenses From Private Sources Under House and Senate Rules

CRS Report for Congress
Restrictions on the Acceptance of “Officially
Connected” Travel Expenses From Private
Sources Under House and Senate Ethics Rules
August 24, 2005
Jack Maskell
Legislative Attorney
American Law Division


Congressional Research Service ˜ The Library of Congress

Restrictions on the Acceptance of “Officially Connected”
Travel Expenses From Private Sources Under House
and Senate Ethics Rules
Summary
While the acceptance by Members of Congress and staff of personal gifts from
most outside, private sources is significantly regulated and restricted by internal
congressional rules, Members of the House and Senate may still generally accept
from some private sources – other than those who are registered lobbyists or
registered foreign agents – necessary travel expenses, including transportation, food
and lodging, for travel “in connection with” their official duties, such as for fact-
finding trips, conferences or symposia, under certain limited circumstances. Under
both House and Senate Rules, the over-all purpose of any privately funded trip of this
nature must be related or connected to official duties, and may not be “substantially
recreational in nature.” Furthermore, while Members may accept “necessary” travel
expenses for events which are sufficiently officially-related or “officially connected,”
the expenses for incidental recreational activities during these trips, such as the costs
for golf, snow-skiing, jet-skiing, or tennis, are expressly not considered “necessary”
expenses of such travel under either the House or the Senate Rules, and thus fall
within the general prohibitions and the $50 limitations on gifts from private sources.
(Under both the House and Senate Rules, gifts from any private source, other than
from relatives and certain long-term personal friends, are generally prohibited if the
value of the gift is $50 or more.) The duration of any permitted trip under the
“officially connected” travel exception is limited in the House to four days for
domestic and seven days for foreign travel (excluding travel days), and in the Senate
to three days for domestic travel and seven days for foreign travel (also excluding
travel days). Staff employees must receive advance approval for accepting from
private sources expenses for such officially connected travel, and whenever expenses
or reimbursement for officially connected travel are accepted by Members or staff,
a disclosure report on such travel and expenses is required to be made within 30 days
of the end of the travel.



Contents
Statute and Rules..................................................1
Federal Law..................................................1
Congressional Rules............................................2
Officially Connected Travel..........................................3
Background ..................................................4
Current Rules.................................................5
1. Officially Connected Purpose..............................6
2. Lobbyists or Foreign Agents...............................6
3. Source of Funds........................................7
4. Recreation and “Necessary” Expenses.......................7
5. “Reasonable” Expenses..................................8
6. Duration..............................................9
7. Side Trips and Stop-overs.................................9
8. Reporting, Disclosure....................................9
Bribery, Illegal Gratuities...........................................10
APPENDIX .....................................................11



Restrictions on the Acceptance of “Officially
Connected” Travel Expenses From Private
Sources Under House and Senate Ethics
Rules
This report discusses the statutory and congressional rule structure under which
Members of the House and Senate, under an exception to the gift Rules, may
generally accept from some private sources – other than registered lobbyists or
registered foreign agents – necessary travel expenses, including transportation, food
and lodging, for travel “in connection with” their official duties, such as for fact-
finding trips, conferences or symposia, under certain circumstances and limitations.
Statute and Rules
The receipt of “gifts” by Members and staff of the House of Representatives and
of the Senate, including the receipt or acceptance of payment or reimbursement of
travel expenses from outside, private, third-party sources, is generally restricted by
the operation of federal statutory law, as applied by the House and Senate Rules.1
Under these provisions, Members of Congress and congressional staff are prohibited
from soliciting or accepting gifts from any private sources unless expressly permitted
by an exception in the congressional rules. Members and staff may generally not
accept private gifts, reimbursements, or payments of their expenses, other than from
their relatives and certain long-term personal friends, when the value of a gift is $50
or more (or when multiple gifts of under $50 from the same source aggregate $100
or more in a calendar year). There do exist exceptions to the gifts prohibitions under
both House and Senate Rules which allow for the acceptance of some travel expenses
from outside, third parties for what is characterized as “officially connected” travel
by Members, officers and employees of the House and Senate in specifically defined
and limited circumstances.
Federal Law.
Provisions of federal law currently provide the general standard and prohibition
on the receipt of “gifts” from certain private sources. 5 U.S.C. § 7353, states:
§ 7353. Gifts to Federal employees


1 U.S.C. § 7353; House Rule XXV, Senate Rule XXXV. The receipt of gifts from foreign
governments is governed by the provisions of the Constitution, Article I, Section 9, cl. 8, and
the Foreign Gifts and Decorations Act, note 5 U.S.C. § 7342, as interpreted by the House
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct and the Senate Select Committee on Ethics.

(a) Except as permitted by subsection (b), no Member of Congress or officer or
employee of the executive, legislative , or judicial branch shall solicit or accept
anything of value from a person —
(1) seeking official action from, doing business with, or (in the case of executive
branch officers and employees) conducting activities regulated by, the
individual’s employing entity; or
(2) whose interests may be substantially affected by the performance or
nonperformance of the individual’s official duties.
While subsection (a) of this law provides the general prohibition on the receipt
of gifts from interested parties, subsection (b) of the statute expressly allows the
appropriate “supervising ethics office” to promulgate rules or regulations regarding
the acceptance of gifts by officers and employees, and to provide such “reasonable
exceptions as may be appropriate,” whereby officers or employees may accept such
gifts pursuant to those rules.2 The “gift” Rules of the House and the Senate thus
generally operate as the regulatory scheme setting out the standards for Members,
officers and employees of the House and Senate, respectively, as to the prohibitions
and the exceptions to the restrictions upon acceptance of private gifts and
reimbursement.
Congressional Rules.
The Rules of the House, at House Rule XXV, clause 5, and of the Senate, at
Senate Rule XXXV, generally prohibit the receipt by Members and staff of any gifts
of $50 or more in value from any private source (and those gifts of $10 or more
aggregating $100 or more in a year from the same source), unless specifically
permitted by one or more of the various exceptions specifically provided in the3
Rules. As noted above, one of the more common exceptions is for gifts from
relatives or from (or exchanged between) certain long-term, personal friends of the
Member or congressional staffer. Additionally, there are exceptions in the House and
Senate Rules for the receipt (but not the solicitation) of certain travel expenses from
private sources in specifically defined and limited circumstances.
Under congressional rules, the threshold consideration in determining the
propriety of accepting private reimbursement or payment of expenses for travel is the
characterization of the purpose of the particular travel in question. Travel may be for
strictly official, congressional business; may be for campaign related or other
“political” reasons; may be to participate in a charitable fund-raiser; may be in


2 5 U.S.C. § 7353
(b)(1) Each supervising ethics office is authorized to issue rules or regulations
implementing the provisions of this section and providing for such reasonable
exceptions as may be appropriate.
(b)(2)(A) Subject to paragraph (B), a Member, officer, or employee may accept
a gift pursuant to rules or regulations established by such individual’s
supervising ethics office pursuant to paragraph (1).
(b)(2)(B) No gift may be accepted pursuant to subsection (A) in return for being
influenced in the performance of any official act.
3 House Rule XXV, clause 5(a)(1) and (2); Senate Rule XXXV, clause 1(a) and (b). The
text of the relevant House and Senate Rules are appended to this Report.

relation to a Member’s or a Member’s spouse’s outside private business endeavors;
may be for purely personal purposes such as recreation, vacation or pleasure; may be
for “officially connected” reasons, such as fact-finding tours or conferences; or may
be some combination of these. In such cases, differing rules, prohibitions, standards
and restrictions may apply depending on the nature and purpose of the travel.
For example, travel for strictly official, core congressional business may not be
paid for or reimbursed at all by outside, private third parties, as the House and Senate
Rules on unofficial office accounts prohibit the establishment or functional operation
of what used to be called congressional “slush funds,” that is, private contributions
or private funds paying for official congressional operations or activities.4 Expenses
for travel for campaign related or other “political” reasons may be paid for or
reimbursed from campaign accounts subject to campaign finance laws and
regulations (but generally in relation to federal elections may not be accepted from
corporations, labor unions, national banks, or government contractors under federal
campaign laws), and when and if paid for by other outside, private parties must
conform to federal campaign finance laws.5 Some travel and certain expenses for
charitable fund-raisers may be accepted by Members participating in such fund-
raising events for the charity, under particular limitations of the House and Senate
Rules.6 Reimbursement or payment for travel in relation to a Member’s or a
Member’s spouse’s outside private business endeavors may generally be accepted
subject to guidelines,7 while the payment by outside, private sources for travel for
purely personal purposes, such as recreation, vacation or pleasure, would generally
be prohibited as an impermissible personal “gift” when $50 or more in value.8
Officially Connected Travel
The travel that has recently raised several questions has been the acceptance of
private payment or reimbursement of “officially connected” travel by Members and
staff. Both the Rules of the House of Representatives and the Rules of the Senate
expressly permit, as an exception to the general gifts restriction, the payment or
reimbursement by certain outside, private sources of the “necessary” travel expenses
of Members for events such as conferences, fact-finding tours, symposia or lectures
which, although not core congressional functions, are “in connection with” or
sufficiently related to a Member’s official duties. The wording of the House and


4 House Rule XXIV, clauses 1-3; Senate Rule XXXVIII, clause 1; 2 U.S.C. § 59e(d).
5 2 U.S.C. §§ 439a, 441a, 441b, 441c, 441e, 441f, 441g; contributions to and expenditures
by candidates must be reported as provided in 2 U.S.C. §§ 432, 434; see also House Rule
XXV, cl. 5(a)(3)(G)(iii); Senate Rule XXXV, cl. 1(c)(7)(C).
6 House Rule XXV, cl. 5(a)(4)(C); Senate Rule XXXV, cl. 2(d)(3); see discussion of
“Recreation and ‘Necessary’ Expenses” in this Report, at pp. 7-8, infra.
7 House Rule XXV, cl. 5(a)(3)(G)(i)(ii); Senate Rule XXXV, cl. 1(c)(7)(A) and (B), if such
benefits are “customarily provided” to others in similar circumstances, and are not “offered
or enhanced because of” the Member’s official position.
8 House Rule XXV, cl. 5(a)(1) and (2); Senate Rule XXXV, cl. 1(a) and (b).

Senate Rules on this subject are substantially identical,9 other than as to the
permissible duration of such trips, which is limited in the House to four days for
domestic and seven days for foreign travel (excluding travel days), and in the Senate
to three days for domestic travel and seven days for foreign travel (also excluding
travel days).
Background
The exception to the gift prohibitions in the House and Senate for the receipt of
reimbursement or payment of expenses for “fact-finding,” and similar types of
officially-related or officially-connected activities has been one of fairly long-
standing under congressional rules. The first restrictions on gifts with specific
monetary limitations and detailed guidelines were enacted in the House and Senate
in 1977,10 and under these Rules, provisions were made for Members and staff to
accept certain travel expenses and reimbursement for such “fact-finding” events. In
the House of Representatives in the 95th Congress, a Select Committee on Ethics was
established to provide advisory opinions and guidance on the new restrictions on
gifts.11 The Select Committee noted that although “there has been some criticism
regarding abuses of ‘fact finding tours’ in the past,” it would not be in the public
interest to prohibit Members from accepting necessary travel expenses for “fact
finding events or activities which have a legitimate purpose directly related to the
official duties of the Congress.”12 The Committee noted that “although a Member
of Congress may render some personal services in the course of a fact-finding event,
the primary purpose of the trip is for the Members, officers, or employees to become
better informed regarding subject matters closely related to their official duties,”13
and found:
Therefore, the Select Committee holds that necessary expenses paid by an
organization sponsoring a fact-finding event are exempted from the limitations
of Rule XLIII, clause 4 [now XXV, clause 5], provided that the fact-finding
event or activity is directly related to the official duties of the Member, officer,
or employee. Any such reimbursement or payment of travel expenses
aggregating over $250 in value from one source would be subject to disclosure


9 See APPENDIX to this memorandum for the precise language of relevant House and
Senate Rules.
10 See H.Res. 287, 95th Cong. (1977); S.Res. 110, 95th Cong. (1977). The first internal
“gifts” rules were not adopted by the House until 1968, and then provided only that
Members and staff should not accept gifts of “substantial value” from those with intereststh
in legislation before Congress. H.Res. 1099, 90 Cong. (1968). The Senate Rules in 1968
provided merely for confidential disclosure of gifts of more than $50 from other than familyth
members. S.Res. 266, 90 Cong. (1968).
11 H.Res. 383, 95th Cong. (1977).
12 House Select Committee on Ethics of the 95th Congress, Advisory Opinion No. 8, May

11, 1977, see H.R. Rpt. No. 95-1837, 95th Cong., 2d Sess. 69-71 (1979).


13 Compare to Advisory Opinion No. 2, April 6, 1977, on receipt of expenses when the
Member renders personal services or substantially participates. Formerly under House
Rules, Members could accept expenses when substantially participating, or when engaged
in fact-finding related to one’s official duties.

.... This public disclosure will guard against the potential abuse of converting
this kind of activity from an official business purpose to that of personal pleasure
or entertainment. Gifts of that nature exceeding $100 [now $50] in value were14
clearly intended to be prohibited ....
To protect against potential abuses, the Select Committee narrowly defined
“fact-finding” tours and activities to exclude reimbursements or provision to a
Member of transportation by a corporation to his home district “on the grounds that
he would ‘tour’ the corporate facilities there,” and such things as “ship-launchings”
or inaugural airline flights, which were considered more in the nature of promotional
events. The Committee further emphasized that Members may only accept necessary
expenses incurred in a fact-finding activity, and may not accept even entertainment,
or expenses or reimbursements for entertainment, which, among all other
reimbursements, expenses or things of value beyond necessary expenses, would be
considered gifts to the Member subject to the specific dollar limitation on gifts:
Additionally, the Select Committee emphasizes that the definition of a “fact-
finding event” must be interpreted narrowly. House Rule XLIII, clause 2 [now
XXIII, clause2] puts Members on notice that not only the “letter” but also the
“spirit” of House Rules must be adhered to....
The intended definition of a fact-finding event would also not extend to expenses
incurred during such an event which are unrelated to the specific fact-finding
activity.... Similarly, this exemption for fact-finding activities applies only to
necessary expenses (transportation, food, lodging) and not to entertainment.
Thus, a Member of Congress, whether traveling on a fact-finding tour or under
any circumstances, may not accept gifts of entertainment ... [beyond the dollar15
limitation].
Current Rules
The current House and Senate Rules now reflect in their language the traditional
restrictions and limitations on this type of privately financed travel, as well as other
specific limitations, restrictions, and requirements.16 Because such events are
intended to be restricted to those connected to one’s official duties, and are ostensibly
for the purpose of informing, educating or broadening the knowledge of the Member
of certain issues and their factual backgrounds relevant to matters coming before the
Member in an official capacity, such expenses received by or reimbursed for the
Member are “considered” or “deemed” to be a “reimbursement to the House” or “to
the Senate,” as the case may be, rather than a personal gift to the Member, as long as
such expenses are publicly disclosed within 30 days of the end of the travel.17
However, because of the obvious potential and opportunities for abuse, such privately


14 House Select Committee on Ethics of the 95th Congress, H.R. Rpt. No. 95-1837, supra.
15 Id.
16 The House and Senate gifts Rules were again significantly amended after 1977 in 1991,
pursuant to the Ethics Reform Act of 1989, P.L. 101-194 (see also P.L. 102-90, Section 314,ndthth

102 Cong., (1992)), and in 1995, S.Res. 158, 104 Cong. (1995), H.Res. 250, 104 Cong.


(1995).
17 House Rule XXV, cl. 5(b)(1)(A); Senate Rule XXXV, clause 2(a)(1).

funded travel is limited and restricted in some detail.18 Under both the House and
Senate Rules, the following general limitations apply:
1. Officially Connected Purpose. The underlying event for which
expenses are accepted must be connected to or related to one’s official duties, that
is, “in connection with” a Member’s duties “as an officeholder.”19 Activities or
events such as meetings, fact-findings, speaking engagements, lectures, classes,
conventions, symposia, or product or process demonstrations may be those types of
matters when the underlying subject is sufficiently related or connected to a
Member’s official duties. Both the House and Senate Rules indicate that the
underlying purpose and activities of the trip must be related sufficiently enough to
one’s official duties so that engaging in such privately paid travel “would not create20
the appearance that the Member ... is using public office for private gain.” If the
over-all purpose of the trip is “substantially recreational in nature,” the trip will not21
be considered officially connected.
2. Lobbyists or Foreign Agents. The expenses of officially connected
travel may not be paid for by a registered lobbyist or an agent of a foreign principle
registered under the Foreign Agents Registration Act. While “lobbyists” and
“lobbying firms” are prohibited from paying for such travel, the clients or employers
of the lobbyists or lobbying firms (that is, organizations or businesses which employ
lobbyists either directly as employees or by contract with outside lobbyists) are not
considered “lobbyists” themselves and may sponsor and reimburse officially-related
travel.22 In addition to the prohibition of lobbyists funding such fact-finding trips, the
House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct has expressly noted in an official
publication issued in April of 2000, that “The prohibition against accepting travel
expenses from a registered lobbyist, an agent of a foreign principal, or a lobbying
firm applies even where the lobbyist, agent or firm will later be reimbursed for those
expenses by a non-lobbyist client.”23 While the lobbyist may not pay for the travel
expenses, even if later reimbursed by a client, the Rules do not expressly prohibit the


18 The Senate Select Committee on Ethics has issued in May of 2005 a two-page “Best
Practices Guide” with respect to privately sponsored travel, including practical and detailed
recommendations and checklists for such travel. The guide is accessible on the Committee’s
website, [http://ethics.senate.gov], under “Recent Updates & Notices.”
19 House Rule XXV, cl. 5(b)(1)(A); Senate Rule XXXV, clause 2(a)(1).
20 House Rule XXV, cl. 5(b)(3)(F); Senate Rule XXXV, clause 2(c)(6).
21 Any event, the “activities of which are substantially recreational in nature, shall not be
considered to be in connection with the duties of a Member ... as an officeholder.” House
Rule XXV, cl. 5(b)(1)(B); Senate Rule XXXV, clause 2(a)(2).
22 See discussion in Senate Select Committee on Ethics, Senate Ethics Manual, 108th
Congress, 1st Sess. at 43 (2003); House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, Giftsthnd
and Travel, 106 Congress, 2 Sess. at 56, 76 (April 2000). If a client is a foreign
government, however, different rules and travel restrictions apply to gifts from foreign
governments, see Article I, Section 9, cl. 8, and the Foreign Gifts and Decorations Act, now

5 U.S.C. § 7342.


23 House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, Gifts and Travel, 106th Congress,

2nd Sess. 76 (April 2000).



lobbyist from accompanying the Members and attending such event paid for by the
lobbyist’s clients or employers. The Senate provides that the lobbyist is not
prohibited from “assisting the organization in arranging the event, for example, by
issuing the invitations on behalf of the organization or attending the event.”24 The
discussion of the House Rules notes that a private entity paying for officially
connected travel should “both organize and conduct the trip, rather than merely pay
for a trip that is in fact organized and conducted by someone else,” but the House
Rules do not expressly prohibit a lobbyist either accompanying a Member on such
event, nor personally extending the sponsoring organization’s invitation to the
Member. 25
3. Source of Funds. The source of the funds for a fact-finding event must
be the sponsor of the event, or an entity sufficiently connected to the event or
sponsoring organization in some way. The House notes that a Member “may accept
expenses for officially connected travel only from a private source that has a direct
and immediate relationship with the event or the location being visited.”26 Similarly,
the Senate notes that the “sponsor of the event” may pay for travel, and that other
parties “so closely connected to particular events and their sponsors as to render them27
permissible providers” may also pay necessary expenses. Because the actual source
of funds may not be readily evident, the House Committee on Standards of Official
Conduct expressly advises Members to “make inquiry on the source of the funds that
will be used to pay for the trip”:
The rule is concerned with the organization(s) or individual(s) that actually pay
for travel. Thus, for example, where a non-profit organization pays for travel
with donations that were earmarked, either formally or informally, for the trip,
each such donor is deemed a “private source” for the trip and (1) must be
publicly disclosed as a trip sponsor on the applicable travel disclosure forms and
(2) may itself be required to satisfy the above standards on proper source of
travel expenses. Accordingly, it is advisable for a Member or staff person who
is invited on a trip to make inquiry on the source of the funds that will be used28
to pay for the trip.
4. Recreation and “Necessary” Expenses. The permissible expenses
that may be accepted for officially-connected events are only for “necessary”
expenses of travel, including such things as food, transportation, lodging, conference
fees, and conference or lecture materials. The Rules expressly define “necessary”


24 Senate Ethics Manual, supra at 44.
25 Gifts and Travel, supra at 75-76.
26 Gifts and Travel, supra at 75.
27 Senate Ethics Manual, supra at 48-49. Entities “sufficiently affiliated to the host,” such
as member groups of the sponsoring organization; if the directors, principal officers and
trustees of such groups are the same for the sponsoring organization; or if there exists a
“direct corporate and/or financial relationship between the sponsoring organization and the
group.”
28 Gifts and Travel, supra at 75-76.

expenses as being “limited to reasonable expenditures for transportation, lodging,
conference fees and materials, and food and refreshments ....”29
The House and Senate Rules both clearly state that “necessary expenses” do not
include expenditures for “recreational activities.”30 That is, the expenses for
recreational activities, even those during and incidental to otherwise legitimate,
officially-connected travel, are not within this exception, and are therefore subject to
the $50 limitation on personal gifts to the Member; and would include such things
as expenses for jet-skiing, water skiing, golf green-fees, club guest fees and rentals,
and fishing expeditions. As explained by the House Committee on Standards of
Official Conduct, for example: “[D]uring the course of a trip, entertainment or
recreational activities may be accepted from a private source only if their total value
is less than $50, and the overall gift limit of less than $100 in any calendar year is
complied with.”31 Additionally, “entertainment” expenses are not considered
“necessary expenses,” and may not be accepted unless the entertainment is “provided
to all attendees as an integral part of the event.”32
5. “Reasonable” Expenses. The Rules of the House and Senate provide
that the “necessary” expenses which are and may be accepted in relation to officially
connected travel must also be “reasonable.”33 There appear to be, however, no
published guidelines or tables delineating any specific monetary amounts considered
within, or outside of, the range of “reasonable” expenses for travel and lodging. It
should be noted that the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct explains
that the qualifiers “necessary” and “reasonable” may also limit the time frame for
which expenses may be accepted, depending on the nature of the event. Thus, a
Member, officer or employee “may accept only such expenses as are reasonably
necessary to accomplish the purpose of the trip, and thus it may not always be proper


29 House Rule XXV, cl. 5(b)(4)(B); Senate Rule XXXV, clause 2(d)(2).
30 House Rule XXV, cl. 5(b)(4)(C); Senate Rule XXXV, clause 2(d)(3).
31 House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, Memorandum to all Members,
Officers and Employees (“Pink Sheet”), “Reminders on the Travel Rules,” at 2, October 30,
2003. Expenses (of $50 or more) from persons who are not relatives or personal friends for
such things as golf (including green fees and transportation to the golfing event) or fishing
or tennis tournaments, might be acceptable under congressional rules in the case of a
charitable fund-raising event, when the golf, fishing or tennis “tournament” is the fund-
raiser, and the Member accepts an unsolicited offer of free attendance. Senate Rule XXXV,
clause 2(d)(3); House Rule XXV, clause 5(a)(4)(C). The House and Senate Rules differ as
to the permissibility of acceptance of non-local expenses of travel for recreational
“charitable events,” which the Senate prohibits but which the House allows under someth
circumstances. Senate Select Committee on Ethics, Senate Ethics Manual, 108 Congress,st
1 Sess. at 45 (2003)), House Rule XXV, clause 5(a)(4)(C)(i)-(iii). Recreational events
such as golf might also be part of a political fundraising event in which Members and staff
may participate when paid for by a “political organization” sponsoring the event. House
Rule XXV, cl. 5(a)(3)(G)(iii); Senate Rule XXXV, cl. 1(c)(7)(C).
32 House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, Memorandum to all Members,
Officers and Employees, “Reminders on the Travel Rules,” supra at 2
33 House Rule XXV, cl. 5(b)(4)(A) and (B); Senate Rule XXXV, clause 2(d)(1) and (2).

to accept expenses for the full four- or seven-day period. This is particularly so
where the sole purpose of an individual’s travel to an event is to give a speech.”34
6. Duration. Officially connected, necessary travel expenses may be accepted
in the House of Representatives for travel for up to four days for domestic events,
and seven days for foreign travel (excluding travel days), and in the Senate for up to
three days for domestic travel and seven days for foreign travel (also excluding travel
days).35 These are maximum allowed stays, and the permissible duration of any
given trip may depend, as discussed above, on the necessity and reasonableness of
expenses in relation to the Member’s actual functions and/or participation in any
particular officially connected event or events.
7. Side Trips and Stop-overs. Additional expenses for side trips and
events “unrelated to the purpose of the trip” are not permitted. In the House, the
House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct notes that a Member may “not
accept additional expenses for stopovers that are unrelated to the purpose of the
trip”36; and in the Senate, the Senate Select Committee on Ethics notes that
“necessary expenses” do not “include expenses which are associated with
appearances or activities unrelated to the sponsor’s event.”37 If a Member wishes to
extend a trip after the event for which expenses may be accepted, the Member may
still accept return transportation from the event locale (but if the extension causes a
higher airfare, the Member must pay the additional fare), but any side trips or
additional stopovers for unrelated activities must be paid for by the Member, or fit
within the $50 limitation on a gift from private sources.38
8. Reporting, Disclosure. Members of the House and the Senate are not
required to provide advance notification or receive advance approval for officially
connected travel. Staff employees, however, under the House and Senate Rules are
required to receive advance authorization in writing from their employing Member
of Congress or congressional officer, specifically determining that the purpose of the
trip is officially connected and in conformance with the Rules, prior to accepting
officially connected travel expenses. In the case of Members, or officers and
employees, a full disclosure and reporting of any trip for which privately financed
travel expenses for “officially connected” events are accepted must be made within

30 days after the end of travel. This disclosure must include the dates, itinerary,


identification of the trip sponsor, a specific dollar figure for expenses when available
(otherwise a “good faith” estimate of expenses), and in the case of a Member,
indicating that a specific determination that the purpose of the trip is officially


34 Gifts and Travel, supra at 78.
35 House Rule XXV, cl. 5(b)(4)(A); Senate Rule XXXV, clause 2(d)(1).
36 Gifts and Travel, supra at 80.
37 Senate Ethics Manual, supra at 46.
38 “Travelers may extend trips at their own expense and on their own time and still accept
return transportation. ... Travelers may not accept additional reimbursements from the
sponsor to cover the costs of personal travel.” Senate Ethics Manual, supra at 47.

connected was made by the Member and “would not create the appearance that the
Member ... is using public office for private gain.”39
Bribery, Illegal Gratuities
The preceding discussion has centered around the language and interpretations
of internal House and Senate Rules on the acceptance of gifts and things of value
from outside, private sources. It should be noted that there are also criminal statutes
that involve specifically the receipt of anything of value by a public official. While
a “gift” is generally understood to be given and accepted with no “strings attached,”
that is, that the gift has the requisite donative intent and is not specifically connected
to or related to any particular “official act” by the public officer, the criminal laws are
aimed at the receipt of things of value when the offer and/or acceptance or receipt are
connected in some way to an official act or forbearance by that public official. The
“bribery” provisions of federal law prohibit the “corrupt” receipt of something of
value “in return for” being influenced in any official act, while the “illegal gratuities”
clause of that law requires merely the receipt of something of value with the
knowledge that one is being compensated or rewarded “for or because of” any40


official act done or to be done.
39 House Rule XXV, clause 5(b)(1)(A)(ii), and (3); Senate Rule XXXV, clause 2(a)(1)(B)
and 2(b).
40 18 U.S.C. §201(b), (c). United States v. Sun-Diamond Growers of California, 526 U.S.

398 (1999). See also 18 U.S.C. § 203.



APPENDIX
House Rule XXV, clause 5:
(b) (1) (A) A reimbursement (including payment in kind) to a Member, Delegate,
Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House from a private source
other than a registered lobbyist or agent of a foreign principal for necessary
transportation, lodging, and related expenses for travel to a meeting, speaking
engagement, factfinding trip, or similar event in connection with his duties as an
officeholder shall be considered as a reimbursement to the House and not a gift
prohibited by this clause, if the Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer,
or employee –
(i) in the case of an employee, receives advance authorization, from the Member,
Delegate, Resident Commissioner, or officer under whose direct supervision the
employee works, to accept reimbursement; and
(ii) discloses the expenses reimbursed or to be reimbursed and the authorization
to the Clerk within 30 days after the travel is completed.
(B) For purposes of subdivision (A), events, the activities of which are
substantially recreational in nature, are not considered to be in connection with the
duties of a Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the
House as an officeholder.
(2) Each advance authorization to accept reimbursement shall be signed by the
Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, or officer of the House under whose
direct supervision the employee works and shall include –
(A) the name of the employee;
(B) the name of the person who will make the reimbursement;
(C) the time, place, and purpose of the travel; and
(D) a determination that the travel is in connection with the duties of the
employee as an officeholder and would not create the appearance that the
employee is using public office for private gain.
(3) Each disclosure made under subparagraph (1)(A) of expenses reimbursed or
to be reimbursed shall be signed by the Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner,
or officer (in the case of travel by that Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner,
or officer) or by the Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, or officer under
whose direct supervision the employee works (in the case of travel by an employee)
and shall include –
(A) a good faith estimate of total transportation expenses reimbursed or to be
reimbursed;
(B) a good faith estimate of total lodging expenses reimbursed or to be
reimbursed;
(C) a good faith estimate of total meal expenses reimbursed or to be reimbursed;
(D) a good faith estimate of the total of other expenses reimbursed or to be
reimbursed;



(E) a determination that all such expenses are necessary transportation, lodging,
and related expenses as defined in subparagraph (4); and
(F) in the case of a reimbursement to a Member, Delegate, Resident
Commissioner, or officer, a determination that the travel was in connection with
his duties as an officeholder and would not create the appearance that the
Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, or officer is using public office for
private gain.
(4) In this paragraph the term “necessary transportation, lodging, and related
expenses” –
(A) includes reasonable expenses that are necessary for travel for a period not
exceeding four days within the United States or seven days exclusive of travel
time outside of the United States unless approved in advance by the Committee
on Standards of Official Conduct;
(B) is limited to reasonable expenditures for transportation, lodging, conference
fees and materials, and food and refreshments, including reimbursement for
necessary transportation, whether or not such transportation occurs within the
periods described in subdivision (A);
(C) does not include expenditures for recreational activities, nor does it include
entertainment other than that provided to all attendees as an integral part of the
event, except for activities or entertainment otherwise permissible under this
clause; and
(D) may include travel expenses incurred on behalf of a relative of the Member,
Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee.
(5) The Clerk shall make available to the public all advance authorizations and
disclosures of reimbursement filed under subparagraph (1) as soon as possible after
they are received.
Senate Rule XXXV
2. (a) (1) A reimbursement (including payment in kind) to a Member, officer, or
employee from an individual other than a registered lobbyist or agent of a foreign
principal for necessary transportation, lodging and related expenses for travel to a
meeting, speaking engagement, factfinding trip or similar event in connection with
the duties of the Member, officer, or employee as an officeholder shall be deemed to
be a reimbursement to the Senate and not a gift prohibited by this rule, if the
Member, officer, or employee –
(A) in the case of an employee, receives advance authorization, from the Member
or officer under whose direct supervision the employee works, to accept
reimbursement, and
(B) discloses the expenses reimbursed or to be reimbursed and the authorization
to the Secretary of the Senate within 30 days after the travel is completed.
(2) For purposes of clause (1), events, the activities of which are substantially
recreational in nature, shall not be considered to be in connection with the duties of
a Member, officer, or employee as an officeholder.
(b) Each advance authorization to accept reimbursement shall be signed by the
Member orofficer under whose direct supervision the employee works and shall
include –



(1) the name of the employee;
(2) the name of the person who will make the reimbursement;
(3) the time, place, and purpose of the travel; and
(4) a determination that the travel is in connection with the duties of the
employee as an officeholder and would not create the appearance that the
employee is using public office for private gain.
(c) Each disclosure made under subparagraph (a)(1) of expenses reimbursed or to
be reimbursed shall be signed by the Member or officer (in the case of travel by that
Member or officer) or by the Member or officer under whose direct supervision the
employee works (in the case of travel by an employee) and shall include –
(1) a good faith estimate of total transportation expenses reimbursed or to be
reimbursed;
(2) a good faith estimate of total lodging expenses reimbursed or to be
reimbursed;
(3) a good faith estimate of total meal expenses reimbursed or to be reimbursed;
(4) a good faith estimate of the total of other expenses reimbursed or to be
reimbursed;
(5) a determination that all such expenses are necessary transportation, lodging,
and related expenses as defined in this paragraph; and
(6) in the case of a reimbursement to a Member or officer, a determination that
the travel was in connection with the duties of the Member or officer as an
officeholder and would not create the appearance that the Member or officer is
using public office for private gain.
(d) For the purposes of this paragraph, the term “necessary transportation, lodging,
and related expenses” –
(1) includes reasonable expenses that are necessary for travel for a period not
exceeding three days exclusive of travel time within the United States or seven
days exclusive of travel time outside of the United States unless approved in
advance by the Select Committee on Ethics;
(2) is limited to reasonable expenditures for transportation, lodging, conference
fees and materials, and food and refreshments, including reimbursement for
necessary transportation, whether or not such transportation occurs within the
periods described in clause (1);
(3) does not include expenditures for recreational activities, nor does it include
entertainment other than that provided to all attendees as an integral part of the
event, except for activities or entertainment otherwise permissible under this
rule; and
(4) may include travel expenses incurred on behalf of either the spouse or a child
of the Member, officer, or employee, subject to a determination signed by the
Member or officer (or in the case of an employee, the Member or officer under
whose direct supervision the employee works) that the attendance of the spouse
or child is appropriate to assist in the representation of the Senate.
(e) The Secretary of the Senate shall make available to the public all advance
authorizations and disclosures of reimbursement filed pursuant to subparagraph (a)
as soon as possible after they are received.