Should Members of Congress be Stopped From Using PAC funds for Personal Expenses? (H.R. 5011)

What is H.R. 5011?

(Updated July 18, 2017)

H.R. 5011 bars a congressional candidate's campaign committee from hiring  of said candidate's relatives in a paid position. Basically, no hiring your wife, your brother, or anyone else in your family for a job on your campaign. 

Currently, it's against federal law for Congressional members to hire relatives in their offices — BUT, it's not illegal for members to employ family members on the campaign trail. 

H.R. 5011 would also legislation ban Congressional members from using their leadership political action committee (PAC) funds for "personal use" — no donor-supported mortgage payments, personal trainers, ritzy vacations to Scotland, or other luxury items. This bill would essentially set restrictions on the ways that members of Congress can "loan" money to their campaigns, while putting new transparency requirements on lobbyists related to people running for a Congressional seat.

Political committees under H.R. 5011 would have have tighter rules around disclosing: 

• Loans made by candidates;
• Money sent to relatives of candidates for "operating expenses";
• Funds sent to a candidate's relative, or to business/organization where the candidate's relative is a director. 

Argument in favor

It's time to put a stop to excessive and inappropriate spending by members of Congress during elections. Politicians who use their leadership PAC funding for things like vacations, personal trainers, and hiring family members have no business serving the United States.

Argument opposed

There's nothing inherently crooked about a politician hiring a skilled member of their family to help run a campaign. While legislators shouldn't spend PAC money on fancy things, excessive campaign finance restrictions could hamper a candidate's ability run for office.

Impact

People running for seats in Congress, their relatives, lobbyists, leadership PAC funds and other campaign finances, and the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.

Cost of H.R. 5011

A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.

Additional Info

Of Note:

"Rep. Rob Andrews (D-NJ), for example, tapped his wife, a lawyer and an associate law dean at Rutgers School of Law-Camden, to be a PAC compliance officer for his leadership PAC. She approved the use of donor dollars to fly her, Rep. Andrews, and their two daughters to Edinburgh, Scotland for a wedding at a posh resort. Andrews’s leadership PAC paid $16,575 in airfare. His campaign committee picked up the rest of the tab, which was slightly under $14,000. Schweizer says Andrews’s leadership PAC , which was china from Bloomingdale’s. Andrews and his wife even merged a campaign event with their daughter’s graduation party, allowing them to combine the costs of the two events, even though the PAC did not pick up the entire bill.
...
Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY) attempted to use $6,230 in campaign funds to pay for a personal trainer. Meeks’s staff claimed using campaign money for a fitness instructor is a legitimate expense, because gym visits alleviate stress from Meeks’s “official duties.” The investigation also revealed that Meeks has used $35,000 from his leadership PAC on NFL games." 

Media: