Should Members of Congress be Restricted From Sleeping in Their Offices & Get a Tax Deduction for Living Expenses? (H.R. 5845)

What is H.R. 5845?

(Updated October 24, 2019)

This bill — the No Couches for Congress Act — would prevent House members from using their congressional offices for personal overnight accommodations for more than one night per month, or more than 10 nights per year. It would also amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow a deduction of up to $3,000 a month for living expenses incurred by House members. Finally, it’d instruct Congress to issue a report on the feasibility of converting unused residence halls near the Capitol into a dorm for members of Congress.

Argument in favor

By sleeping in their offices, members of Congress create a hostile work environment for staffers and others who work in the Capitol building, who may run into improperly-dressed lawmakers or find themselves compelled to clean up after them. A tax deduction and a potential congressional dorm would offset the impact of limiting their ability to sleep in their office while eliminating the ethical problems of the status quo.

Argument opposed

Sleeping in their offices allows members of Congress to work harder for their constituents, encourages bonding between members, and is fiscally responsible from a personal and governmental perspective. Using federal funds to subsidize members’ housing through tax deductions or the construction of congressional housing is irresponsible and inappropriate.

Impact

Members of Congress; and the Internal Revenue Code.

Cost of H.R. 5845

A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) introduced this bill to end the practice of members of Congress sleeping in their offices:

“News reports cite between 45 and 70 members of Congress sleep in their D.C. offices, creating potential tax, safety, and ethical concerns for Members and their staff. Members of Congress are not charged rent, utility, or cleaning bills for living and sleeping in their offices, which means they are using official resources for personal expenses. Members are also not charged lodging or residential taxes for lodging on Capitol Hill and could potentially open themselves to claims of impropriety by staff who encounter them in a state of undress in the office. I completely agree with the members who have called on the Ethics Committee to curb this wasteful and unhealthy practice. Office staff and cleaning personnel should not have to contend with members using their taxpayer-funded professional offices as a private lodging.”

In a letter to the Ethics Committee, 30 members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) requested an investigation into the “legality and propriety” of members of Congress sleeping in their offices, writing that:

“Members who sleep overnight in their offices receive free lodging, free cable, free security, free cleaning services, and utilize other utilities free of charge in direct violation of the ethics rules which prohibit official resources from being used for personal purposes… Continuing to maintain a personal residence in Congressional offices, using Congressional resources for personal use (such as water, phone, utilities, etc.) and increasing or interfering with the work of housekeeping and maintenance staff brings discredit to the House and blatantly violates House ethics rules. Furthermore, Members’ maintaining a personal residence within House office buildings creates a hostile work environment for employees that work within the buildings. This practice calls into question the ethical standards set by the House and should be investigated and evaluated. It seems to use that, at a bare minimum, these Members should be taxed at the fair market value of a Capitol Hill apartment, much like the parking tax Members are required to pay for reserved spaces.”

Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) named Rep. Thompson its June 2018 “Porker of the Month” for this bill. CAGW’s President, Tom Schatz, said:

“Public service is not supposed to be comfortable or luxurious. Taxpayers send these men and women to Washington to work and pay them a salary that is more than three times that of an average American. Congress should focus on getting America’s fiscal house in order and spend less time trying to create a Congressional Animal House.”

The Bloomberg Editorial Board supports ending the practice of members of Congress sleeping in their offices, writing that:

“Fire codes aside, squatters benefit from free utilities, cable TV and internet access, and cleaning services. This may violate congressional ethics rules, which prohibit members from using official resources for anything other than incidental personal needs. At the least, lodging on government premises should be treated as a taxable fringe benefit -- in the same way that congressional parking spaces are. Aside from the legal considerations, there are other issues. The risk of elected representatives appearing in various states of undress is more than awkward -- it is unacceptable, especially given revelations about the prevalence of sexual harassment in the Capitol. Aides are often obliged to clean up their bosses' living quarters, which only adds to the dysfunction and abuse that characterizes office environments on the Hill… The U.S. Capitol was designed not as a congressional dormitory but as a place to conduct the people's business. As the bartender might say: You don't have to go home, lawmakers, but you can't stay here.”

In 2011, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) asked the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) to investigate whether members sleeping in their offices were violating House rules and federal tax law. At that time, CREW noted House prohibitions against using “official resources” for anything other than official business, and argued that since IRS rules say lodging is generally a taxable fringe benefit, members should pay taxes for imputed income based on the fair market value of a comparably-sized Capitol Hill apartment. CREW’s former executive director, Melanie Sloan, said:

“If you’re sleeping in your office several nights a week, that’s far more than an incidental personal use. It’s clear that you’re misusing official resources.”

Nothing ever came out of CREW’s complaint — OCE either dismissed the allegations, or forwarded a recommendation to the House Ethics Committee that was then dropped by the panel.

The dorm idea in this bill has been panned by some members of Congress, including Reps. Dan Donovan (R-NY), Mike Bishop (R-MI), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), and Paul Ryan (R-WI). Rep. Donovan said:

“Our national debt is over $20 trillion, so I don’t think it’s a great use of taxpayer funds to build Congress a dorm. Sleeping in my office isn’t very comfortable, but it’s my choice to save for my daughter’s college instead of spending money on a DC apartment. I’m here to work, not relive my college days in a taxpayer-funded dorm.”

Former Rep. Bob Inglis (R-SC) defends the practice of sleeping in their offices as a way for members of Congress to build camaraderie, saying that he got to know a Democratic member of the House well because they were both sleeping in their offices, adding, “I wish that everyone [slept here]. I wish that there were barracks here.” Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), who’s one of the most prominent members of Congress who sleeps in their office, says sleeping in his office is a way for him to work harder for his constituents:

“I get up very early in the morning. I work out. I work until about 11:30 at night. I go to bed. And I do the same thing the next day. It actually makes me more efficient. I can actually get more work done by sleeping on a cot in my office.”

This bill has the support of 23 cosponsors, all of whom are Democrats.

Of Note: Sleeping in their offices is a practice common among conservatives, dating back to former Rep. Dick Armey (R-TX), who slept in the House gym. The number of Congress members sleeping in their offices, colloquially referred to the “in-office caucus,” increased with Tea Party Republicans’ arrival to Congress in 2010. Many of those members portray their refusal to rent property in Washington as a mark of virtue signifying rejection of the “swamp’s” corrupting culture.

Today, an increasing number of members of Congress are sleeping in their offices due to decade-long stagnant salaries and Washington, D.C.’s steep cost of living. Estimates put the number of House members who sleep in their offices at around 100 — and about 50 members, including Reps. Paul Ryan (R-WI), Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), Gregory Meeks (D-NY), Lee Zeldin (R-NY), John Katko (D-NY) and Brian Higgins (D-NY) have publicly confirmed that they sleep in their offices.

Rep. Dan Donovan (R-NY), who sleeps on a cot in an alcove in his office, cites his cot as the only reason he’s able to serve in Congress while still paying his New York City housing costs:

“Washington is too expensive. If we go to the point where you have to rent or have to buy [in DC], then only millionaires would be members of Congress. I don’t think that was the intent of our Founding Fathers.”

However, claims that members of Congress can’t afford housing in D.C. should be taken with a grain of salt: it’s worth noting that the average monthly cost of a studio in D.C. is $1,602, which is less than 10% of members’ annual salaries. The average American spends 33% of their annual income on housing.

Many state legislatures cover their legislators’ living costs while they’re in their state capitols. In New York, state lawmakers receive $175 for each day that they’re in Albany; in California, state lawmakers receive $183 for each day they’re in Sacramento; and in Texas, lawmakers receive $190 for each day they’re in Austin.

Media:

• Sponsoring Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) Dear Colleage Letter
  
• Citizens Against Government Waste (Opposed)
  
• Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) Letter to Ethics Committee
  
• Bloomberg (Op-Ed in Favor)
  
• The Atlantic
  
• Buzzfeed News
  
• NY Post
  
• Politico
  
• Roll Call