    [House Hearing, 112 Congress]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

      MARKUP OF H. RES. 496, THE COMMITTEE FUNDING RESOLUTION; COMMITTEE
      RESOLUTION 112-9, STANDARDS FOR THE ELECTRONIC POSTING OF HOUSE AND
    COMMITTEE DOCUMENTS AND DATA; AND COMMITTEE RESOLUTION 112-10, MEMBERS'
                             CONGRESSIONAL HANDBOOK

    =======================================================================

                                    MEETING

                                   before the

                               COMMITTEE ON HOUSE
                                 ADMINISTRATION
                            HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                          ONE HUNDRED TWELFTH CONGRESS

                                 FIRST SESSION

                                   __________

                   Held in Washington, DC, December 16, 2011

                                   __________

          Printed for the use of the Committee on House Administration

                           Available on the Internet:
                                 www.fdsys.gov

                                    _____

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                       COMMITTEE ON HOUSE ADMINISTRATION

                    DANIEL E. LUNGREN, California, Chairman
    GREGG HARPER, Mississippi            ROBERT A. BRADY, Pennsylvania,
    PHIL GINGREY, M.D., Georgia            Ranking Minority Member
    AARON SCHOCK, Illinois               ZOE LOFGREN, California
    TODD ROKITA, Indiana                 CHARLES A. GONZALEZ, Texas
    RICHARD B. NUGENT, Florida

                               Professional Staff

                 Philip Kiko, Staff Director & General Counsel
                      Jamie Fleet, Minority Staff Director

      MARKUP OF H. RES. 496, THE COMMITTEE FUNDING RESOLUTION; COMMITTEE
      RESOLUTION 112-9, STANDARDS FOR THE ELECTRONIC POSTING OF HOUSE AND
    COMMITTEE DOCUMENTS AND DATA; AND COMMITTEE RESOLUTION 112-10, MEMBERS'
                             CONGRESSIONAL HANDBOOK

                                  ----------

                           FRIDAY, DECEMBER 16, 2011

                              House of Representatives,
                             Committee on House Administration,
                                                        Washington, DC.
        The committee met, pursuant to call, at 10:40 a.m., in room
    1310, Longworth House Office Building, Hon. Daniel E. Lungren
    (chairman of the committee) presiding.
        Present: Representatives Lungren, Harper, Gingrey, Rokita,
    Nugent, Brady, and Gonzalez.
        Staff Present: Phil Kiko, Staff Director and General
    Counsel; Peter Schalestock, Deputy General Counsel; Kimani
    Little, Parliamentarian; Joe Wallace, Legislative Clerk; Yael
    Barash, Assistant Legislative Clerk; Salley Wood,
    Communications Director; Linda Ulrich, Director of Oversight;
    Dominic Storelli, Oversight Staff; Bob Sensenbrenner, Elections
    Counsel; Karin Moore, Elections Counsel; George Hadjiski,
    Director of Member Services; Richard Cappetto, Professional
    Staff; Jamie Fleet, Minority Staff Director; Matt Pinkus,
    Minority Senior Policy Analyst; Matt Defreitas, Minority
    Professional Staff; and Greg Abbott, Minority Professional
    Staff.
        The Chairman. I now call to order the Committee on House
    Administration for today's committee markup. A quorum is
    present, so we may proceed.
        Today we will consider two items--actually, three items.
    The first will be H. Res. 496, the House Committee Funding
    Resolution; secondly, a committee resolution on the new House-
    wide electronic posting standards; and, third, consideration of
    the revised Members' Congressional Handbook.
        H. Res. 496 is a resolution authorizing committee funding
    levels for the second session of the 112th Congress. Last
    month, this committee held a full-day hearing at which we heard
    from nearly every chair and ranking member. As some may recall,
    with the agreement of Mr. Brady when he was chairman, we
    started a process by which committee chairmen and ranking
    members appeared before our committee on an annual basis to
    talk about their budgets, rather than just once every 2 years.
        During the hearing that we had this year, we discussed how
    each committee absorbed the 5 percent budget reduction
    implemented at the beginning of the 112th Congress and how, as
    we continue to reduce government spending, they will manage
    additional reductions for this next year. Listening to the 19
    House committees that testified provided important insight into
    their needs in serving this institution and in its role of
    oversight.
        As I have mentioned before, as chairman of the Committee on
    House Administration, I certainly understand the challenges of
    stretching committee resources. However, as the representative
    of California's Third District, where constituents are
    continuing to struggle to make ends meet, where we have a 12.4
    percent unemployment rate, I appreciate every committee's
    willingness to do more with less.
        This resolution, matching authorization levels with the
    reduced funding levels, required us to make extremely difficult
    decisions. Most committees will be faced with tremendous
    oversight responsibilities in the year 2012. Particularly
    daunting will be Armed Services' charge of managing the
    automatic sequestration of $600 billion in defense funding
    triggered by the Budget Control Act superimposed over the
    already-existing cuts that were mandated by previous votes.
        In addition to Armed Services, the Ethics Committee, tasked
    with the thankless job, I would say, of holding Members and
    staff to the highest ethical standards, has requested, and will
    receive under this resolution, a reprieve from authorization
    reductions.
        To offset these exceptions, we have identified and reduced
    the authorization of budget committees that we feel are able,
    even though it is difficult, to absorb a slightly larger
    reduction in 2012. In addition to ourselves, that is the
    Committee on House Administration; the Committee on Science,
    Space, and Technology; and the Committee on Small Business, who
    will receive slightly higher reductions than the 6.4 percent
    cut applied to the remaining House committees. Provided that
    their needs may change throughout the year, we can always
    consider future funding resolutions.
        Again, this process did require difficult decisions, and I
    want to thank each member of the committee for their
    cooperation and each of the committees for their cooperation.
        Our second item for consideration is the committee
    resolution on House-wide electronic posting standards that will
    vastly improve public access to House and committee documents.
        Effective January 1, 2012, these standards require the
    Clerk of the House to establish and maintain a centralized Web
    site where the public can access all House bills, amendments,
    and resolutions for floor consideration in XML, an open,
    searchable format. These standards also instruct the Clerk to
    establish additional functionality on the centralized site to
    support committee documents posted in XML.
        With the adoption of these standards, for the first time
    the public will have easy access to searchable information on
    pending and adopted legislation. It is our hope that this
    enhanced access will increase constituent feedback on
    legislative initiatives and ultimately improve the legislative
    process.
        We would certainly like to thank the Clerk of the House and
    each committee for their assistance and cooperation throughout
    this process. And I look forward to identifying ways to further
    increase transparency.
        And then the third matter that we will bring up is the
    Members' Congressional Handbook. This has been a project of
    some duration, in which we have received active participation
    by the minority side. We have incorporated a number of their
    suggestions in the changes that have been made in the handbook.
    We think we make it much more understandable to Members. There
    is greater specificity. It is consistent with the statutes and
    House rules. It updates all references to those, the offices
    and phone numbers.
        Substantive changes: We didn't think the franking
    regulation should be in the handbook, that it ought to be in a
    separate handbook. The town hall section has been updated to
    reflect technological changes. The Web site section has been
    updated to reflect technological changes. To make it very
    specific so that Members know, food is permitted for two
    legislative planning sessions for Members' offices. The
    security portion has been rewritten in light of the new
    security concerns. Representational programs have been
    identified and added.
        We clear up the question about whether Members or their
    staff, under extraordinary circumstances, like a bad snowstorm
    that would not allow people to return to their residences in
    this area, whether those kinds of costs could be reimbursed.
    Under extraordinary circumstances, that would be allowed with
    written authorization from the committee. And then we
    specifically identify the categories where advance payments can
    be made, payments from one year to the next.
        We think these are all good changes that will allow easier
    understanding of what the rules are, allow Members to ensure
    that they abide by the rules, and to give direction both to
    committees and staff when future questions come up.
        And so I would like to thank my colleagues for being here
    today.
        And I would now recognize the ranking member, Mr. Brady,
    for any opening statement he may wish to give.
        Mr. Brady. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
        Mr. Chairman, I oppose this unprecedented committee
    defunding resolution, which will reduce committee budgets by an
    average of 6.4 percent during the second session. The cut comes
    9 months after committees had already received their budgets
    for the entire 112th Congress in House Resolution 147,
    following the 5 percent cut in total House fundings.
        As we heard testimony during our recent follow-up on
    oversight hearings, additional sudden budget cuts undermine the
    House's basic legislative and oversight functions. We should
    listen to the testimony from our colleagues where many of them
    said they cannot afford these cuts.
        We should also recognize that the original 5 percent cut
    was sufficient. Staff now will have to be dismissed on some
    committees, if this resolution passes, without any rationale or
    notice. And the Democratic minority will bear the brunt of this
    cut. As you know, when you took over control of the House, you
    now have two-thirds of all the committee staff and we went from
    two-thirds down to one-third. We had to make our cuts, and that
    is the way it works, and we understand that. But now they will
    have to take another additional cut after a cut before.
        And that is why I am going to offer an amendment. I am just
    hoping that some of our committees can be resourceful enough to
    try to make do with these cuts without having to lay off any
    additional staff. It is not their fault. I think and I am sure
    that you agree with me and everybody else here agrees that we
    have great staff here. I know I could not function without my
    staff.
        And we do have a barebones staff now. I do recognize and
    understand the fact that--it is not underestimated that we have
    to do some kind of cutting somewhere. We have already shown
    that. And I just hope that we don't do it to the detriment of
    how we can function in this House.
        So, Mr. Chairman, with that, I urge my colleagues to defeat
    this resolution.
        The Chairman. I thank the gentleman for his comments,
    although I may disagree with him.
        And I do just want to say for the record that the ranking
    member has been very open about his positions on this but also
    very cooperative in tough decisions that we have had to make.
        All Members are reminded that they have an opportunity to
    put a statement in the record, if they wish.
        The Chairman. And I would now call up and lay before the
    committee House Resolution 496 to adjust the amount provided
    for the expenses of certain committees.
        Without objection, the bill will be considered as read and
    open for amendment at any point.
        [The bill follows:]

        The Chairman. Are there any amendments to the resolution?
        Mr. Brady. Mr. Chairman?
        The Chairman. Yes?
        Mr. Brady. I would like to offer an amendment to the
    resolution.
        The Chairman. The gentleman is recognized for that.
        Mr. Brady. I would like to offer an amendment to provide
    the opportunity for committee staff to receive their salaries
    for up to 60 days if they are dismissed as a result of passage
    of this resolution.
        This is a common practice in the private sector and a lot
    of other--and all sectors of people that, when they do get laid
    off, especially at city, State, Federal, that they do provide
    this.
        The amendment is a modified version of House Resolution
    1104, brought to the floor at the end of the 109th Congress by
    our former chairman, Vern Ehlers.
        The Chairman. If the gentleman will yield for just----
        Mr. Brady. Sure.
        The Chairman [continuing]. A moment, without objection, the
    amendment will be considered as read.
        [The amendment by Mr. Brady follows:]

        The Chairman. And the gentleman is recognized for 5 minutes
    to speak on behalf of it.
        Mr. Brady. Thank you.
        Unfortunately, it was withdrawn prior to a final vote. That
    resolution, unlike this one, also included transition funding
    for departing leadership staff.
        Again, not to reiterate, but I just feel badly for the
    people that do work--and all of them work extremely hard. I
    love when they pull my BlackBerry up and they tell us our
    schedule and they put the question mark behind when we are
    going to be leaving here.
        And, as you all know, our staff stay right with us. They
    don't get any overtime, they don't get any compensation time.
    And if we could just give them a little something to give them
    a little bit of time, because this is coming on them quickly
    too.
        And, hopefully, it doesn't have to happen. Hopefully, we
    can be creative through our committees and the rest of the
    committees can be creative, where we don't have to hurt the
    little people and the people that are here supporting us 24-7.
        So, with that, Mr. Chairman, I just appreciate you taking
    my amendment and ask for its adoption.
        The Chairman. I thank the gentleman.
        Are there other Members who wish to speak to the amendment?
        Mr. Gonzalez. Mr. Chairman?
        The Chairman. The gentleman from Texas.
        Mr. Gonzalez. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
        I, of course, would be supportive of the amendment.
        This is not a new idea, and it actually has been argued
    from Members on the other side of the aisle. We all recall 2006
    and the debate then, and it was appropriate. Taking into
    consideration that individuals will be losing their jobs as a
    result of more austere times, our belt-tightening on the Hill,
    which is the appropriate thing to do, but, still, this is a
    hardship that is going to befall many families at a more
    difficult time than when this was debated previously, let's say
    in 2006, when the Democrats took the House and we knew that
    there would be a reduction of staff members on the Republican
    side. But I think the same rule would apply and the same
    consideration as to the families that are going to be impacted.
        It is a more difficult time today. All of us have to
    acknowledge the difference between 2006, even though we were on
    the road to the recession, no doubt, but the full impact of it
    has been felt. And not to make things harder or more dire for
    those that may not be employed on the Hill anymore or in the
    committees and the wonderful work they provide us, it is going
    to be a tough job market. We all know that.
        So that a severance package, which, obviously, is commonly
    an industry standard in the private sector, shouldn't be
    something so foreign to us, when we think in terms of fairness,
    when individuals lose jobs through no fault of their own, not
    as a result of underperformance, but actually they are valued
    members of what we try to do up here. And if we are going to do
    any budget cutting, I think we have to do it in a fair and
    equitable manner.
        So I am glad that Mr. Brady is introducing the amendment,
    and I am hoping that we can act accordingly and in a fair
    fashion.
        And I would yield back.
        The Chairman. I thank the gentleman for his comments.
        I might just recognize myself to oppose this amendment. I
    do not do that with any great joy. We are in very difficult
    times. Individual Members, in terms of the impact of the
    cutbacks in our own offices, have had to make some very, very
    difficult decisions. In my own office, I am down two of my
    staffers as a direct result of the budget constraints that we
    have had to impose.
        While a couple of chairmen said they might have to lay off,
    most indicated--chairmen or ranking members--most indicated
    that they would do everything they could to ensure that that
    did not occur.
        And this is different than the times when there is a change
    in leadership from one party to the other. And I know we have
    had attempts to try and have severance packages in those
    particular circumstances. Frankly, we just don't have the money
    to do that at this time.
        And so I would reluctantly oppose the gentleman's
    amendment.
        Mr. Gingrey. Mr. Chairman?
        The Chairman. The gentleman from Georgia.
        Mr. Gingrey. Mr. Chairman, I know that this amendment, as I
    read through it and listened to Mr. Brady and Mr. Gonzalez, is
    coming from the heart and an act of compassion on their part,
    and I commend them for that.
        And, you know, we could quibble, you know, about the number
    of days that a person had been employed during the year and
    whether it was continuous or not continuous service and all
    that. But I, too, while initially I felt that I would support
    this amendment, I am going to be opposed to it because of two
    points.
        And the chairman addressed maybe at least one of those
    points, in regard to if we made this a part of the resolution,
    then it would be an entitlement that would have to be done. And
    we would have to get budget authority and appropriations to do
    that.
        And it is within the prerogative of each and every
    committee to decide in their own budget, even though I know the
    budgets are getting skimpier and skimpier and more difficult to
    find the resources to give severance pay, whether one committee
    does it for a month, another committee does it for 2 months,
    and they set the parameters upon which a severed employee would
    be eligible for that pay, if any.
        I think that is really what goes on in the private sector,
    as well. Mr. Brady referenced, you know, the private sector,
    and that is absolutely true. But there are many companies that,
    you know, you get 2 weeks' notice that your job is going to be
    eliminated and you get paid up to the last day you work, and
    that is it. Others are more generous, if they can afford to be.
        So I understand where Mr. Brady is coming from in regard to
    the amendment, but for those reasons I will also oppose it.
        The Chairman. If there is no further discussion, I will
    call a vote.
        All those in favor of the amendment offered by the ranking
    member, say, ``aye.''
        And those opposed, ``nay.''
        In the opinion of the chair, the nays have it.
        Are there any other amendments?
        If not, I move that the committee favorably report House
    Resolution 496 to the House.
        And the question is on the motion.
        All those in favor, signify by saying, ``aye.''
        And those opposed, ``no.''
        In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it, and the
    motion is agreed to.
        Mr. Brady. Mr. Chairman?
        The Chairman. Yes?
        Mr. Brady. Could I announce that the minority requests 2
    additional calendar days, provided by Clause 2 of Rule XI of
    the rules of the House, to file views.
        The Chairman. Without objection.
        Mr. Brady. Thank you.
        The Chairman. Without objection, the motion to reconsider
    is laid on the table.
        Pursuant to Clause 2 of Rule XI, Members are entitled to 2
    additional calendar days to file such views in writing and
    signed by the Member with the clerk of the committee.
        I ask unanimous consent the staff be authorized to make any
    necessary technical and conforming changes to the measure that
    the committee just considered.
        Without objection, it is so ordered.
        I now call up and lay before the committee Committee
    Resolution 112-9 to adopt online posting standards.
        Without objection, the resolution will be considered as
    read and open for amendment at any point.
        [The resolution follows:]

        The Chairman. Are there any amendments to the resolution?
        If not, I move that the committee adopt the resolution. The
    question is on the motion.
        All those in favor of the motion, signify by saying,
    ``aye.''
        All opposed, signify by saying, ``nay.''
        In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it, and the
    motion is agreed to.
        Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon
    the table.
        I ask unanimous consent that the staff be authorized to
    make any necessary technical and conforming changes to the
    measure that the committee just considered.
        Without objection, so ordered.
        The last matter that we have would be for us to consider a
    committee resolution to adopt a revised version of the Members'
    Congressional Handbook. This version, which has been made
    available to the members of the committee, is the one before
    us.
        [The handbook follows:]

        The Chairman. The last time the committee overhauled this
    document was over a decade ago. Our offices have worked
    extensively on a bipartisan basis this year, reaching out to
    Members and staff, to determine the best changes and necessary
    updates. I am pleased to say that we now have a finished
    product that provides greater clarity and reflects technical
    advances, such as Members' ever-increasing Web presence,
    encompassing everything from official Web sites to tele-town
    halls.
        I appreciate the ranking member's support in pursuing this
    bipartisan effort to provide clear, up-to-date regulations for
    the use of our Members through their Members' representational
    allowances.
        And I would ask unanimous consent that the consideration of
    the committee resolution to adopt the Members' Congressional
    Handbook be added to the agenda for today's markup.
        And, without objection, it is so ordered.
        So I would call up and lay before the committee the
    Committee Resolution 112-10 to adopt the Members' Congressional
    Handbook.
        Without objection, the resolution will be considered as
    read and open for amendment at any point.
        [The resolution follows:]

        The Chairman. Well, before I do that, I just might ask if
    the ranking member has any comments on this.
        Mr. Brady. Just, Mr. Chairman, I am very appreciative of
    the majority's consideration of the minority's suggestions and
    the effort to include my staff throughout this process. And I
    thank you and thank your staff.
        The Chairman. I thank the gentleman for his comments.
        Are there any amendments to the resolution?
        If not, I move the committee adopt the resolution.
        The question is on the motion.
        All those in favor of the motion, signify by saying,
    ``aye.''
        All opposed, ``nay.''
        In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it, and the
    motion is agreed to.
        Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon
    the table.
        I want to thank all the Members for their attendance, for
    their cooperation, and for their work on this. Also, your
    staffs have been very, very helpful. They have been directly
    involved in this, and without their help we couldn't have
    gotten it done. We are getting it done under the wire.
        I think my hope is that I might be able to bring it to the
    floor later, if we worked it out for a UC on the Members'
    Handbook. We would not be able to do that if we hadn't been
    able to get this done at this moment.
        So I thank everybody here, and Merry Christmas.
        [Whereupon, at 11:05 a.m., the committee was adjourned.]