[Constitution, Jefferson's Manual, and the Rules of the House of Representatives, 107th Congress]
[107th Congress]
[House Document 106-320]
[Rules of the House of Representatives]
[Pages 860-867]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


 
                               Rule XXIII


                        code of official conduct


[[Page 861]]

  There is hereby established by and for the House the following code of 
conduct, to be known as the ``Code of Official Conduct'':



Sec. 1095. Official conduct of Members, officers, or 
employees of the House.

      1.  A Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, 
officer, or employee of the House shall conduct himself at all times in 
a manner that shall reflect creditably on the House.


      2. A Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee 
of the House shall adhere to the spirit and the letter of the Rules of 
the House and to the rules of duly constituted committees thereof.

      3. A Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee 
of the House may not receive compensation and may not permit 
compensation to accrue to his beneficial interest from any source, the 
receipt of which would occur by virtue of influence improperly exerted 
from his position in Congress.

      4. A Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee 
of the House may not accept gifts except as provided by clause 5 of rule 
XXV.

      5. A Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee 
of the House may not accept an honorarium for a speech, a writing for 
publication, or other similar activity, except as otherwise provided 
under rule XXV.

      6. A Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner--

          (a) shall keep his campaign funds separate from his personal 
funds;


[[Page 862]]

resenting reimbursement for legitimate and verifiable campaign 
expenditures; and
          (b) may not convert campaign funds to personal use in excess 
of an amount rep

          (c) may not expend funds from his campaign account that are 
not attributable to bona fide campaign or political purposes.

      7. A Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner shall treat as 
campaign contributions all proceeds from testimonial dinners or other 
fund-raising events.

      8. (a) A Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, or officer of 
the House may not retain an employee who does not perform duties for the 
offices of the employing authority commensurate with the compensation he 
receives.

      (b) In the case of a committee employee who works under the direct 
supervision of a member of the committee other than a chairman, the 
chairman may require that such member affirm in writing that the 
employee has complied with clause 8(a) (subject to clause 9 of rule X) 
as evidence of compliance by the chairman with this clause and with 
clause 9 of rule X.

      (c)(1) Except as specified in subparagraph (2)--

          (A) a Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner may not 
retain his spouse in a paid position; and


[[Page 863]]

          (B) an employee of the House may not accept compensation for 
work for a committee on which his spouse serves as a member.

      (2) Subparagraph (1) shall not apply in the case of a spouse whose 
pertinent employment predates the One Hundred Seventh Congress.

      9. A Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee 
of the House may not discharge and may not refuse to hire an individual, 
or otherwise discriminate against an individual with respect to 
compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of 
the race, color, religion, sex (including marital or parental status), 
disability, age, or national origin of such individual, but may take 
into consideration the domicile or political affiliation of such 
individual.

      10. A Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner who has been 
convicted by a court of record for the commission of a crime for which a 
sentence of two or more years' imprisonment may be imposed should 
refrain from participation in the business of each committee of which he 
is a member, and a Member should refrain from voting on any question at 
a meeting of the House or of the Committee of the Whole House on the 
state of the Union, unless or until judicial or executive proceedings 
result in reinstatement of the presumption of his innocence or until he 
is reelected to the House after the date of such conviction.


[[Page 864]]

to use the words ``Congress of the United States,'' ``House of 
Representatives,'' or ``Official Business,'' or any combination of words 
thereof, on any letterhead or envelope.
      11. A Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner may not authorize 
or otherwise allow an individual, group, or organization not under the 
direction and control of the House

      12. (a) Except as provided in paragraph (b), an employee of the 
House who is required to file a report under rule XXVI may not 
participate personally and substantially as an employee of the House in 
a contact with an agency of the executive or judicial branches of 
Government with respect to nonlegislative matters affecting any 
nongovernmental person in which the employee has a significant financial 
interest.

      (b) Paragraph (a) does not apply if an employee first advises his 
employing authority of a significant financial interest described in 
paragraph (a) and obtains from his employing authority a written waiver 
stating that the participation of the employee in the activity described 
in paragraph (a) is necessary. A copy of each such waiver shall be filed 
with the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct.

      13. Before a Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or 
employee of the House may have access to classified information, the 
following oath (or affirmation) shall be executed:


[[Page 865]]

ized by the House of Representatives or in accordance with its Rules.''
          ``I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will not disclose any 
classified information received in the course of my service with the 
House of Representatives, except as author

    Copies of the executed oath (or affirmation) shall be retained by 
the Clerk as part of the records of the House. The Clerk shall make 
signatures a matter of public record, causing the names of each Member, 
Delegate, or Resident Commissioner who has signed the oath during a week 
(if any) to be published in a portion of the Congressional Record 
designated for that purpose on the last legislative day of the week and 
making cumulative lists of such names available each day for public 
inspection in an appropriate office of the House.

      14. (a) In this Code of Official Conduct, the term ``officer or 
employee of the House'' means an individual whose compensation is 
disbursed by the Chief Administrative Officer.


      (b) An individual whose services are compensated by the House 
pursuant to a consultant contract shall be considered an employee of the 
House for purposes of clauses 1, 2, 3, 4, 8, 9, and 13 of this rule. An 
individual whose services are compensated by the House pursuant to a 
consultant contract may not lobby the contracting committee or the 
members or staff of the contracting committee on any matter. Such an 
individual may lobby other Members, Delegates, or the Resident 
Commissioner or staff of the House on matters outside the jurisdiction 
of the contracting committee.


[[Page 866]]

It was again redesignated as rule XXIII in the 107th Congress (sec. 
2(s), H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. ----). The rule was originally adopted 
in the 90th Congress (H. Res. 1099, Apr. 3, 1968, p. 8803). The 
jurisdiction of the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct was 
redefined in the same resolution. Clause 4 was entirely rewritten (and 
definitions for the purpose of clause 4 were deleted) in the 104th 
Congress to reflect the adoption of a Gift Rule (H. Res. 254, Nov. 30, 
1995, p. 35077). Prior to the 104th Congress, clause 4 had been amended 
in the 95th Congress to change the prohibition against acceptance of 
gifts of ``substantial value'' (H. Res. 5, Jan. 4, 1975, p. 20) and 
definitions for purposes of clause 4 were added in the 96th Congress (H. 
Res. 287, Mar. 2, 1977, pp. 5933-53). Those definitions were amended in 
the Ethics Reform Act of 1989 to make conforming changes in the 
definition of ``relative'' (P.L. 101-194). Clause 4 was also amended: 
(1) in the 100th Congress to increase from $35 to $50 the value of 
personal hospitality of an individual that is not to be counted when 
computing the aggregate amount of gifts per calendar year (H. Res. 5, 
Jan. 6, 1987, p. 6); and (2) in the Ethics Reform Act of 1989 to revise 
the rules governing the acceptance of gifts, including value thresholds 
and waivers (P.L. 101-194). Those threshold and aggregate values were 
again adjusted by section 314(d) of the Legislative Branch 
Appropriations Act for fiscal year 1992 (P.L. 102-90). The Ethics Reform 
Act of 1989 (P.L. 101-194) amended clause 5 to prohibit the acceptance 
of honoraria. Clause 6 was amended in the 95th Congress to delete from 
the second sentence the exception ``unless specifically provided by 
law,'' which had been added in the 94th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 4, 
1975, p. 20). Clause 6 was also amended by the Ethics Reform Act of 1989 
(P.L. 101-194) to specify that campaign funds be used only for bona fide 
campaign or political purposes. Clause 7 was amended in the 95th 
Congress to eliminate an exception permitting sponsors to give notice of 
purpose (H. Res. 5, Jan. 4, 1975, p. 20). The Ethics Reform Act of 1989 
(P.L. 101-194) amended clause 8 to broaden Members' accountability for 
the pay and performance of staff. Clause 8 was again amended in the 
106th Congress to permit telecommuting by House employees (H. Res. 5, 
Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). Clause 8(c) was added in the 107th Congress 
(sec. 2(t), H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. ----). Clause 9 was added in the 
94th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 14, 1975, p. 20). Clause 9 was amended in 
the 100th Congress to prohibit discrimination in employment based upon 
age (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1987, p. 6) and again the 101st Congress to 
conform existing staff antidiscrimination rules to the Fair Employment 
Practices resolution adopted in the 100th Congress (now contained in the 
Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 (P.L. 104-1; 2 U.S.C. 1301; see 
Sec. 1101, infra)) (P.L. 101-194). Clause 10 was added in the 94th 
Congress (H. Res. 46, Apr. 16, 1975, p. 10340). Clause 11 was added in 
the 96th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 15, 1979, pp. 7-16). Clause 12 was 
added by the Ethics Reform Act of 1989 (P.L. 101-194) to proscribe 
certain contacts as involving conflicts of interest. Clause 13 was added 
in the 104th Congress (sec. 220, H. Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995, p. 468), 
except

[[Page 867]]

the last sentence, which was added in the 107th Congress (sec. 2(t), H. 
Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. ----). Clause 14 (which was an undesignated 
paragraph at the end of the rule before the rules were recodified in the 
106th Congress) was amended in the 92d Congress to bring the Delegates 
and Resident Commissioner within the definition of ``Member'' (H. Res. 
5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144; H. Res. 1153, Oct. 13, 1972, pp. 36021-23). It 
was again amended in the 106th Congress to include consultants among 
employees covered by certain provisions of the code of conduct (H. Res. 
5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----) in the 107th Congress to add the last two 
sentences of clause 14(b) (sec. 2(v), H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. ----). 
In the 105th Congress the rule was amended to effect three clerical 
corrections (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----); in the 106th Congress 
clerical and stylistic changes were effected when the rules were 
recodified (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----); and in the 107th Congress 
conforming changes were made to reflect the redesignation of several 
rules (sec. 2(s), H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. ----) and a clerical 
correction to a cross reference in clause 8(b) was effected (sec. 2(x), 
H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. ----).
  This rule was transferred from rule XLIII to rule XXIV when the House 
recodified its rules in the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. 
----).

  For an in-depth discussion of this rule prepared by the Committee on 
Standards of Official Conduct, see the House Ethics Manual (102d Cong., 
2d Sess.). The committee has also compiled a complete statement of the 
rules on gifts and travel, which supersedes Chapter 2 of the 1992 House 
Ethics Manual (Gifts and Travel, 106th Cong., 2d Sess.).


  It is not a proper parliamentary inquiry to ask the Chair to interpret 
the application of a criminal statute to a Member's conduct, as it is 
for the House and not the Chair to judge the conduct of Members (Nov. 
17, 1987, p. 32153). The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct has 
opined that ``conviction'' in clause 10 includes a plea of guilty or a 
certified finding of guilty even though sentencing may occur later (H. 
Rept. 94-76).