[United States Senate Manual, 104th Congress]
[S. Doc. 104-1]
[Standing Rules of the Senate]
[Pages 66-71]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


        37                           RULE XXXVII

                                CONFLICT OF INTEREST

      37.1      1. A Member, officer, or employee of the Senate shall 
            not receive any compensation, nor shall he permit any 
            compensation to accrue to his beneficial interest from any 
            source, the receipt or accrual of which would occur by 
            virtue of influence improperly exerted from his position as 
            a Member, officer, or employee.

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      37.2      2. No Member, officer, or employee shall engage in any 
            outside business or professional activity or employment for 
            compensation which is inconsistent or in conflict with the 
            conscientious performance of official duties.
      37.3      3. No officer or employee shall engage in any outside 
            business or professional activity or employment for 
            compensation unless he has reported in writing when such 
            activity or employment commences and on May 15 of each year 
            thereafter so long as such activity or employment con- 
            tinues, the nature of such activity or employment to his 
            supervisor. The supervisor shall then, in the discharge of 
            his duties, take such action as he considers necessary for 
            the avoidance of conflict of interest or interference with 
            duties to the Senate.
      37.4      4. No Member, officer, or employee shall knowingly use 
            his official position to introduce or aid the progress or 
            passage of legislation, a principal purpose of which is to 
            further only his pecuniary interest, only the pecuniary 
            interest of his immediate family, or only the pecuniary 
            interest of a limited class of persons or enterprises, when 
            he, or his immediate family, or enterprises controlled by 
            them, are members of the affected class.
     37.5a      5. (a)\29\ No Member, officer, or employee of the Senate 
            compensated at a rate in excess of $25,000 per annum and 
            employed for more than ninety days in a calendar year shall 
            (1) affiliate with a firm, partnership, association, or 
            corporation for the purpose of providing professional 
            services for compensation; (2) permit that individual's name 
            to be used by such a firm, partnership, association or 
            corporation; or (3) practice a profession for compensation 
            to any extent during regular office hours of the Senate 
            office in which employed. For the purposes of this 
            paragraph, ``professional services'' shall include but not 
            be limited to those which involve a fiduciary relationship.
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                \29\Pursuant to S. Res. 192, 102-1, Oct. 31, 1991, 
            effective Aug. 14, 1991, paragraph 5 renumbered 5(a) and 
            subparagraph (b) added.
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     37.5b      (b) A Member or an officer or employee whose rate of 
            basic pay is equal to or greater than 120 percent of the 
            annual rate of basic pay in effect for grade GS-15 of the 
            General Schedule shall not----
                        (1) receive compensation for affiliating with or 
                    being employed by a firm, partnership, association, 
                    corporation, or other entity which provides 
                    professional services involving a fiduciary 
                    relationship;

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                        (2) permit that Member's, officer's, or 
                    employee's name to be used by any such firm, 
                    partnership, association, corporation, or other 
                    entity;
                        (3) receive compensation for practicing a 
                    profession which involves a fiduciary relationship; 
                    or
                        (4) receive compensation for teaching, without 
                    the prior notification and approval of the Committee 
                    on Ethics.

     37.6a      6. (a)\30\ No Member, officer, or employee of the Senate 
            compensated at a rate in excess of $25,000 per annum and 
            employed for more than ninety days in a calendar year shall 
            serve as an officer or member of the board of any publicly 
            held or publicly regulated corporation, financial 
            institution, or business entity. The preceding sentence 
            shall not apply to service of a Member, officer, or employee 
            as--
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                \30\Pursuant to S. Res. 192, 102-1, Oct. 31, 1991, 
            effective Aug. 14, 1991, paragraph 6 renumbered 6(a) and 
            subparagraph (b) added.
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                        (1) an officer or member of the board of an 
                    organization which is exempt from taxation under 
                    section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, 
                    if such service is performed without compensation;
                        (2) an officer or member of the board of an 
                    institution or organization which is principally 
                    available to Members, officers, or employees of the 
                    Senate, or their families, if such service is 
                    performed without compensation; or
                        (3) a member of the board of a corporation, 
                    institution, or other business entity, if (A) the 
                    Member, officer, or employee had served continuously 
                    as a member of the board thereof for at least two 
                    years prior to his election or appointment as a 
                    Member, officer, or employee of the Senate, (B) the 
                    amount of time required to perform such service is 
                    minimal, and (C) the Member, officer, or employee is 
                    not a member of, or a member of the staff of any 
                    Senate committee which has legislative jurisdiction 
                    over any agency of the Government charged with 
                    regulating the activities of the corporation, 
                    institution, or other business entity.

     37.6b      (b) A Member or an officer or employee whose rate of 
            basic pay is equal to or greater than 120 percent of the 
            annual rate of basic pay in effect for grade GS-15 of the 
            General Schedule shall not serve for compensation as an

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            officer or member of the board of any association, 
            corporation, or other entity.

      37.7      7. An employee on the staff of a committee who is 
            compensated at a rate in excess of $25,000 per annum and 
            employed for more than ninety days in a calendar year shall 
            divest himself of any substantial holdings which may be 
            directly affected by the actions of the committee for which 
            he works, unless the Select Committee, after con- sultation 
            with the employee's supervisor, grants permission in writing 
            to retain such holdings or the employee makes other 
            arrangements acceptable to the Select Committee and the 
            employee's supervisor to avoid participation in committee 
            actions where there is a conflict of interest, or the 
            appearance thereof.
      37.8      8. If a Member, upon leaving office, becomes a 
            registered lobbyist under the Federal Regulation of Lobbying 
            Act of 1946 or any successor statute, or is employed or 
            retained by such a registered lobbyist for the purpose of 
            influencing legislation, he shall not lobby Members, 
            officers, or employees of the Senate for a period of one 
            year after leaving office.
      37.9      9. If an employee on the staff of a Member, upon leaving 
            that position, becomes a registered lobbyist under the 
            Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act of 1946 or any successor 
            statute, or is employed or retained by such a registered 
            lobbyist for the purpose of influencing legislation, such 
            employee may not lobby the Member for whom he worked or that 
            Member's staff for a period of one year after leaving that 
            position. If an employee on the staff of a committee, upon 
            leaving his position, becomes such a registered lobbyist or 
            is employed or retained by such a registered lobbyist for 
            the purpose of influencing legislation, such employee may 
            not lobby the members of the committee for which he worked, 
            or the staff of that committee, for a period of one year 
            after leaving his position.
     37.10      10. (a)\31\ Except as provided by subparagraph (b), any 
            employee of the Senate who is required to file a report 
            pursuant to rule XXXIV shall refrain from participating 
            personally and substantially as an employee of the Senate in 
            any contact with any agency of the executive or judicial 
            branch of Government with respect to non-legislative mat

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            ters affecting any non-governmental person in which the 
            employee has a significant financial interest.
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                \31\Pursuant to S. Res. 236, 101-2, Jan. 30, 1990, 
            paragraphs 10. and 11. were renumbered as 11. and 12. 
            respectively and paragraph 10. was added.
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                (b) Subparagraph (a) shall not apply if an employee 
            first advises his supervising authority of his significant 
            financial interest and obtains from his employing authority 
            a written waiver stating that the participation of the 
            employee is necessary. A copy of each such waiver shall be 
            filed with the Select Committee.
     37.11      11. For purposes of this rule--
                        (a) ``employee of the Senate'' includes an 
                    employee or individual described in paragraphs 2, 3, 
                    and 4(c) of rule XLI;
                        (b) an individual who is an employee on the 
                    staff of a subcommittee of a committee shall be 
                    treated as an employee on the staff of such 
                    committee; and
                        (c) the term ``lobbying'' means any oral or 
                    written communication to influence the content or 
                    disposition of any issue before Congress, including 
                    any pending or future bill, resolution, treaty, 
                    nomination, hearing, report, or investigation; but 
                    does not include--
                                (1) a communication (i) made in the form 
                            of testimony given before a committee or 
                            office of the Congress, or (ii) submitted 
                            for inclusion in the public record, public 
                            docket, or public file of a hearing; or
                                (2) a communication by an individual, 
                            acting solely on his own behalf, for redress 
                            of personal grievances, or to express his 
                            personal opinion.

     37.12      12. For purposes of this rule--
                        (a) a Senator or the Vice President is the 
                    supervisor of his administrative, clerical, or other 
                    assistants;
                        (b) a Senator who is the chairman of a committee 
                    is the supervisor of the professional, clerical, or 
                    other assistants to the committee except that 
                    minority staff members shall be under the 
                    supervision of the ranking minority Senator on the 
                    committee;
                        (c) a Senator who is a chairman of a 
                    subcommittee which has its own staff and financial 
                    authorization is the supervisor of the professional, 
                    clerical, or other assistants to the subcommittee 
                    except that minority staff members shall be under 
                    the supervision of the ranking minority Senator on 
                    the subcommittee;
                        (d) the President pro tempore is the supervisor 
                    of the Secretary of the Senate, Sergeant at Arms and

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                    Doorkeeper, the Chaplain, the Legislative Counsel, 
                    and the employees of the Office of the Legislative 
                    Counsel;
                        (e) the Secretary of the Senate is the 
                    supervisor of the employees of his office;
                        (f) the Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper is the 
                    supervisor of the employees of his office;
                        (g) the Majority and Minority Leaders and the 
                    Majority and Minority Whips are the supervisors of 
                    the research, clerical, or other assistants assigned 
                    to their respective offices;
                        (h) the Majority Leader is the supervisor of the 
                    Secretary for the Majority and the Secretary for the 
                    Majority is the supervisor of the employees of his 
                    office; and
                        (i) the Minority Leader is the supervisor of the 
                    Secretary for the Minority and the Secretary for the 
                    Minority is the supervisor of the employees of his 
                    office.