“New lodging rules for legislators” |
| New lodging rules for legislators Posted: 26 Dec 2010 09:26 AM PST Legislators who want to stay in Annapolis during the upcoming General Assembly session will get extra scrutiny if they make lodging arrangements outside of a hotel. The state's Legislative Policy Committee voted on Tuesday to require greater oversight of private rental arrangements made by members of the General Assembly and reimbursed by the state. Under the new guidelines, reimbursement for lodging other than in a hotel or motel must be approved in advance by the Senate President or House Speaker. The legislator involved must also disclose with the General Assembly's Ethics Advisor if there is a known financial, familial or personal relationship with the owner of the property. The ethics advisor will then make a recommendation on whether the lodging should be approved. Lodging arrangements came under question in the summer when it was discovered outgoing Del. Joseph Bartlett, a Republican from Frederick County, paid tens of thousands of state dollars to his girlfriend for rent over the past several years during the 90-day General Assembly session. Bartlett did not seek re-election in November. In August. House Speaker Michael E. Busch, D-Annapolis, proposed a framework similar to what was passed in order to prevent a repeat of that situation. Sen. Ed DeGrange, D-Glen Burnie, a member of the committee, said it is unusual for politicians to make private lodging arrangements but believed the change was necessary. "It goes back to the Bartlett issue. It prevents that from happening in the future," he said. "You should not be benefiting someone you have personal relationships with." Prior to the committee's decision, official scrutiny of legislator lodging expenses was largely limited to spending caps and eligible calendar dates. Under those guidelines, a legislator who requested to be reimbursed for housing expenses would submit actual receipts. He or she could also request the state's Finance and Administrative Services division make a direct payment to the vendor with the original bill approved by the senator or delegate. If a politician rented space from a private source, a copy of the lease had to be given to Finance and Administrative Services. The office would verify dates and rates - a maximum of $120 a day in the 2010 session - and step in for obviously suspicious cases like a lawmaker trying to rent space in a building he or she owned. In a review earlier this year of 2010 session documents, The Capital found all members of the Anne Arundel County delegation stayed in hotels, made arrangements with an Annapolis rental company that provides furnished homes, or filed no housing expenses at all. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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