§5343 — Title 2 The Congress | U.S. Code

Summary

A newly elected Member who is not a current Member reelected can pick one staff person to get one paid round trip from the staffer’s home in the Member’s district to Washington, D.C., to accompany them to a party organizational caucus or conference. A current Member who was reelected can also pick one staff person for a paid round trip, but only if the caucus or conference happens after the final adjournment of that Congress. That same newly elected Member (not the reelected incumbent) may have that one staff person reimbursed, on a per diem or other basis, for expenses while accompanying them to the caucus or conference. With approval from the majority leader (for majority party Members) or the minority leader (for minority party Members), these travel and reimbursement rules also apply when a Member or Member-elect attends the orientation program run by the Committee on House Administration.

Title 2, §5343

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(a)Each Member-elect (other than an incumbent Member reelected to the ensuing Congress) who attends a caucus or conference called under section 29a(a) of this title, and each incumbent Member reelected to the ensuing Congress who attends any such caucus or conference convening after the adjournment sine die of the Congress in the year involved, shall be entitled to designate one staff person to be paid for one round trip between that person’s place of residence, provided such place of residence is in the district which the Member-elect or incumbent Member represents, and Washington, District of Columbia, for the purpose of accompanying that Member-elect or incumbent Member to such caucus or conference.

(b)Each Member-elect (other than an incumbent Member reelected to the ensuing Congress) who attends a caucus or conference called under such section 29a(a) of this title shall be entitled to designate one staff person who shall in addition be reimbursed on a per diem or other basis for expenses incurred in accompanying the Member-elect at the time of such caucus or conference.

(c)With the approval of the majority leader (in the case of a Member or Member-elect of the majority party) or the minority leader (in the case of a Member or Member-elect of the minority party), subsections (a) and (b) shall apply with respect to the attendance of a Member or Member-elect at a program conducted by the Committee on House Administration for the orientation of new members 11 So in original. Probably should be capitalized. in the same manner as such provisions apply to the attendance of the Member or Member-elect at the organizational caucus or conference.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Codification Section was formerly classified to section 43b–2 of this title prior to editorial reclassification and renumbering as this section. Section is based on section 1 of House Resolution No. 10, Ninety-fourth Congress, Jan. 14, 1975, which was enacted into permanent law by Pub. L. 94–59.

Amendments

2004—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 108–447, § 107(b)(2), substituted a period for “for a period not to exceed the shorter of the following— “(i) the period beginning with the day before the designated date upon which such caucus or conference is to convene and ending with the day after the date of the final adjournment of such caucus or conference; or “(ii) fourteen days.” Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 108–447, § 107(c)(2), added subsec. (c).

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 2004 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 108–447 applicable with respect to the One Hundred Tenth Congress and each succeeding Congress, see section 107(d) of Pub. L. 108–447, set out as a note under section 29a of this title.

§5343 Staff expenses for House Members attending organizational caucus or conference