From Roll Call:
Ironically, the UK's MPs are undergoing their own scandal with expenses.
The House wants to increase Members’ office budgets next fiscal year by almost 15 percent, partly because 2010 is an election year and lawmakers anticipate a surge in franked mail.
In a recently released budget request, the House Chief Administrative Officer asked appropriators to raise the Members’ Representational Allowances — which fund everything needed to run offices, including salaries, travel and supplies — by $90 million, citing increases “due to the election year cycle.”
“In an election year the expenditures increase and then decrease in a non-election year,” the request reads.
Increases for most expenses are usually modest from year to year, accounting mostly for inflation and cost-of-living adjustments. But during election years, some accounts get a big bump.
The fiscal 2010 request includes an extra $16 million for franked mail — an 80 percent increase from fiscal 2009. The stated reason: Members send more mail to their constituents during an election year. . . . .
Ironically, the UK's MPs are undergoing their own scandal with expenses.
The public's view of MPs has been badly damaged by a series of revelations about expenses claims, a new survey has revealed. . . . .
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