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Congress finds another place to boost spending: on itself

David Lightman | McClatchy Newspapers • Published March 04, 2009

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WASHINGTON — Congress wants to boost spending on itself by nearly 11 percent this year, an increase that's part of a massive spending bill that has smaller increases for most agencies that deal with public health, education, energy, and other domestic needs.

The congressional budget, which the Senate is considering this week as part of a $410 billion fiscal 2009 spending bill, is higher than the 8 percent overall boost for most domestic programs.

As a result, Congress now appears well on track to approve spending $4.4 billion on itself, up from $3.97 billion last year.

The big increase for Congress has a number of sources: The new Capitol Visitor Center, improvements to the Capitol's aging infrastructure, and more money for agencies that oversee federal operations.

Also included is $19 million to renovate seven committee rooms in the House of Representatives, funding for staff cost-of-living pay increases and tens of thousands of dollars for special expense accounts for congressional leaders.

Not included in this budget are the salaries of members; those are part of a separate account. Members got a 2.8 percent pay increase in January, and most now make $174,000 a year. Leaders make slightly more. Members' pay will be frozen in 2010.

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., the chairwoman of the House Legislative Appropriations subcommittee, said that much of the increase would make up for deferred maintenance and other higher costs, such as energy, rent and travel.

The bill's backers also note that though the legislative branch gets a bigger increase than most agencies, departments that handle health, education, transportation and other domestic programs got sizeable help from last month's economic stimulus bill, while Congress got very little.

Still, critics see the congressional spending as excessive at a time when lawmakers are preaching austerity. Asked why the leadership's expense accounts were not cut, if only as a symbol, Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., said "it could have been done. It wasn't done." Landrieu is the chairwoman of the Senate's Legislative Appropriations panel.