WASHINGTON, D.C. – After supporting landmark ethics and lobbying reforms last year, Congresswoman Capps last night voted for the New Democratic Congress’ tough new congressional ethics reforms to establish an independent panel empowered to initiate investigations of alleged misconduct by members of the House of Representatives.  The establishment of the panel was approved by a vote of 229 to 182, and does not require Senate consideration.

“With the establishment of this new, independent panel, the New Direction Congress is taking another important step in our ongoing efforts to reform Washington and end the culture of corruption that flourished under the previous leadership of the House of Representatives,” said Capps.  “Last year we passed landmark lobbying and ethics reform laws, and now we have passed perhaps the most significant ethics reforms in decades.  For the first time in history, alleged ethics violations by Members of Congress and Congressional staff can be investigated by individuals who are not Members of Congress.  This new independent panel, the Office of Congressional Ethics, will ensure that all credible allegations of wrongdoing are investigated and examined by the Ethics Committee.”

The Office of Congressional Ethics will be comprised of six individuals appointed jointly by the Speaker and the Minority Leader. Current members of Congress and lobbyists would not be eligible to serve on the panel.

The panel has the power to initiate investigations of Members of Congress when appropriate. Investigations could only be initiated if supported by a Democratic and Republican appointed member of the panel. At the conclusion of an investigation, the panel would report its findings to the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct (Ethics Committee) and recommend whether the committee should review the allegations.

These reforms are supported by a host of non-partisan reform organizations including Common Cause, U.S. PIRG and Democracy 21, as well as noted Congressional scholars Norm Ornstein of the American Enterprise Institute and Thomas Mann of the Brookings Institution.

The new ethics rules follow last year’s enactment of The Honest Leadership, Open Government Act, which brought unprecedented transparency to lobbyists’ activities and was hailed by reform groups as a “sea change for citizens” and “landmark reform.”

###

Pictured above: (center) Congresswoman Capps meets with Central Coast firefighters to discuss emergency preparedness.