Lobbyists showing Congress the world

[maddezmom]

By Jim Drinkard, USA TODAY
12 minutes ago



A lobbyist can't legally pay for members of Congress to spend a lavish weekend in California's wine country - but a group of lobbyists apparently can.


If they form a tax-exempt group, a fairly easy exercise under IRS rules, lobbyists and their employers can get around congressional ethics regulations that forbid lobbyists to pay directly for such trips. That's the model used by America's Trust, a non-profit group formed last year that appears to be financed primarily by lobbyists and other interests with a stake in issues before Congress. Every member of its 12-person board of directors is a Washington lobbyist.


In late April, the group paid for four members of Congress - three of them accompanied by spouses - to hop aboard a corporate jet, bound for the Napa Valley town of St. Helena. The weekend for the two Republicans and two Democrats included luxury accommodations at the Meadowood resort and a series of presentations on issues facing the wine industry. Meals on the three-day trip totaled $458 for each person. The total bill: $46,000.


Congressional rules allow lawmakers and their aides to take trips paid for by private interests, with a few caveats: The travel must relate to their official duties in Washington; it must not be primarily recreational; and it must not be paid for by lobbyists or representatives of a foreign interest. When lawmakers do travel, they must disclose the trip, its purpose and who paid for it.

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more: http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/usatoday/20050622/pl_usatoday/lobbyistsshowingcongresstheworld

[UpInArms]

1. Traveling on the Abramoff Plan

Dozens of members of Congress have accepted trips from non-profits with registered lobbyists on their boards

http://www.publicintegrity.org/lobby/report.aspx?aid=714&sid=200

WASHINGTON, June 22, 2005 — At least 123 of Washington's top lobbyists occupy the same ethical gray area now threatening to bring down high-profile influence peddler Jack Abramoff, according to a new study by the Center for Public Integrity, American Public Media and Medill News Service.

Like Abramoff, these registered lobbyists sit on the governing boards of non-profit organizations called 501(c)(3)s, which get their name from the section of the tax code under which they are authorized. As board members, these lobbyists can help set policies for the groups and are privy to inside information about the non-profits—including their sponsorship of congressional travel.

Contributions to such groups are tax-deductible and, because they are non-profits, by definition are supposed to be restricted primarily to education, research and service activities. IRS regulations prohibit 501(c)(3) groups from attempting to influence legislation as a substantial part of their activities. The IRS code does not define what it means by "substantial."

One such group, the Ripon Educational Fund, spent more than $1.3 million dollars sponsoring a single conference in London during the summer of 2003, according to its tax return. Eighteen members of Congress attended, along with more than 100 corporate representatives, according to Ripon board members. That same year the Ripon Educational Fund spent just $10,000 underwriting a single university scholarship.

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