House Ethics Panel Reforms Recommended

WASHINGTON — A congressional task force proposed a series of procedural reforms Wednesday to reduce the political bickering that has dominated House investigations of ethics violations by its members.

The 50-page report calls for restructuring the House Ethics Committee and streamlining the time frame for processing complaints against lawmakers accused of breaking House rules. But shortly after the task force voted, 11 to 1, to send its recommendations to House members for consideration, GOP leaders threatened to block the process, leading Democrats to accuse them of trying to scuttle the report.

“Today, [House Speaker] Newt Gingrich pulled the plug on ethics reform again,” Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) charged at a news conference.

By the end of the day, however, the process appeared to be back on track, if somewhat delayed.

The task force, which was established in February in response to a blizzard of ethics complaints filed during the 104th Congress, has spent four months reviewing House ethics procedures and drafting suggestions for reform. The House ordered a moratorium on the filing of new ethics complaints until after the task force had completed its job.

One of the changes recommended would allow only the chairman and ranking minority member of the ethics panel to conduct initial fact gathering about a complaint. In the past, individual committee members often sought information on their own.

The report also proposes time limits. When the committee chairman and ranking minority member conclude that a complaint has merit, “they must take action regarding the complaint within 45 calendar days or five legislative days, whichever is later,” the report states.

The task force had agreed to send its report to the House floor for a vote on Tuesday.