Posted by Keturah Hetrick on Sept. 14, 2020
Six members are on track to overspend their annual budgets, mostly from the heavy use of mass mailings, according to LegiStorm data.
As LegiStorm
previously detailed, Rep. Jim Hagedorn (R-Minn.) spent 63 percent of his annual budget in the first six months of 2020. Hagedorn faces major scrutiny for his office's ethically questionable expenditures.
Rep. Ross Spano (R-Fla.), the second biggest spender, used 56 percent of his budget in the first two quarters. The average representative spent 40 percent of her or his total budget during that time. Spano, who lost his primary last month, has already spent 17 percent of his total annual budget on print printing costs and franked mail - a common strategy to reach constituents. The average representative has so far spent 2 percent of her or his office budget on constituent outreach.
Reps. Antonio Delgado (D-N.Y.), Kathy Castor (D-Fla), Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and Steve Watkins (R-Kan.) each spent between 50 to 55 percent of their budgets in the first half of the year. Delgado, Castor and Watkins spent 13 to 14 percent each on mass mailings. Delgado faces a tough re-election in November, while Watkins lost his primary bid last month.
Jeffries' most disproportionate expenditure was rent. His office spent more than a tenth of their total budget on their Brooklyn offices. The average representative has spent three percent of their budget on rent so far this year.
In the event that a member overspends, she or he is personally responsible for re-paying that money. Any unspent office funds, meanwhile, are returned to the U.S. Treasury.
Some people and organizations who "caught our eye" last week:
