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Johnson’s ‘home’ at office may violate the rules
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U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson of Poland, R-6th
POLAND
Freshman U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson is looking to move from his home in Poland to Washington County.
But when it comes to another Washington — the city located in the District of Columbia — Johnson, R-6th, already has a home: his congressional office.
Johnson is among 33 members of the House — 26 Republicans and seven Democrats — identified by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a nonprofit government ethics watchdog organization, as possibly violating House and IRS rules by living in their offices.
“House office buildings are not dorms or frat houses,” said Melanie Sloan, the organization’s executive director. “If members didn’t want to find housing in Washington, they shouldn’t have run for Congress in the first place.”
CREW is asking the Office of Congressional Ethics to investigate not only the legality of House members using their offices as housing, but if they’re violating tax law by failing to report lodging as a taxable fringe benefit.
In response, Jessica Towhey, Johnson’s spokeswoman, said, “While CREW may hold the opinion that congressmen should live in Washington, Congressman Johnson serves his constituents here and lives in Ohio. Besides, he’s practicing what he preaches about being fiscally responsible by not taking on rent on top of his mortgage back home in eastern Ohio.”
Rank-and-file members of the U.S. House such as Johnson, receive $174,000 in annual salary.
There have been some congressional members in the past who’ve slept in their offices and use showers at the House gym as Johnson and others are doing now.
CREW contends living in a House office violates the prohibition on using taxpayer resources for anything other than the performance of official duties.
Also, under Internal Revenue Service code, members who sleep in their offices are receiving a taxable benefit and must pay taxes based on the fair-market value of their lodging, according to a CREW statement.
Members of Congress and their staff must pay taxes on the fair-market value of their reserved parking spaces so they should be required to pay taxes for using their offices as their Washington, D.C., place of residence, Sloan said.
“If legislators are going to treat their offices as dorm rooms, at the very least they should pay the appropriate taxes,” she said.
The Vindicator reported in December that Johnson is trying to sell his Poland house, which isn’t in the 6th District, and move to Washington County, the heart of his congressional district. Johnson has lived in Poland, about two miles from the 6th District, since June 2006. He has family in Washington County.
Comments
This is a most absurd criticism of Congress.
Melanie Sloan, the Executive Director of CREW with her $225,000 annual salary plus benefits, and the $2 million budget for her "nonprofit" busybody corporation, should be able to find more important issues to deal with than this.
If this is all she and her compatriots can do with tax exempt dollars, maybe she should not be tax exempt.
This is a practice that ought to be commended, not criticized. A Congressman makes about $175,000 per year [more than $50,000 less than Ms. Sloan's], and has to maintain a home in the district as well as one in Washington. Go on the Washington Post website and check the cost of rent and you will see why these elected officials stay in their offices.
And if you live anywhere near Capitol Hill, you not only pay high rent, but live in neighborhoods with a very high crime rate.
Come on, Ms. Sloan, either get something better to do or be quiet.
Not surprised one bit with this action from a rookie . Make them pay taxes! They are way over paid and can help bring down the deficit that they all created. Johnson I'm still waiting for your response to repeal they Bush Prescription Drug plan that we were forced to join or be penalized at a % point . You know Communism at it's finest ! And I only contacted your office four times about this matter . For a person who sleeps there and stated he would be available 24/7 I find it funny I get no response. Just like the rest of the lying republicans !
Remember, Jimbo lived on an old houseboat. There are alternatives to the high rent/high crime housing.
Rules are rules, and if you're not allowed to live in your office, you're not allowed to live in your office. If the elected officials ("R" and "D" alike) can't even follow simple rules like that, how can we trust them with important issues?
Most places, including around here, you're not allowed to live in your office. It's against zoning, for one thing. And there's a very real difference between being fiscally responsible and being a cheapskate or a miser.
Who gives a crap where thay live? I'l go thethinker one better, if you don't like where the congressman lives then YOU move to Iran {please}
It is also worth noting, as the "writer" of this piece OUGHT to have done, that this CREW operation is not quite a non-partisan "nonprofit government ethics watchdog organization" as the article reads.
It is a far-far-left hit operation largely funded, through operations like the Tides foundation, by Nazi-enabler and Antichrist fan George Soros. Truth and honesty are as welcome to them as garlic and silver crucifixes are to the vampire of your choice.
For the Vindy to be according such operations the least bit of regard as credible sources is to further damage the paper's brand.
I love all these folks who attack the people who made the information public... but I don't see anyone denying the truth of it.
The represenative living in his office is on the cheap and creepy side. But as long as he pays the taxes for the TRUE MARKET value of what we taxpayers are giving him, then who cares if he wants to live like a homeless bag lady... but we should set up conditions, I don't want his wife and kids moving in, no pets, no drinking parties and I don't think the homeless folk should be allowed to play in the hallways in their jammies after hours.
Wonder how much a flop house would go for in downtown DC when it's marble everything, full gym, solid oak walls, plenty of fine arts, reserved parking... just steps from the office... I'm thinking that we tax payers are giving them about $24k/year in free rent.
I'm sure that he understood that being in DC for a lot of the time was part of the job that he was running for... if he wants to turn his office into a flop house, then he needs to be answering the phone until a reasonable hour of the night.. we should be able to call and get answers until at least 10pm.