On July 3, the House Ethics Committee announced it would return to calling for House members to report privately sponsored travel in their annual financial disclosure forms – a requirement it had quietly removed earlier this year. However, when the removal of this requirement was revealed, it caught national attention and generated strong responses. Supporters of the change argued the reporting is merely duplicative because the travel must still be reported by members to the House Office of the Clerk.

Without any official announcement, the U.S. House Ethics Committee quietly removed the requirement that privately sponsored travel be revealed in House Members’ annual financial disclosure forms.

However, when the removal of this requirement was revealed by the National Journal on June 30, it caught national attention and generated strong responses. In a press release from the Campaign Legal Center, Policy Director Meredith McGehee said, “With public confidence in the U.S. Congress reaching a record low of 7%, according to yesterday’s Gallup poll, you would think the House Ethics Committee would focus on building public confidence in the institution, rather than looking for ways to make their dirty laundry harder to find.”

According to the National Journal, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said the change “must be reversed.”

Supporters of the change argue the reporting is merely duplicative because the travel must still be reported by members to the House Office of the Clerk.