ANALYSIS OF ESTIMATED EXPENDITURES, BASED ON EXPENSES PAID FROM OCTOBER 1, 1978, CONFERENCE COMMITTEES Senator SASSER. The next item is the fiscal year 1980 budget request of $792,000 for Conference Committees, the same amount as the comparable 1979 level. Any comment, Mr. Malstrom? Mr. MALSTROM. No, sir, except to state that the majority and minority conferences have both indicated that they do not request any type of increase for fiscal year 1980. ADMINISTRATIVE, CLERICAL, AND LEGISLATIVE ASSISTANCE TO SENATORS Senator SASSER. The next item is a budget request of $75,133,000 for administrative, clerical, and legislative assistance to Senators. This is an increase of $88,000 over the previous year. Mr. Malstrom, please describe the purpose for which these funds are appropriated and justify the increase, including the 1979 program supplemental request in the amount of $204,000. Mr. MALSTROM. This appropriation contains funds for the salaries of the administrative, clerical, and legislative staffs of Senators. The allowance is based on the population of States, beginning with States of population of less than 2 million to States with a population of 21 million or more, for administrative and clerical assistance, and a further allowance for legislative assistance based on Public Law 95-94. The $88,000 is to complete the full year funding for an increase in allowances for the States of Texas and Minnesota, due to an increase in population. Texas went over the 13 million population mark and Minnesota went over the 4 million mark. The $204,000 supplemental request is the 6-month funding increase for Texas and Minnesota, and the full year funding increase for the States of Florida and Georgia, both of which also increased in population last year. OFFICE OF THE SERGEANT AT ARMS Senator SASSER. The next item is the Office of the Sergeant at Arms. We will put this off until Thursday. However, I note that the Sergeant at Arms is requesting a decrease of $101,000 below the comparable 1979 level, and so we will look forward eagerly to the testimony of Mr. Nordy Hoffmann on Thursday, and hope that his action will be a precedent-setting one. SECRETARIES FOR THE MAJORITY AND MINORITY Mr. Malstrom, I call your attention to the item in the budget request for the secretaries for the majority and minority. The budget request is in the amount of $434,000, which is increase of $6,000 over the previous year. Any comment? Mr. MALSTROM. The increase of $6,000 is the result of the expir tion of the maximum salary limitation, effective October 1, 197 AGENCY CONTRIBUTIONS AND LONGEVITY COMPENSATION Senator SASSER. The last item under "Salaries, officers, and employees" is the account, "Agency contributions and longevity compensation." Here the budget request is $9,943,000, an increase of $855,000 over the 1979 level. Would you please describe the purpose of this appropriation and explain the increase. Mr. MALSTROM. This appropriation contains funds for agency contributions for civil service retirement, Federal employees' group life insurance, Federal employees' health benefits, longevity compensation, and merit compensation, and encompasses all positions under the heading "Salaries, officers, and employees." The $855,000 is to fund the revised longevity program and the newly created merit compensation program, both of which were authorized in the Senate within this last year. OFFICE OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL Senator SASSER. The next item is the Office of the Legislative Counsel of the Senate. Here the budget request for fiscal year 1980 is $899,000, an increase of $59,000 over the previous year. Would you please explain the increase. Mr. MALSTROM. The increase is caused by the expiration of the maximum salary limitations to be effective next October, principally on the Legislative Counsel, the five senior counsels, and approximately two other staff attorneys; merit increases authorized or to be authorized; and an increase in expenses, such as law books, equipment, supplies, and things of that nature within his office. I might indicate to you, Mr. Chairman, that the Office of the Legislative Counsel is one of the tightest controlled offices as far as expenditures. Within this last year we have had to and did fully fund this office, so far as agency contributions are concerned. This is essentially the rock-bottom figure for this office. CONTINGENT EXPENSES OF THE SENATE Senator SASSER. The next item deals with the contingent expenses of the Senate. Here the budget request is $73,478,000, an increase of $10,393,000 over the anticipated fiscal year 1979 appropriation. Mr. Malstrom, I would appreciate it if you would address each of the activities under the heading "Contingent expenses of the Senate." First, would you first of all please explain how the funding mechanism of the contingent fund works and what little control, if any, the Appropriations Committee has over these expenses. Mr. MALSTROM. Mr. Chairman, appropriations to the contingent fund are essentially not controllable, so far as the two larger appropriation items, "Inquires and investigations" and "Miscellaneous items" are concerned. In the case of "Inquiries and investigations", which is the item under which the salaries of investigative staff and other expenses of select, special, and subcommittees that have been authorized by Senate Resolutions, the size of the staff and other expenses is determined by the type and magnitude of the investigation. The process in obtaining allocations of funds for "Inquiries and investigations" is as follows: (a) The originating standing committees request an allocation of funds for their subcommittees by means of the introduction of a Senate resolution, which is referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration for consideration. (b) The Committee on Rules and Administration studies the resolutions, holds hearings, and makes a determination of its recommendations in its report to the Senate. (c) When the Senate accepts the resolution and agrees to it, the amount agreed upon is thereby allocated to the committee for its investigation and, as such, becomes an obligation from within the appropriation "Inquiries and investigations". Once the allocations are authorized, the various committees proceed to incur obligations and spend at that authorized level of funding. Therefore, the Committee on Appropriations has no real choice but to appropriate the total amount authorized; to appropriate any less would cause deficit financing before the end of the funding period. Mr. Chairman, the other major appropriation item under the contingent fund is "Miscellaneous items". Here the process is much the same, so far as the amounts predetermined by law or requirement. Senators' official office expense accounts, State offices, WATS phone lines and other fixed telephone service, workmens' compensation reimbursement, and furniture are a few of the expenses that are determined by a fixed amount; on a rental based on the General Services Administration formula, a predetermined cost for phone, or for other prescribed and fixed needs. The requirement for new programs, such as the correspondence management system, at prescribed costs, are also part of this funding under "Miscellaneous items". Therefore, this large item is also, to a large extent, not controllable by the Committee on Appropriations, since the larger proportion of its funding is preset. REDUCTION OF AUTHORIZATIONS AND APPROPRIATIONS Senator SASSER. Let me ask you this question, Mr. Malstrom: Once these authorizations have passed the full Senate for these various committees, has the Appropriations Committee ever been successful in cutting back on them? I seem to recall hearing or reading somewhere that Senator Ellender, when he was chairman of the Legislative Appropriations Subcommittee, used to try to cut back on those expenses, but was voted down each time he tried to do it. Mr. MALSTROM. Actually, Mr. Chairman, Senator Ellender tried every single year to reduce and even delete allocations for committees on the floor of the Senate as the resolutions were being considered. He was never successful in that. When Senator Cannon became chairman of the Committee on Rules and Administration, he was more successful than Senator Ellender in holding the line on allocations. Senator Pell is attempting to do the same thing, to restrict the allocations and cut them as far as possible. I have really never observed any success, as you mentioned, by the Appropriations Committee in cutting the allocations. It really is determined by Rules Committee as to cutting the allocations, restricting them, or holding them back. The Committee on Appropriations, so far as I have been able to determine in the past, is limited to appropriating on the basis of what allocations have been made. Senator SASSER. I want to express my total support for Senator Pell in his efforts to cut back on the allocation and authorization in the Rules Committee. Mr. Malstrom, why don't you complete your remarks for the record so that we can now turn our attention to the budget request for "Official mail costs." Mr. MALSTROM. I would be pleased to do so, Mr. Chairman. [The information follows:] SENATE POLICY COMMITTEES The appropriation for "Senate policy committees" is the first item under the contingent fund. The budget request for fiscal year 1980 is for $1,462,000, or $731,000 for each policy committee. This is the same amount as the 1979 appropriation since both the Majority and Minority Policy Committees have indicated that they are not requesting an increase for this coming fiscal year. AUTOMOBILES AND MAINTENANCE The next item under the contingent fund is "Automobiles and maintenance". The request is for $65,000, which is an increase of $7,000 over the 1979 level. This request covers the lease of automobiles for the Vice President, President pro tempore, majority and minority leaders, majority and minority whips, Secretary of the Senate, Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper, Deputy Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper, offices of the secretaries for the majority and the minority, Office of the Financial Clerk, and Office of the Attending Physician. Also, included are funds for maintaining Senate owned vehicles for the offices of the Sergeant at Arms and the Secretary of the Senate, as well as gasoline, tires, and everyday maintenance of all the vehicles. The increase of $7,000 is necessary to meet the increased cost of supplying these items. INQUIRIES AND INVESTIGATIONS The next item is "Inquiries and investigations." This covers the funding for expenses of inquiries and investigations authorized by Senate resolutions for standing committees, special and select committees. The request is for $32,600,000, an increase of $645,000 over fiscal year 1979. This results from an increase in the estimate for the Select Committee on Ethics and increases in Senate resolution authorizations. In earlier testimony, I have included tables showing an analysis of authorizations, appropriations, and expenditures of the various Senate committees for the last funding period. FOLDING DOCUMENTS The next item is "Folding documents." The request is for $109,000, the same amount as in fiscal year 1979. MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS The appropriation for "Miscellaneous items" is the next item in the contingent fund and includes funds for the general expenses of the Senate. It is generally referred to as the housekeeping appropriation for the Senate. The major items included are the senatorial official office expense account, telephone and telegraph service, mechanical equipment purchases and repairs, rental of space for senatorial offices located in home States, and computer equipment, includ |