U.S. Rep. Bill Owens, D-Plattsburgh, paid out $31,000 in end-of-the-year bonuses to his congressional office employees, according to House records.
But he paid less money in total payroll expenses, for the quarter and for the year, than Rep. Chris Gibson, R-Kinderhook, who did not pay end-of-the-year bonuses.
Owens paid bonuses ranging from $1,000 to $5,000 to each of nine employees, according to the 2012 fourth quarter House Disbursement Report.
Bradley Katz, chief of staff; Stephen Hunt, deputy chief of staff; Nell Maceda, deputy chief of staff/legislative director; and Jon Boughton, senior legislative assistant/spokesman, received $5,000 each.
Four other employees received $2,500 bonuses, and one employee received a $1,000 bonus.
In total, nine of 15 congressional office employees received bonuses.
Gibson is not necessarily opposed to paying bonuses, but did not pay them this year because of office equipment that was needed and because of the cost associated with preparing to open new district offices after legislative redistricting, said Stephanie Valle, a spokeswoman for Gibson.
Some fiscal advocacy organizations have criticized paying staff bonuses, a common practice among House members, suggesting it leads to wasteful spending.
“Lawmakers have to take it in the context of the overall budget environment and that many of their constituents not only are not getting bonuses, but maybe not even having a job,” said Steve Ellis, vice president of Taxpayers for Common Sense, a Washington-based group.
Owens, however, said a bonus system encourages employees to do good work.
“I would rather have people incentivized to work harder during the year, than to receive a flat salary,” he said in a brief interview after he spoke Tuesday at a forum in Glens Falls.
Owens said before entering Congress, he used a bonus system at his law firm, and also when he was on the compensation committee of the NBT Bank board of directors.
“It’s just a philosophical view, from my perspective,” he said.
Ellis, of Taxpayers for Common Sense, said if House members pay bonuses, they should not be given across the aboard.
“It does seem to indicate more of a performance-oriented system rather than just spreading the money around,” he said, referring to Owens paying different bonus amounts to various employees, and not paying bonuses to all employees.
“If he’s willing to stand up and defend it, well then his constituents can judge him accordingly,” he said.
Boughtin, a spokesman for Owens, said the congressman voted for legislation that reduced the 2012 office budget for every member of Congress by 6.4 percent.
The congressman will return another $75,000 of his 2012 allocation, above that cut, to the U.S. Treasury to help pay down the federal debt, the fourth consecutive year Owens has returned a portion of his House office budget, Boughtin said.
Owens said his staff members typically earn a lower base salary than staff for many other House members, and he typically pays out less in total payroll.
Owens’ chief of staff, for example, received a base salary of $31,250 in the fourth quarter of 2012. Gibson’s chief of staff received a $32,750 salary in the fourth quarter, with no bonus.
Owens paid out $221,216 in the fourth quarter of 2012, including bonuses, and $801,000 for the year, according to a House disbursement report, which details expenses of all House members.
Gibson paid out $291,121 in the fourth quarter of 2012, and $992,075 for the year.
House members, on average, spend about $1 million on staffing, typically the largest expense, said Bill Allison, editorial director of the Sunlight Foundation, an advocacy organization.
Each House member receives an allocation based on factors that include real estate prices in the district and travel distance from Washington.
House members can disburse the allocation for offices, staff, mailings and other expenses as they please.
Gibson places a priority on having adequate district office staff to respond to constituent needs, said Valle, his spokeswoman.
“He fundamentally believes that in order to have good constituent services, we need to have a competent and robust district staff,” she said.
Gibson spent less than Owens in some other areas.
Gibson spent $38,952 on postage and $38,096 on printing, while Owens spent $75,493 and $82,651.
Ellis, of Taxpayers for Common Sense, said his organization does not recommend what percentage of a House member’s office budget should be spent in any specific area.
“It’s a balancing act,” he said. “Just like any business, you need to have equipment, they need to have functioning computers and things along that line and copiers that work. And they need to be able to pay salaries that can attract and pay quality staff.”
What’s important, he said, is that constituents be aware of how House members spend their office budgets.
“We think how a lawmaker uses that money is a little bit of a lens into their budgetary soul,” he said.
Written by: Maury Thompson
Original Publication URL: http://poststar.com/news/local/in-office-spending-local-congressmen-owens-and-gibson-reveal-preferences/article_f8bd131e-96fc-11e2-b630-0019bb2963f4.html
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