Sharing the pain: Iowa delegation cutting expenses

Under intense pressure to trim the nation's budget, Iowa's lawmakers also have another fiscal problem to solve.

They must cut back on the money they spend to run their congressional offices, but some lawmakers are finding that tough.

Iowa's House members each received about $1.5 million last year to run their operations, but the House last month voted to cut that money by about 5 percent, or about $75,000.

Iowa's senators are given more money to run their operations and aren't subject to the cut.

like many House members, Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, is poring over his account books to determine what to cut. With about 19 staffers and several paid interns, King's largest expense is payroll. He said he'd hate to scrimp on salaries.

“Out here (in Washington), we work them hard, and it's expensive to live in this city,” he said.

King's highest paid aide, his legislative correspondent, earns more than $100,000 a year, but most staffers earn between $25,000 and $70,000. The salaries of lawmakers, which is $174,000 this year, isn't paid out of the office account.

King said he's considering cutting mailings to constituents and other services.

“It's a hard question,” he said. “I would not have initiated this, but if we follow through and cut everybody else's budget, it would be pretty hard for us not to do ours.”

Most Iowa lawmakers say they feel the same way.

“Just like many American families, it is important for Congress to tighten its belt,” said Rep. Bruce Braley, D-Iowa.

He said he'd trim his office expenses by cutting a staff position or holding off replacing aging equipment.

“Those are the types of sacrifices our parents made in the Depression,” Braley said.

Rep. Dave Loebsack, D-Iowa, agreed. “Just as Iowa families are making tough choices with their household budgets, I think Congress should practice discipline with our own budgets.”

Jane Slusark, press secretary to Rep. Leonard Boswell, D-Iowa, said the lawmaker keeps a lean staff and reviews expenditures closely. She also said he saved on rent by moving his Des Moines office into the Metro Waste Authority Building, where rent is cheaper than the city's federal building.

University of Virginia political science professor Larry Sabato said many find the spending cut lawmakers face as too small.

“Few people in the public or private sector haven't had to manage a cut at least this large in their operations during bad times,” Sabato said.

He also said cutting back on expenses will inevitably affect constituent services.

“But members of Congress can point this out to constituents,” Sabato said. “Many will appreciate that Congress is attempting to rein their spending in.”

In 2009, the last year for which full records are available, Loebsack spent more than $1 million on staff salaries, about $70,000 on travel and about $71,000 to rent offices in the 2nd District.

That year King spent more than $147,000 on travel, and Rep. Tom Latham, R-Iowa, spent more than $51,000 on mailings to his district.

It's lawmakers' bills for bottled water that's now causing a stir. A recent report said House members spent more than $860,000 on bottled water last year.

Latham and Braley are among 15 House members who don't buy bottled water. Braley said he's using filtered water to save money.

“I made that switch a couple of years ago, and it's worked out great,” he said.

-By Ana Radelat, Capitol News Connection