Nevada House Members Get New Expense Rules

A recent rule change allowing House members to expense lodging and food costs while in Washington, D.C., has drawn attention to how Nevada’s representatives manage the new allowances.

Enacted during the lame-duck session of Congress in early 2023, the change permits House members to use their Member’s Representational Allowance (MRA) — previously restricted to staff salaries, office costs, telecommunications, and travel between districts and D.C. — for lodging and food expenses while in the capital. The new rule allows members to expense up to $34,000 for weeks when Congress is in session.

Despite the change, only two of Nevada’s four House members have utilized the expanded allowances. Representatives Mark Amodei and Susie Lee did not personally expense food or lodging under their travel budgets.

Representative Dina Titus charged $395.45 for lodging from April 20-22, 2023, during an official trip to Brownsville, Texas, unrelated to her cost of living in Washington D.C. She also expensed $632.70 on food in the summer of 2023, mainly for lunches with community leaders in her district, a practice consistent with House rules.

Representative Steven Horsford claimed the most out of the Nevada delegation, expensing $22,689 on lodging in 2023 and an additional $2,895 through March 2024. His office stated that these costs represent his rent during congressional sessions.

Horsford’s monthly rent expenses varied depending on his time in D.C., peaking in October when the House worked additional days to elect a new speaker after Kevin McCarthy’s ousting. He was reimbursed $3,393 for lodging costs that month. Since Horsford rents rather than owns, his reimbursements are permissible under the new rules.

Now, it we could figure out how to keep them from misspending our tax monies.