Pelosi Statement on House Passage of Major Ethics Reform

WASHINGTON, March 11 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Speaker Nancy Pelosi spoke
on the House floor tonight in support of a landmark ethics reform bill
establishing an outside, independent Office of Congressional Ethics. The
resolution passed by a vote of 229 to 182. Below are the Speaker's remarks,
as prepared:
"Mr. Speaker, today, the New Direction Congress takes another step forward
in ethics reform by making Congress more open and more accountable to the
American people. By doing so, we continue to strengthen Americans' faith in
the institution of Congress.
"Since the Ethics Committee was first constituted in 1967, the House has
set increasingly higher standards of conduct to guide Members because public
office is a public trust.
"Just last year, on the first day of the New Direction Congress, the House
implemented new and sweeping changes to the gift and travel restrictions.
"Last September, we also passed the historic Honest Leadership and Open
Government Act-historic lobby reform that is now the law of the land.
"Today, the New Direction Congress will -- for the first time -- open the
ethics process up to the participation of our fellow citizens, which will make
this institution more accountable to the American people. I welcome their
assistance.
"I commend Mr. Capuano and all of the Members of the Task Force for their
service to the House. Congressman Capuano led this effort in a way that was
bipartisan and sensitive to this institution's history and traditions. The
resulting legislation will greatly improve the ethics process.
"As someone who served on the Ethics Committee for six years, I have a
full understanding of the burdens its Members bear. I also have a deep
respect for those who have served on the Committee, both past and present.
The recommendations before the House will only serve to assist them in their
efforts.
"Adopting the Capuano Task force recommendations will provide the public -
- and the House -- with the assurance that credible allegations of wrongdoing
will be addressed by the Ethics Committee in a timely manner. It will also
bring an additional measure of transparency to the ethics enforcement process.
"It creates this transparency without compromising the House's
constitutional prerogative to discipline its Members, without interfering with
the work of the Ethics Committee, and without altering the substantive rules
governing the conduct of the Committee's deliberations.
"I fully recognize that bringing non-Members into the enforcement
mechanism is not just a step forward, but also a significant departure from
the traditions of the House. To those who have concerns, I pledge that I will
work closely with the Republican Leader to ensure that we jointly appoint to
the new Office of Congressional Ethics intelligent and honest men and women
who understand the importance of non-partisan behavior and the compelling need
to act fairly to protect the interests of the public, the House, and its
Members.
"Finally, Mr. Speaker, I pledge that the House Leadership will closely
monitor the work of the new Office of Congressional Ethics and continually
review all reasonable proposals intended to guarantee the highest ethical
conduct and a more effective and transparent ethics process. If additional
changes are required, we will propose them.
"The panel proposed today is a reasonable step forward, which is why it
has the support of leading reform groups, including Common Cause and U.S.
PIRG. It responds to the needs of the House and the demands of public. It
will restore confidence in our ability to carry out our constitutional duty to
discipline ourselves and increase respect for the legislation that we produce.
I urge its adoption."
SOURCE Office of the Speaker of the House

Brendan Daly or Nadeam Elshami, Office of the Speaker of the House,
+1-202-226-7616