Waste of the Day: Leasing Cars for Congress
Topline: Taxpayers have spent $3.5 million since 2019 to lease cars for members of Congress and their staffers while also paying them up to $131,000 each for gas, according to The Center Square’s review of public House disbursement statements.
Key facts: Members of the House can legally be reimbursed up to $1,000 per month to lease cars — including luxury vehicles — The Center Square found. One who spent the maximum was Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA), who has a net worth of $284 million.
House members’ cars came from Tesla, Lexus, Volvo, Ford, Honda and more.
Officials can also be reimbursed 70 cents per mile if they use a personal car for business travel, including trips back and forth from their home district to Washington, D.C.
Rep. Kevin Hern (R-OK) has billed taxpayers over $130,000 for his mileage since 2019. So has John Etue, who previously worked for Rep. Roger Williams (R-TX) and is now chief of staff for Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX). That’s enough miles to drive around the equator eight times, according to The Center Square.
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Background: Every House member has a taxpayer-funded account of nearly $2 million per year that is used for staff salaries and official expenses like travel. Senators’ accounts get triple that — an average of over $6 million each — though the exact amount varies based on their state’s population and distance from Washington.
Additionally, House members can be reimbursed for some of their housing costs and $79 per day for food under a program created in 2023 which cost $5.2 million last year. The program does not require receipts. Politicians are reimbursed based on the honor system, and do not have to publicly disclose what they are spending money on.
Summary: Especially with Congress unable and unwilling to get U.S. budget under control, taxpayers should not be subsidizing their personal expenses.
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