To provide that the usual day for paying salaries in or under the House of Representatives may be established by regulations of the Committee on House Administration.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Rules Committee be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 5493 and the Senate now proceed to its consideration.

Mr. President, the amendment that I am offering on behalf of myself and Senator McConnell addresses technical issues with respect to the ``cooling-off period'' for senior staff members.

Under title 18 and the Senate rules, staff members whose salary is above a certain threshold are prohibited from lobbying the Senate for a period of 1 year. One of the reforms in S. 1, the ethics reform bill we enacted last year, was to broaden the scope of the ban--senior staff members who were previously prohibited from lobbying individual Senate offices for a year are now prohibited from lobbying the entire Senate.

However, we have been made aware of an unintended consequence of the law: some junior staff members who receive salary bonuses over a period of 2 months are inadvertently covered by the lobbying ban, which is now even more sweeping. The Reid-McConnell amendment addresses this problem by providing that a staff member whose

salary is above the threshold for only 2 months will not be covered by the ban, even if those 2 months--for example, July and August--have an aggregate of more than 60 days.

Our amendment also makes the criminal law and Senate Rule XXXVII consistent. Both the law and the rule will now look back over the same time period, i.e., 1 year before an employee's termination, and the threshold will be the same, i.e., more than 2 months. Post-employment restrictions will thus be clearer to staff and the public, as well as easier to administer.

Under 2 U.S.C. 60c-1, Members, officers, and employees of the Senate are paid on a semimonthly basis: generally, the 20th of every month for the period of the 1st through the 15th and the 5th of the succeeding month for the period of the 16th through the end of the month. Thus, the language ``two months'' is intended and shall mean in the Senate equal to four pay periods. If an employee were to be paid above the threshold amount for more than four pay periods, for example, for four and any part of a fifth pay period, he or she would be covered by the restrictions of both the law and the rule.

Mr. President, the amendment is at the desk, and I ask unanimous consent that the amendment be considered and agreed to, the bill, as amended, be read a third time and passed, and the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table; that any statements relating to this matter be printed in the Record.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5493) to provide that the usual day for paying salaries in or under the House of Representatives may be established by regulations of the Committee on House Administration.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks on this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 5493 is a bill to address the frequency of staff pay periods in the House. It provides that the day for paying staff may be regulated by the Committee on House Administration. The House of Representatives currently pays the staff once a month. The executive branch, the Senate, and most private companies pay their employees twice a month or every two weeks.

We are considering a change because once-a-month pay can be difficult for staffers budgeting on a tight paycheck. In addition, the committee's oversight experience with payroll software suggested adopting a more common approach will save money, reduce errors and increase efficiency. Unfortunately, the committee can't change the pay schedule for House staff until we change the law.

This bill will give the committee the authority to change the date that staffers are paid. It won't change the pay schedule right away. Once this bill is enacted, the committee will adopt regulations that change the pay cycle.

I would like to thank my friend and colleague, Mr. Ehlers, for cosponsoring this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5493, which would establish that the pay date in the House be determined by Committee on House Administration

regulations. However, I want to make clear that, while I support the committee establishing its authority to determine the House's pay date, I do not necessarily support alteration of the current House pay schedule at this time.

Along with the obvious administrative challenges that would impact the CAO, there are a number of cultural implications within the House population that must be addressed prior to making such a change.

Many employees pay their mortgages, utility bills, and other financial obligations in concert with a monthly pay schedule. To change a system that has been in place for such an extended period of time will have a pervasive impact and must be considered and communicated thoroughly before it is instituted.

This bill is the first step on a very long road, and it should be followed by hearings and surveys to allow House employees to express their opinions.

However, I fully support the efforts of Chairman Brady to ensure that the committee take a decisive role in determining whether or not changes to the House pay schedule are made.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.