Senators' Official Personnel and Office Expense Account (SOPOEA): History and Usage

Summary

This funding includes agency contributions for benefits provided to employees paid by the SOPOEA. Since FY2019, the total also includes an allowance for interns.

The annual Senate Appropriations Committee reports or explanatory statements include a table with recommended SOPOEA levels for the Senators from each state. The report generally states, "It should also be noted that the figures in the following table are preliminary, and that official notification of member budgets is issued by the Financial Clerk of the Senate after enactment of this bill." Most recently

• the Senate Appropriations Committee report accompanying the FY2025 legislative branch appropriations bill (S. 4678, S.Rept. 118-192) showed a range of $4,209,326 to $6,495,333, with an average of $4,567,588; and
• the Senate Appropriations Committee report accompanying the FY2026 legislative branch appropriations bill (S. 2257, S.Rept. 119-38) showed a range of $4,296,524 to $6,621,784, with an average of $4,664,423.

Pursuant to 2 U.S.C. §4108, Senate expenses are reported online biennially on a fiscal-year basis in the Report of the Secretary of the Senate.

This report provides a history of the SOPOEA and overview of recent developments, including funding levels. It also analyzes actual SOPOEA spending patterns in recent years.

For a similar analysis of Member budgets in the House of Representatives, see CRS Report R40962, Members' Representational Allowance: History and Usage, by Ida A. Brudnick.

Following heightened threats in recent years, the Senate in 2025 considered ways to provide additional funding for the security of Senators.

On September 18, 2025, the Senate agreed to S.Res. 413 (119^th Cong.), which authorized the use of funds from the SOPOEA for security enhancements and services for Senators. This authorization is in addition to funds provided to the Senate Sergeant at Arms and the United States Capitol Police (USCP).¹⁰ The explanatory statement accompanying the FY2026 legislative branch appropriations act (P.L. 119-37) provides additional information on the funding and coordination with the SSAA and USCP:¹¹

Security Enhancements and Services.—The agreement provides an additional $750,000 to each Senator's office account for payments for security enhancements and services, pursuant to S. Res. 413 (119th Cong.). Allowable services include protective security of Senators and the residences of Senators at all times, irrespective of the physical location of the Senators at the time. The Committee on Rules and Administration may promulgate regulations implementing this section. Senators have discretion in the exercise of their official duties to choose, and to determine the appropriate scope of services for, providers of security enhancements and services, and to contract and enter into agreements therefor, including the extent to which to accept recommendations of the Sergeant at Arms [SAA] program coordinators. The SAA will offer coordination and support services, including procurement assistance, to Member offices with resources provided under a separate appropriation. Additionally, the SAA may support the procurement of personal security services and obligate funds on behalf of a Senator, pursuant to 2 U.S.C. § 6505, if the Senator delegates such authority in writing.

Security Program Coordination.—The agreement provides $5,000,000 to SAA to support Member offices by coordinating the utilization of security programs for Senators, including activities authorized by S. Res. 413 (119th Cong.). Such funds are available for personnel and overhead costs associated with, among other purposes, contracting support and liaison activities between Federal, State, local, and private security entities.

The U.S. Senate Member Protection Regulations, which address permissible expenditures, procurement, and other issues, were subsequently printed in the Congressional Record on December 11, 2025.¹²

The FY2027 funding request for the Senate Sergeant at Arms and the U.S. Capitol Police also addressed these efforts.¹³

As stated below, the SOPOEA total has included an allowance for interns since FY2019 ($5.0 million in FY2019, $6.0 million in FY2020 and FY2021, and $7.0 million since FY2022). The Senate reports accompanying the legislative branch appropriations bill since then have regularly included language explaining the need for the funding and how it is allocated. For example, the FY2026 report states¹⁴

Senate Intern Compensation.—The Committee continues to believe that Senate internships should be available to the broadest possible pool of candidates who have the ability and interest to serve. Unfortunately, unpaid internships exclude those who cannot independently afford to work without pay, hindering students' future career opportunities and making it more difficult for Senators to attract and hire the most qualified interns, regardless of socioeconomic status. Providing interns financial compensation provides an avenue for more students to have the opportunity to serve their country and gain experience toward a career in public service. In addition to funding allocated in the table above for Senators' office allowances and for agency contribution costs, the bill includes $7,000,000 for the sole purpose of providing financial compensation to interns. This will allow offices to continue to diversify their intern hires and, if an office chooses to do so, provide stipends to better help interns with travel and housing costs. Any intern compensation funding that remains unspent by any office will be returned to the Treasury in accordance with section 101 of the bill. Such funding is directed to be allocated among Senators' offices in relative proportion to funds allocated for each office's administrative and clerical assistance allowance for fiscal year 2026 shown in the table above, which reflect natural variables including State populations, with a small additional amount for non-contiguous States. On average, each office will be allocated an estimated $70,000 for intern compensation.

This language is followed by a table with the allocation for intern compensation for the Senators from each state.

Senators have long been provided with resources to support their official duties. For example, Senators have been reimbursed for trips to their states¹⁵ and provided funds for staffing assistance¹⁶ and maintaining home state offices.¹⁷

The level and means of providing this assistance has changed over time. For many years, funding for different types of expenses was provided in separate appropriations accounts. The current consolidated SOPOEA system was established in 1987 and effective January 1, 1988.¹⁸ It followed efforts during the previous decade to move to a system of increased flexibility for Senators in directing their individual office operations.¹⁹ The report from the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration accompanying the bill establishing the SOPOEA (S. 1574) stated that the move "would allow Members to set their own priorities and react accordingly."²⁰

Periodically, legislation has been introduced to amend the SOPOEA. The legislation has sought to regulate, prohibit, authorize, reduce, or encourage the use of funds for a particular purpose or to alter the SOPOEA in response to other action; increase transparency; or govern the use of unexpended balances. In more recent years, legislation has been introduced to prohibit the SOPOEA (and often, the Members' Representational Allowance, or MRA) from being used to pay certain penalties, fees, or fines related to specified violations of rules or laws. With a few exceptions, the legislation has been referred to committee and no further action has been taken. Revisions to the SOPOEA generally have been made through appropriations acts or internal procedures (see Table 3 and Table 4).

The SOPOEA allocation for each Senator is calculated based on three components

Subsequently

The Senate requested $733.1 million for FY2027, an increase of $87.7 million (+13.6%).

Since FY2019, the SOPOEA total has included an allowance for interns ($5.0 million in FY2019, $6.0 million in FY2020 and FY2021, and $7.0 million annually since FY2022).

For many years, the Senate Appropriations Committee reports on the annual legislative branch appropriations bill have contained language stating that the prudence of Senators in SOPOEA spending has been factored into the recommended level for this account. For example, as in prior years, the FY2026 report stated³⁶

The amount recommended by the Committee for the SOPOEA is less than would be required to cover all obligations that could be incurred under the authorized allowances for all Senators. The Committee is able to recommend an appropriation of a lesser amount than potentially necessary because Senators typically do not obligate funds up to the absolute ceiling of their respective allowances.

The FY2026 report also stated "spending patterns have been changing and the Committee's recommended increase is necessary to bring the appropriation more in line with the statutorily authorized level."³⁷

Year

Minimum

Average (mean)

Maximum

Lower Quartile (25^th%)

Median (50^th%)

Upper Quartile (75^th%)

Net Payroll Expenses

2015

53.8%

82.1%

94.1%

78.4%

84.0%

86.9%

2016

57.8%

82.0%

94.8%

77.1%

83.8%

87.5%

2017

62.7%

83.1%

94.9%

78.6%

83.9%

88.6%

2018

64.6%

79.6%

92.5%

74.4%

80.0%

85.3%

2019

52.2%

80.7%

92.0%

75.0%

81.7%

87.0%

2020

42.4%

81.0%

94.1%

74.5%

81.8%

88.7%

2021

55.3%

82.8%

95.8%

78.7%

83.6%

89.2%

2022

56.7%

82.1%

95.0%

77.0%

83.5%

88.2%

2023

64.1%

83.3%

96.3%

77.6%

84.9%

88.7%

2024

54.7%

84.1%

94.7%

79.4%

84.9%

90.2%

2025

52.6%

85.2%

95.1%

80.8%

86.9%

91.6%

Travel

2015

0.6%

4.0%

11.7%

2.6%

3.7%

5.1%

2016

0.4%

4.1%

13.3%

2.7%

3.9%

4.7%

2017

0.8%

4.1%

10.8%

2.7%

4.0%

5.2%

2018

0.9%

3.7%

13.0%

2.3%

3.5%

4.7%

2019

0.4%

3.6%

11.6%

2.0%

3.5%

4.7%

2020

0.2%

2.1%

11.3%

1.1%

1.7%

2.6%

2021

0.1%

2.1%

12.3%

0.9%

1.6%

2.7%

2022

0.4%

3.3%

16.6%

1.8%

2.8%

3.9%

2023

0.8%

3.9%

16.8%

2.3%

3.3%

4.7%

2024

0.6%

3.6%

18.7%

2.1%

3.2%

4.3%

2025

0.7%

3.2%

13.1%

1.9%

2.9%

3.7%

Rent, Communications, and Utilities

2015

0.8%

2.3%

24.6%

1.3%

1.6%

2.2%

2016

0.7%

2.2%

8.1%

1.3%

1.7%

2.5%

2017

0.7%

2.1%

8.1%

1.4%

1.6%

2.3%

2018

0.6%

1.9%

7.1%

1.2%

1.5%

2.3%

2019

0.6%

1.4%

5.1%

1.0%

1.2%

1.6%

2020

0.2%

2.6%

19.7%

1.5%

1.9%

2.7%

2021

0.7%

1.8%

5.5%

1.2%

1.5%

2.2%

2022

0.7%

1.8%

7.6%

1.2%

1.4%

2.1%

2023

0.6%

1.8%

8.8%

1.1%

1.4%

1.9%

2024

0.6%

1.7%

5.6%

1.2%

1.4%

1.9%

2025

0.6%

1.4%

6.1%

1.0%

1.1%

1.6%

Supplies and Materials

2015

0.5%

1.8%

5.7%

1.2%

1.6%

2.2%

2016

0.3%

1.6%

6.4%

1.0%

1.4%

1.8%

2017

0.0%

1.9%

6.0%

1.1%

1.5%

2.2%

2018

0.5%

1.7%

7.5%

1.0%

1.4%

2.0%

2019

0.1%

1.1%

3.2%

0.7%

1.1%

1.4%

2020

0.2%

1.3%

8.3%

0.6%

1.2%

1.7%

2021

0.3%

1.6%

7.2%

0.8%

1.2%

2.1%

2022

0.1%

1.5%

6.4%

0.8%

1.1%

1.9%

2023

0.4%

1.7%

5.0%

1.0%

1.5%

2.1%

2024

0.3%

1.6%

8.8%

0.9%

1.2%

1.8%

2025

0.1%

1.1%

5.8%

0.6%

0.8%

1.6%

Printing and Reproduction

2015

0.0%

0.0%

0.3%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

2016

0.0%

0.0%

0.1%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

2017

0.0%

0.0%

0.1%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

2018

0.0%

0.0%

0.1%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

2019

0.0%

0.0%

0.2%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

2020

0.0%

0.0%

0.2%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

2021

0.0%

0.0%

0.2%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

2022

0.0%

0.0%

0.3%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

2023

0.0%

0.0%

0.3%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

2024

0.0%

0.0%

0.4%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

2025

0.0%

0.0%

0.2%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

Fiscal Year

Lower Quartile (25^th percentile)

Average (mean)

Upper Quartile (75^th percentile)

2015

87.4%

93.4%

91.3%

96.4%

2016

88.1%

92.0%

90.8%

95.9%

2017

88.5%

93.4%

92.2%

97.3%

2018

82.8%

89.0%

88.1%

93.8%

2019

82.0%

89.0%

87.3%

92.7%

2020

81.4%

90.7%

88.3%

95.6%

2021

84.8%

90.9%

89.5%

95.2%

2022

85.2%

92.0%

89.9%

95.7%

2023

87.7%

94.4%

92.2%

97.9%

2024

87.7%

93.7%

92.1%

97.7%

2025

87.8%

93.4%

91.3%

96.9%

since the 114^th Congress and most recent action

(as of July 30, 2026, for legislation from the 119^th Congress)

since the 114^th Congress and most recent action

(as of July 30, 2026, for legislation from the 119^th Congress)

Congress

Legislation Number

Latest Title

Most Recent Action

119

H.Con.Res. 20

Establishing the Congressional Fitness Challenge, and for other purposes.

Referred to committee

119

H.R. 253

Bipartisan Restoring Faith in Government Act

Referred to committee

119

H.R. 2519

To provide a per diem allowance for Members of Congress for the costs of lodging, meals, and incidental expenses incurred because of travel to and from the Washington Metropolitan Area in order to cast votes in Congress, and for other purposes.

Referred to committee

119

H.R. 2642

Improving Veterans Access to Congressional Services Act of 2025

Referred to committee

119

H.R. 4036

No Shorting America Act

Referred to committee

119

H.R. 6731

Restore Trust in Government Act

Referred to committee

119

H.R. 7008

Stop Insider Trading Act

119

H.R. 7337

Make Congress Drive Union-Made Act

Referred to committee

119

H.R. 7852

No Getting Rich in Congress Act

Referred to committee

119

H.R. 8076

PREDICT Act

Referred to committee

119

H.R. 9222

Drain the Swamp Act

Referred to committee

119

H.R. 9358

Improving the Lives of the American People Act

Referred to committee

119

H.R. 9367

Stop Lawmakers From Predicting Act

119

H.R. 9429

The Public Service Accountability Act

Referred to committee

119

H.R. 9560

No Profiting from Public Service Act

Referred to committee

119

H.Res. 665

Providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 1908) to prohibit stock trading and ownership by Members of Congress and their spouses and dependent children, and for other purposes.

Referred to committee

118

H.R. 562

Improving Veterans Access to Congressional Services Act of 2023

Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Voice Vote and Placed on the Union Calendar

118

H.R. 1867

To provide for a limitation on availability of funds for Senate, Senators' Official Personnel and Office Expense Accounts for fiscal year 2024.

Referred to committee

118

H.R. 3003

Bipartisan Restoring Faith in Government Act

Referred to committee

118

H.R. 5772

No Work, No Pay Act

Referred to committee

117

H.R. 1078

Prohibiting Perks and Privileges Act

Referred to committee

117

H.R. 4471

Improving Veterans Access to Congressional Services Act of 2021

Referred to committee

116

H.R. 577

Prohibiting Perks and Privileges Act

Referred to committee

116

H.R. 1626

Public Service Spending Integrity Act

Referred to committee

115

H.R. 839

Public Service Spending Integrity Act

Referred to committee

115

H.R. 2951

To allow Members of Congress to carry a concealed handgun anywhere in the United States, with exceptions.

Referred to committee

115

H.R. 6640

Prohibiting Perks and Privileges Act

Referred to committee

114

H.R. 1873

Ending Special Mail Privileges for Congress Act

Referred to committee

114

H.R. 5741

Nonessential Government Printing Reduction Act of 2016

Referred to committee

Jane M. Wright, William T. Egar, Sarah J. Eckman, and Lara E. Chausow assisted in data collection and preparation of various versions of this report.

Footnotes

For a study of spending by Senators, see David C.W. Parker and Craig Goodman, "Our State's Never Had Better Friends: Resource Allocation, Home Styles, and Dual Representation in the Senate," Political Research Quarterly, vol. 66, no. 2 (June 2013), pp. 370-384. For a study of House Member spending, see David C.W. Parker and Craig Goodman, "Making a Good Impression: Resource Allocation, Home Styles, and Washington Work," Legislative Studies Quarterly, vol. 34, no. 4 (November 2009), pp. 493-524.

P.L. 100-137, Oct. 21, 1987, 101 Stat. 814, 2 U.S.C. §6313.

Available at http://www.rules.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=RulesOfSenateHome. In particular, Rule XXXVIII (Prohibition on Unofficial Office Accounts); Rule XLII (Employment Practices); and Rule XLIII (Representation by Members).

Guidelines from the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration may be found in the Senate Handbook, "Amendments to Regulations Adopted by the Committee on Rules and Administration," and other committee communications. For example, see Senator Schumer, "Amendments to Regulations Adopted by the Committee on Rules and Administration," Congressional Record, daily edition, June 12, 2012, p. S3970, which contains information on Senate Office Building regulations, including the smoking policy, building hours, and building admission.

Guidelines from the Senate Ethics Committee may be found in the Senate Ethics Manual, "Dear Colleague" letters, and other committee communications.

For example, the period of availability of funds is addressed in statute and discussed in GAO's Principles of Federal Appropriations Law, which states, "Pursuant to law, late-arriving bills may be paid for up to two years following the end of the fiscal year" (Chapter 5, Availability of Appropriations: Time, Page 5-76: http://www.gao.gov/special.pubs/3rdEditionVol1.pdf). See also 2 U.S.C. §4575, which addresses the "Gross rate of compensation of employees paid by Secretary of Senate," and 2 U.S.C. §4571, which addresses "Senate pay adjustments; action by President pro tempore of Senate." The latter authorizes the Order of the President pro Tempore, which establishes maximum and minimum rates of pay for employees within various categories of Senate offices.

2 U.S.C. §4108. P.L. 103-283, the FY1995 Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, amended this section to require summaries of each office's account, stating the total amount of appropriations made available or allocated to the office; any supplemental appropriation, transfer of funds, or rescission; total expenses incurred for salary and office expenses; and the unexpended balance. During consideration of the FY2010 legislative branch appropriations bill (H.R. 2918), the Senate agreed to an amendment, S.Amdt. 1369, offered by Senator Coburn, adding a provision to this section requiring the online publication of the reports in a "searchable, itemized format." The provision was subsequently included in the law enacted on October 1, 2009 (P.L. 111-68). Reports since the period covering April 1, 2011-September 30, 2011, are available at http://www.senate.gov/legislative/common/generic/report_secsen.htm.

Data exclude Senators who were not in office for the entirety of the fiscal year.

These include funds operated by the Senate Sergeant at Arms, including the Economic Allocation Fund (for information technology and other equipment), the Numeric Allocation Program (for telecom equipment) and the Constituent Service System Fund (hardware and software to support approved systems). Rental charges for home state offices are paid for by the Senate Sergeant at Arms. For information on authorization for procurement and payment of certain services, including home state office space and furniture, see 2 U.S.C. §6313 et seq.

P.L. 119-37, Title II, §212 provided the following in a general provision for Member protection: (1) $75.0 million for Senators' Official Personnel and Office Expense Account (SOPOEA), for security enhancements pursuant to S.Res. 294 (96^th Cong.) and S.Res. 413 (119^th Cong.); (2) $18.5 million for the Senate Sergeant at Arms for Member security programs, state office security, and residential security; and (3) $10.0 million for "miscellaneous items" related to security and continuity purposes.

Congressional Record, Nov. 9, 2025, p. S8081.

Congressional Record, Dec. 11, 2025, pp. S8665-8666.

Submitted testimony in Senate Appropriations Committee, Subcommittee on Legislative Branch, A Review of the Fiscal Year 2027 Budget Requests for the Senate Sergeant at Arms and United States Capitol Police, hearings April 22, 2026, https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/hearings/a-review-of-the-fiscal-year-2027-budget-requests-for-the-senate-sergeant-at-arms-and-united-states-capitol-police.

U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Legislative Branch, Legislative Branch Appropriations, 2026, report to accompany S. 2257, 119^th Cong., 1^st sess., July 10, 2025, S.Rept. 119-38 (GPO, 2025), pp. 28-29.

For example, "An Act for allowing full mileage to the members of the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States" was enacted on July 6, 1797 (1 Stat. 533, ch. 13).

Senators who were not chairmen of committees were first provided clerical assistance, at a rate of $6 a day when the Senate was in session, in 1884 (23 Stat. 249). Committees had previously been provided staffing assistance (an "act making appropriations for the legislative, executive, and judicial expenses of government for the year ending June 30, 1857" provided funding for "clerks to committees" and the Senate Finance Committee in particular [11 Stat. 103]).

June 14, 1948, ch. 467, 62 Stat. 425. See also former 2 U.S.C. §52 (repealed) for a list of additional laws.

P.L. 100-137, October 21, 1987, 101 Stat. 814, 2 U.S.C. §6313.

Prior to the 1987 legislation, funding for these items was contained within separate line-items for "administrative, clerical and legislative assistance to Senators" and "agency contributions," (both within the heading "salaries, officers and employees") and "official office expense allowances" (in the Senate appropriation account "Miscellaneous Items," under the heading "Contingent Expenses of the Senate"). The "administrative, clerical and legislative assistance to Senators" line-item was itself a consolidation, effective October 1, 1977, of two previously separate allowances, the Administrative and Clerical Assistance Allowance and the Legislative Assistance Allowance. See U.S. Congress, Senate, Committee on Appropriations, Legislative Branch Appropriations, 1978, report to accompany H.R. 7932. S.Rept. 95-338, 95^th Cong., 1^st Sess. (GPO: 1977); and P.L. 95-94, 91 Stat. 662-663, August 5, 1977. The Senate, in the early 1980s, also provided for limited transfer authority between the accounts (see former Section 2 U.S.C. §58b).

U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, Combining the Senators' Clerk Hire Allowance and the Senators' Official Office Expense Account into a Combined Single Account to be Known as the 'Senators' Official Personnel and Office Expense Account,' report to accompany S. 1574, 100^th Cong., 1^st sess., July 30, 1987, S.Rept. 100-134 (GPO, 1987).

The committee reports generally state: "It should also be noted that the figures in the following table are preliminary, and that official notification of member budgets is issued by the Financial Clerk of the Senate after enactment of this bill." For example, see U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations, Legislative Branch Appropriations, 2020, report to accompany S. 2581, S.Rept. 116-124, 116^th Cong., 1^st sess., (GPO, 2019), p. 24.

Agency contributions include any government contributions as an employer toward health and life insurance, retirement, and FICA. These contributions are funded in the SOPOEA account but separate from each Senator's individual authorization.

For example, see U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations, Legislative Branch Appropriations, 2020, report to accompany S. 2581, S.Rept. 116-124, 116^th Cong., 1^st sess., (GPO, 2019), p. 24.

For example, see the FY2010 Legislative Branch Appropriations Act (P.L. 111-68, Oct. 1, 2009, 123 Stat. 2026) and the FY2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act (P.L. 111-8, March 11, 2009, 123 Stat. 814). Additional adjustments authorized in the Order of the President pro Tempore. For additional adjustment information, including a history of adjustments in the appropriations acts and in the Orders, see notes accompanying 2 U.S.C. §4575. See also a general provision in P.L. 116-94 adjusting the maximum rates of compensation for certain congressional staff.

P.L. 76-641, June 18, 1940, 54 Stat. 464.

P.L. 90-57, July 28, 1967, 81 Stat. 141-144; 2 U.S.C. §4575. The Senate Appropriations Committee report from that year discusses the changes and contains a table for the allowances for the various population categories as well as has an "anticipated ... saving of approximately 3 percent, based upon a historic nonuse of all basic allowances by all Senators." (U.S. Congress, Senate Appropriations Committee, Legislative Branch Appropriations, 1968, report to accompany H.R. 10368, 90^th Cong., 1^st sess., June 29, 1967, S.Rept. 90-393 (GPO, 1967), pp. 5-8).

2 U.S.C. §4575.

S.Res. 60 (94^th Cong); P.L. 94-59 (July 25, 1975, 89 Stat. 274-5, 276-8); P.L. 95-26 (May 4, 1977, 91 Stat. 83); and P.L. 95-94, Aug. 5, 1977, 91 Stat. 662.

The debates on the establishment of the legislative assistance allowance provide a lengthy discussion of the appropriate means of providing Senators with support for their committee responsibilities as well as challenges. U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, Hearings on S.Res. 60 and S.Res. 110, Authorizing Each Member of the Senate to Employ Additional Assistants to Work on Matters Pertaining to Committees on Which Senators Serve, 94^th Cong., 1^st sess., April 30, 1975 and May 20, 1975 (GPO, 1975); U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, Additional Senate Committee Employees, report to accompany S.Res. 60, 94^th Cong., 1^st sess., June 5, 1975, S.Rept. 94-185 (GPO, 1975); "Additional Senate Committee Employees," Remarks in the Senate, Congressional Record, vol. 121, June 11, 1975, pp.18299-18408.

Originally proposed to assist Senators without access to significant committee staffing and resources, the legislative assistance allowance was reduced for any chair or ranking member of a full committee or subcommittee with control over funding for staffing in its earliest years. The distinction between committee leaders and other Senators, however, was suspended (S.Res. 85, §23 [99^th Cong.] and S.Res. 34 [100^th Cong.]) and then repealed with the enactment of the SOPOEA. This allowance is one of the three components of the SOPOEA, although the Senate Appropriations Committee reports accompanying the annual appropriations bills state, "that the amounts provided for the various components of the SOPOEA are interchangeable" (U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations, Legislative Branch Appropriations, 2020, report to accompany S. 2581, S.Rept. 116-124, 116^th Cong., 1^st sess., (GPO, 2019), pp. 24-25).

For example, mass mailings may not exceed $50,000 per fiscal year, and additional official mail regulations may be established in statute, regulations and rules of the Senate, the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, and the Senate Ethics Committee (FY1995 Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, P.L. 103-283, July 22, 1994, 108 Stat. 1427, 39 U.S.C. §3210).

U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Legislative Branch, Legislative Branch Appropriations, 2025, report to accompany S. 4678, 118^th Cong., 2^nd sess., July 11, 2024, S.Rept. 118-192 (GPO, 2024).

U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Legislative Branch, Legislative Branch Appropriations, 2026, report to accompany S. 2257, 119^th Cong., 1^st sess., July 10, 2025, S.Rept. 119-38 (GPO, 2025).

P.L. 97-51, 95 Stat. 966, September 11, 1981.

P.L. 114-113, December 18, 2016. A similar administrative provision was previously included in the Senate Appropriations Committee's reported version of the bill (H.R. 2250). Chapter 5, "Availability of Appropriations: Time" of the Government Accountability Office's Principles of Federal Appropriations Law provides some background information on Treasury operations and the treatment of closed appropriations: "We commonly talk about 'returning' appropriation balances to the Treasury. In point of fact, for the most part, they never leave the Treasury to begin with. An appropriation does not represent cash actually set aside in the Treasury. Government obligations are liquidated as needed through revenues and borrowing. Thus, the reversion of funds to the Treasury is not a movement of actual cash, but a bookkeeping adjustment that in the various ways discussed in the text, affects the government's legal authority to incur obligations and make expenditures." U.S. General Accounting Office, Principles of Federal Appropriations Law, Third Edition, vol. I, January 2004, https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-04-261sp.pdf, pp. 5-73. A similar administrative provision related to the Members' Representational Allowance (MRA)—which supports office operations for Members of the House—has been included in the House of Representatives section of the appropriations acts for many years. For additional information, see "Appropriations Acts: Administrative Provisions Related to Unexpended Balances" in CRS Report R40962, Members' Representational Allowance: History and Usage, by Ida A. Brudnick.

U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations, Legislative Branch Appropriations, 2026, report to accompany S. 2257, S.Rept. 119-38, 119^th Cong., 1^st sess., (GPO, 2025), p. 28.

Ibid.

P.L. 111-68, 2 U.S.C. §4108. Reports since the period covering April 1, 2011-September 30, 2011, are available at http://www.senate.gov/legislative/common/generic/report_secsen.htm.

The two-year period for late receipts for Congress is shorter relative to annual appropriations for much of the rest of the federal government, which is subject to a five-year period (31 U.S.C. §1551 et al.). This is discussed in the Government Accountability Office's Principles of Federal Appropriations Law. This publication states: "For appropriations of the House and Senate, unobligated balances more than two years old cannot be used short of an act of Congress. Instead, obligations chargeable to appropriations that have been expired for more than 2 years 'shall be liquidated from any appropriations for the same general purpose, which, at the time of payment, are available for disbursement.' 2 U.S.C. §102a." United States General Accounting Office, Principles of Federal Appropriations Law, Third Edition, vol. I, January 2004, http://www.gao.gov/special.pubs/3rdEditionVol1.pdf, pp. 5-76-5-77.