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Butterfield says he will cooperateFrom Staff Reports From Staff Reports Wed Sep 08, 2010 TARBORO — U.S. Rep. G.K. Butterfield, D-1st District, is one of several congressmen under investigation for allegedly misusing their travel allowances. Congressmen receive per diem for overseas travel. Because “foreign officials or U.S. ambassadors” often pick up the tab for federal lawmakers, members sometimes keep the difference, according to a report published Aug. 31 in The Wall Street Journal. “Lawmakers routinely keep the extra funds or spend it on gifts, shopping or to cover their spouses’ travel expenses, according to dozens of current and former lawmakers,” the newspaper reported. However, no system exists for lawmakers to return excess per diem funds to the government, the Journal reported, and investigators might conclude the standards need to be clarified. Butterfield, an attorney and judge from Wilson, has said he would cooperate with the investigation. His office has issued the following statement regarding the OCE inquiry: ”The Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) contacted me seeking information related to per diem used on a Congressional delegation trip. “I informed OCE that the funds were spent on legitimate travel expenses and that if any funds went unspent, they were nominal. I also informed OCE that I had received a per diem on the trip but did not maintain detailed records, because it is not required. ”While State Department guidelines do not require detailed accounting, the OCE apparently does not share that opinion and has forwarded the matter to the Ethics Committee. I have complied with the requests of OCE and will comply with any other request from the Ethics Committee” The investigation comes on the heels of calls by his Republican opponent Ashley Woolard for Butterfield to return $4,000 in campaign donations from a political action committee of embattled Rep. Charlie Rangel, D-N.Y. Butterfield has declined to do so or recluse himself from an investigation by the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct (the ethics committee) of Rangel. Butterfield is one of 10 members of that committee. Last week, Woolard called on the congressman to resign. “Citizens of the First District need honest leadership that will help our struggling economy, not another greedy politician feeding at the public trough as our economy burns,” Woolard stated. Butterfield is one of six congressmen who have been contacted by the ethics committee for an investigation into how members of Congress use travel funds, according to The Wall Street Journal story. Joe Wilson R-S.C.; Rep. Solomon Ortiz, D-Texas; Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Ala.; and Former Rep. Mark Souder, R-Ind.; also have been contacted by the OCE for various violations including keeping leftover funds or spending the funds on unapproved items. Butterfield, who serves on the ethics committee, said funds issued to him were spent on legitimate travel expenses. Any unspent funds, Butterfield said, were nominal. The per diems, which range from about $25 a day to $250 a day depending on the cost of living in the country where the Congress member is traveling, are for travel costs like meals and transportation. In January, Butterfield faced criticism for spending $4,406 for food and lodging at a five-star hotel while attending climate-change talks in Denmark. Butterfield said that lawmakers weren’t aware of the costs prior to the trip and that House leaders made the travel arrangements. Butterfield, 63, has been in office since winning a special election in July 2004 to fill the unexpired term of Frank Ballance, who resigned for health reasons before going to prison. Butterfield is one of President Obama's most loyal supporters in Congress, voting with the Democratic leadership 96 percent of the time, making him one of the most liberal members of Congress. |
