Oireachtas Expenses Reform Announced

The Dept of Finance tonight released new expense schedules for the Houses of the Oireachtas. They are taken from the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission proposals to the Minister for Finance.

Details of the new regime from the appendix below the fold:

Summary of the proposed new system of

Expenses Allowances for members of the Oireachtas

There will be two strands to the Parliamentary Standard Allowance as follows:

Ø Travel and accommodation allowance and

Ø Public Representation Allowance.

1 Travel and Accommodation Allowance

This will be a single amount covering the costs of travel to/from Leinster House, overnights where applicable and, in the case of TDs, constituency travel. The proposed annual amounts will vary depending on the distance of a residence from Leinster House.

Amounts to be paid

In the case of TDs, the amounts range from €12,000 per annum for Dublin Deputies to €37,850 for those living 360 km or more from Leinster House. Senators will be paid a reduced amount as there are no payments for constituency travel. The amounts will vary from €7,000 pa for Dublin based Senators to €32,850 pa for those 360km or more from Leinster House.

Verification by attendance

Payment of this allowance will be verified by attendance at Leinster House including attendance at Committees. 80% of the requisite 150 days (i.e. 120 days) will be the requirement for full payment. Where attendance is below this, members will have to make a refund of 1% of the allowance payable for each day below 120. Exceptions will be made for absences due to matters such as sick leave and foreign travel that preclude attendance.

2 Public Representation Allowance

The purposes for which this allowance may be used will include expenses related to constituency offices, mobile phones, home telephones, newspaper advertising, distribution of leaflets, newsletters, costs of relevant conferences and other engagements related to duties as a public representative, hire of rooms, replacement of equipment and web hosting and design. Expenses related to constituency offices and equipment will not apply to Senators; they may claim for newspaper advertising, distribution of leaflets, newsletters, hire of rooms and conferences and other engagements related to their duties as a public representative.

Amounts to be paid.

TDs may receive an un-vouched amount of €15,000 per annum or a fully vouched amount up to €25,700 per annum. Senators will have an un-vouched amount of €9,250 per annum and a vouched amount of up to €15,000 per annum.

Ministers will receive an un-vouched amount of €12,000 per annum or a fully vouched amount up to €20,000 per annum.

The one-off grant towards the cost of setting up a constituency office (€8,000) will be retained in the new system. This is not payable to Senators.

Verification

If a Deputy claims more than €15,000 (€9,250 for Senators) the amount claimed must be fully vouched. The claim may be subject to audit.

Audit

This applies to the Public Representation Allowance where a member claims above the unvouched limits. In these cases the member will be responsible for retaining all receipts and vouchers for inspection, if required. At least 10% of members may be audited each year.

Payment

The allowance will be paid monthly in arrears.

Provision of Pre-Paid Envelopes (Postal Facilities)

The limits for envelopes will be reduced from 1,750 to 1,500 in the case of TDs and to 1,000 in the case of Senators.

Secretarial Allowance

The existing options will continue to be available to members under this allowance, with the exception of the provision where Deputies can combine to employ a higher level staff member. The purposes for which the allowance may be used is being defined and will be confined to the purchase of secretarial assistance, public relations, information technology (but not web related) and training services from a person employed under a contract of service or the purchase of such services under a contract for service, including any applicable tax and social insurance costs.

Purchase of equipment or expenses for which the Public Representation Allowance is intended will not be allowable under the Secretarial Allowance.