WASHINGTON — At least 39 members of Congress have engaged in the controversial practice of paying their spouses, children or other relatives out of campaign funds, or have hired companies in which a family member had a financial interest, records and interviews show.
House campaign funds have paid more than $3 million to lawmakers' relatives over the last two election cycles, records show.
The practice is not illegal but has come under new scrutiny following reports that House Majority Leader Tom DeLay's wife and daughter had received hundreds of thousands of dollars since 2001 from his political action and congressional campaign committees. It also comes after disclosures that relatives of members of Congress have been hired by special interests as lobbyists or consultants.
Lawmakers are barred from putting relatives on their congressional payrolls, but they can pay them to work on their campaigns as long as the family member does bona fide work and isn't paid significantly more than the market rate.
The bipartisan practice has been increasingly criticized by government watchdogs and members of Congress.
"Instinctively, it doesn't pass the smell test for me, and I don't think it would for my constituents," said Rep. Ray LaHood (R-Ill.). LaHood said he had never employed relatives and thought the practice was wrong.
"Public service should not be a way to build a family fortune," said Celia Wexler, vice president for advocacy at Common Cause.
Many lawmakers who have hired relatives say their motivation is confidence, not profit.
"I need a campaign manager I can trust," said Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Huntington Beach), whose wife, Rhonda, is now paid $40,000 a year to run his campaign. Over the last four years, she has received $114,894, records show.
DeLay, a Texas Republican, has defended the payments to his wife, Christine, and his daughter, Danielle DeLay Ferro, saying his family members provided valuable service to his campaign. They received $473,801 over the last two election cycles, records show.
His daughter has managed some of his recent congressional campaigns and has worked as a fundraiser for his political action committee, and his wife provides "strategic guidance" for the political action committee.
The Times developed a list of names of relatives and businesses owned by relatives on campaign payrolls from interviews, news accounts and personal financial disclosure reports. Campaign reports do not have to disclose whether recipients of funds are related to a candidate, so The Times' list is most likely incomplete.
