Rigell's Ethics Rules Adopted by House

Press Release

Today the House of Representatives passed H.Res. 5, the rules of the House for the 114th Congress, that included language offered by Representative Scott Rigell (VA-02) to require ethics training for all new Members within their first 60 days in office. The rule brings the House of Representatives in line with the Senate, which requires ethics training for new Senators.

"A top priority of mine is to change the institution of Congress and, importantly, help restore the public's faith and trust in Congress," Rigell said. "This new rule is a step in the right direction, and I appreciate House leadership incorporating it into our rules for the new session."

Prior to the adoption of the rules, Members of the House of Representatives were not required to receive any ethics training, despite a recent rise in ethics violations. According to the Washington Post, since 2008, the number of disciplinary actions taken by the House Ethics Committee against Members of Congress has quadrupled.

Last year Representative Scott Rigell (VA-02) and Democrat Representative David Cicilline (RI-01) introduced the Ensuring Trust and Honorability In Congressional Standards (ETHICS Act), to make continuing ethics training mandatory for all lawmakers. The New York Times recently ran an op-ed by Rigell and Cicilline urging House leadership to address this oversight.

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