Hill Gift Limits Often Exceeded, Lobbyists' Records Show

Through a Pelosi spokeswoman, Jimenez said she was a personal friend of Coronado, the BellSouth lobbyist who feted her most often, and is not in danger of exceeding the official limits. Still, the spokeswoman said Pelosi's office was reviewing the Jimenez entries, which included 17 events between March and November that totaled $505.

One reason so many people might have breached the rule is that eating and drinking in the capital can be expensive. "In Washington, D.C., there's no such thing as a reasonable restaurant," said Rep. Gonzalez, who contends that the seven meals for $406 attributed to him and guests were listed in error.

The document also gives a glimpse into the ways that lobbyists cement "friendships" with congressional staff members through corporate-paid schmoozing. Tasha Cole, senior adviser to Rep. Kendrick Meek (D-Fla.), said she met BellSouth lobbyist Lyndon K. Boozer three years ago when she got her current job and now considers him a close friend. She and her circle spend a lot of time socializing with Boozer. Although she said that the entries exaggerate the frequency of their encounters, the BellSouth document says that she and the lobbyist ate together five times in June alone for a total of $172.

The spreadsheet also shows how difficult categorizing such gifts can be. Jim McCray, general counsel to Sen. Conrad Burns (R-Mont.), is listed as having been entertained by BellSouth lobbyist Ward White four times between April and October for a total of $102. But McCray is also an officer of Burns's reelection campaign and White a member of Burns's National Finance Steering Committee, and so, according to a Burns spokesman, the encounters might also be counted as business not directly related to Congress and therefore potentially outside of the gift rules.

Such distinctions are rarely parsed. In the main, the gift limit operates on the honor system. The policy is not routinely policed by any agency outside or inside Congress, nor are lobbyists or congressional officials required to disclose the gifts of meals, tickets for sporting events and the like while they are in Washington. "Repeated violations could be handled by the ethics committees but there are no cases that come to mind," said Kenneth A. Gross, an ethics lawyer at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom.

That may soon change. One new lobbying proposal by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) would make lobbyists report gifts of more than $20 given to a member of Congress or staffers. Another plan by Sen. Russell Feingold (D-Wis.) would bar registered lobbyists from giving any gifts to lawmakers or their aides.

Lawmakers and outside observers agree that the more waves created by the scandals instigated by lobbyist Jack Abramoff, the more likely an overhaul of lobbying disclosure laws will become.

For now, some lawmakers and their aides flit nightly from one lobbyist-paid event to another and often have trouble keeping account of how much has been expended on their behalf. Michael Sullivan, senior adviser to Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) on technology issues, makes many visits with lobbyists for high-tech firms. According to the BellSouth document, he was entertained by the firm's lobbyists 19 times between March and November for a total tab of $629.

Jack Finn, a spokesman for Ensign, said that the tech aide is much in demand around town. "Sully is one of the best-known tech staffers on Capitol Hill. It's not unusual for him to go to two or three events a night and stay maybe an hour, or maybe two or three minutes at each," Finn said. Finn said that Sullivan disagrees with BellSouth's accounting, including one $25.43 dinner at Bobby Van's Steakhouse that Sullivan said he paid for himself.

Still, Finn added, the office is "looking into" the situation and pledges that Sullivan will pay back any amount in excess of the gift limitation.