Personnel, Office Expenses, and Mail Allowances
for U.S. Senators
Senators’ Official Personnel and Office Expense Account
(SOPOEA)
The Senators’ Official Personnel and Office Expense Account (SOPOEA) is available to assist
Senators in their official and representational duties.23 The SOPOEA has three components: the
administrative and clerical assistance allowance; the legislative assistance allowance; and the
official office expense allowance. The administrative and clerical assistance allowance and the
office expense allowance vary among Senators since they are governed by state population,
distance from Washington, DC, to home states, and committee authorized limits. The legislative
assistance allowance is the same amount for all Senators.
The total amount available in each SOPOEA is the sum of the two personnel allowances
(administrative and clerical assistance and legislative assistance) and the office expense
allowance. The three components result in a single SOPOEA authorization for each Senator that
can be used to pay for any type of official expense. For example, each Senator can choose how
much to allocate to travel versus personnel or supplies, although additional limits pertain to
spending on franked mail. Mass mailings may not exceed $50,000 per fiscal year,24 and the
Senate Committee on Rules and Administration may issue additional official mail regulations.25
The SOPOEA is funded within the “Contingent Expenses of the Senate,” account in the annual
legislative branch appropriations bills. The preliminary list of total office allowances contained in
the Senate report accompanying its version of the FY2014 legislative branch appropriations bill
(S.Rept. 113-70) shows a range of $2,960,743 to $4,685,316, depending on the state.26 The
average allowance is $3,209,992.27
This appropriations account has decreased in recent years, from $422.0 million in FY2010 to
$396.2 million in FY2012. Additionally, the FY2011 Continuing Appropriations Act, P.L. 112-
10, enacted on April 11, 2011, stated that “each Senator’s official personnel and office expense
allowance (including the allowance for administrative and clerical assistance, the salaries
allowance for legislative assistance to Senators, as authorized by the Legislative Branch
Appropriation Act, 1978 (P.L. 95-94), and the office expense allowance for each Senator’s office
for each State) in effect immediately before the date of enactment of this section shall be reduced
by 5 percent.”
23 P.L. 100-137, Oct. 21, 1987, 101 Stat. 814, 2 U.S.C. 58c.
24 FY1995 Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, P.L. 103-283, July 22, 1994, 108 Stat. 1427, 39 U.S.C. 3210.
25 Ibid., p. 21.
26 Total obtained from U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations, Legislative Branch Appropriations, 2014,
report to accompany S. 1283,113th Cong., 1st sess., S.Rept. 113-70 (Washington: GPO, 2013), p. 22. The Senate reports
on the legislative branch bill generally provide preliminary information on the allocation for Senators from each state.
27 CRS calculation based upon state totals for all 100 Senators. Data provided in the Senate report are preliminary and
do not include any supplementals, transfers, or rescissions.
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The SOPOEA is available only to support each Senator’s official duties and may not to be used to
defray any personal, political, or campaign-related expenses. Senators are responsible for the
payment of any expenses that exceed the allowance.
Official Office Expense Allowance Component of the SOPOEA
One component of the SOPOEA is the office expense allowance. The amount of this component
varies for each Senator depending on the distance between Washington, DC, and the home state,
the population of the state, and the official (franked) mail allocation. Requirements on the use of
the frank, including mass mailings, are established in statute, regulations and rules of the Senate,
the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, and the Senate Ethics Committee. According
to preliminary figures in S.Rept. 113-70, the FY2014 office expense allowance component of the
SOPOEA ranges from $121,049 to $453,828, although all components are interchangeable.28
Administrative and Clerical Assistance Allowance Component of the SOPOEA
The administrative and clerical assistance allowance component of the SOPOEA is allocated
according to the population of a Senator’s state. The FY2014 Senate report (S.Rept. 113-70)
included preliminary allowance figures that varied from $2,361,820 for a Senator representing a
state with a population under 5 million to $3,753,614 for a Senator representing a state with a
population of 28 million or more.29 All components of the SOPOEA are interchangeable.
Legislative Assistance Allowance Component of the SOPOEA
According to the FY2014 Senate report (S.Rept. 113-70), the legislative assistance component of
the SOPOEA is $477,874,30 although all components of the SOPOEA are interchangeable.
Online Publication of Disbursement Records
All SOPOEA expenditures are required to be published in the semiannual Report of the Secretary
of the Senate.31 The report is available at
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/common/generic/
report_secsen.htm.
28 Ibid., p. 22.
29 Ibid.
30 Ibid., and Order of the President pro tempore, implementing a pay increase for Senate employees, effective January
1, 2009, issued March 12, 2009; and Order of the President pro tempore, implementing a pay increase for Senate
employees, effective January 1, 2010, issued January 5, 2010 (contained in 2 U.S.C. 60a-1 and available at
http://uscode.house.gov).
31 P.L. 111-68, October 1, 2009, 123 Stat. 2026, 2 U.S.C. 104a.
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Other Allowances
Office Space in States, including Mobile Office Space
Each Senator is authorized office space in federal buildings in the state he or she represents. In
the event suitable office space is not available in a federal building, other office space may be
secured. The cost of private space is not to exceed the highest rate per square foot charged by the
General Services Administration (GSA).32 The aggregate square footage of office space that can
be secured for a Senator ranges from 5,000 square feet, if the population of the state is less than 3
million, to 8,200 square feet, if the state’s population is 17 million or more.33 There is no
restriction on the number of offices.
Each Senator may lease one mobile office for use only in the state he or she represents, subject to
limitations on the terms of the lease, the maximum annual rental payment, and reimbursable
operating costs. No payment may be made for expenses incurred during the 60 days preceding a
contested election.34
Furniture and Furnishings in Washington, DC
Each Senator is authorized furniture and furnishings from an approved list. Furniture and
furnishings are supplied and maintained by the Architect of the Capitol (for spaces in Senate
office buildings) and the Senate Sergeant at Arms (for offices in the Capitol). Additional
furnishings can be purchased through the Senate stationery store.
Furniture and Furnishings in State Offices
Each Senator is authorized $40,000 for state office furniture and furnishings for one or more
offices, if the aggregate square footage of office space does not exceed 5,000 square feet. The
base authorization is increased by $1,000 for each authorized additional incremental increase in
office space of 200 square feet.35 Pursuant to the FY2000 Legislative Branch Appropriations Act,
this allowance automatically increases at the beginning of each Congress to reflect inflation.36
The aggregate dollar amount is the maximum value of furniture and furnishings to be provided by
GSA for state office use at any one time. Furniture and furnishings remain GSA property.
Office Equipment in Washington, DC, and State Offices
Each Senator may use certain basic office equipment allocated in accordance with the population
of the state he or she represents and other factors that have been established by the Senate
Committee on Rules and Administration.
32 2 U.S.C. 59(c).
33 2 U.S.C. 59(b).
34 2 U.S.C. 59(f).
35 2 U.S.C. 59(c)(2).
36 P.L. 106-57, 113 Stat. 412, September 29, 1999; 2 U.S.C. 59(c)(2).
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Government Publications
Each Senator is entitled to receive certain government publications and printed products. These
include, for example, copies of the daily Congressional Record, one copy of Deschler’s
Precedents, various manuals and directories, and public document franked envelopes.
