§ 59. Home State office space for Senators; lease of office space
(a)
Procurement by Sergeant at Arms of Senate in places designated by Senator; places subject to use; lease of office space
(1)
The Sergeant at Arms of the Senate shall secure for each Senator office space suitable for the Senator’s official use in places designated by the Senator in the State he represents. That space shall be secured in post offices or other Federal buildings at such places. In the event suitable office space is not available in post offices or other Federal buildings, the Sergeant at Arms shall secure other office space in those places.
(2)
The Senator may lease, on behalf of the United States Senate, the office space so secured for a term not extending beyond the term of office which he is serving on the first day of such lease, except that, in the case of a Senator whose term of office is expiring and who has been elected for another term, such lease may extend until the end of the term for which he has been so elected. Each such lease shall contain a provision permitting its cancellation upon sixty days written notice by the Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper of the Senate, in the event of the death or resignation of the Senator. A copy of each such lease shall be furnished to the Sergeant at Arms. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to require the Sergeant at Arms to enter into or execute any lease for or on behalf of a Senator.
(b)
Maximum amount of aggregate square feet for each Senator
The aggregate square feet of office space secured for Senator shall not at any time exceed—
(c)
Maximum annual rental rate; maximum aggregate amount for acquisition of furniture, equipment, and other office furnishings
(1)
The maximum annual rate that may be paid for the rental of an office secured for a Senator not in a post office or other Federal building shall not exceed the highest rate per square foot charged Federal agencies on the first day of the lease of such office by the Administrator of General Services, based upon a 100 percent building quality rating, for office space located in the place in which the Senator’s office is located, multiplied by the number of square feet contained in that office used by the Senator and his employees to perform their duties.
(2)
The aggregate amount that may be paid for the acquisition of furniture, equipment, and other office furnishings heretofore provided by the Administrator of General Services for one or more offices secured for the Senator is $40,000 if the aggregate square feet of office space is not in excess of 5,000 square feet. Such amount is increased by $1,000 for each authorized additional incremental increase in office space of 200 square feet. Effective beginning with the 106th Congress, the aggregate amount in effect under this paragraph for any Congress shall be increased by the inflation adjustment factor for the calendar year in which the Congress begins. For purposes of the preceding sentence, the inflation adjustment factor for any calendar year is a fraction the numerator of which is the implicit price deflator for the gross domestic product as computed and published by the Department of Commerce for the preceding calendar year and the denominator of which is such deflator for the calendar year 1998.
(d)
Senators subject to maximum amount of aggregate square feet and maximum annual rental rate
(1)
Notwithstanding subsection (b) of this section, the aggregate square feet of office space secured for a Senator who is a Senator on July 1, 1974, shall not at any time exceed, as long as he continuously serves as a Senator, the greater of—
(f)
Mobile office
(1)
Subject to the provisions of paragraphs (2), (3), (4), and (5), a Senator may lease one mobile office for use only in the State he represents and the contingent fund of the Senate is available for the rental payments (including by way of reimbursement) made under such lease together with the actual nonpersonnel cost of operating such mobile office. The term of any such lease shall not exceed 3 years. A copy of each such lease shall be furnished to the Sergeant at Arms of the Senate.
(2)
The maximum aggregate annual rental payments and operating costs (except furniture, equipment, and furnishings) that may be paid to a Senator under paragraph (1) shall not at any time exceed an amount determined by multiplying
(A)
the highest applicable rate per square foot charged Federal agencies by the Administrator of General Services in the State which that Senator represents, based upon a 100 percent building quality rating, by
(B)
the maximum aggregate square feet of office space to which that Senator is entitled under subsection (b) of this section reduced by the number of square feet contained in offices secured for that Senator under subsection (a) of this section and used by that Senator and his employees to perform their duties.
(3)
No payment shall be made under paragraph (1) for rental payments and operating costs of a mobile office of a Senator unless the following provisions are included in its lease:
(A)
Liability insurance in the amount of $1,000,000 shall be provided with respect to the operation and use of such mobile office.
(B)
Either of the following inscriptions shall be clearly visible on three sides of such mobile office in letters not less than three inches high:
“UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT VEHICLE
“FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY”;
Or
“MOBILE OFFICE OF SENATOR XXXXX
“FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY”.
The Committee on Rules and Administration of the Senate may prescribe regulations to waive or modify the requirement under subparagraph (B) if such waiver or modification is necessary to provide for the public safety of a Senator and the Senator’s staff and constituents.
(4)
No payment shall be made under paragraph (1) for rental payments and operating costs of a mobile office of a Senator which are attributable to or incurred during the 60-day period ending with the date of any primary or general election (whether regular, special, or runoff) in which that Senator is a candidate for public office, unless his candidacy in such election is uncontested.