Trent Lott: “S. Res. 67 concerns a civil action commenced in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado by…”

“S. Res. 67 concerns a civil action commenced in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado by Representative Bob Schaffer and three other individuals against the President of the United States, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of the Senate, and the Clerk of the House, seeking judicial intervention in the payment of salaries to Members of both Houses. The action seeks declaratory and injunctive relief against the operation of the Ethics Reform Act of 1989, which provides for the automatic adjustment of the compensation of Members of Congress on an annual basis to reflect changes in employment costs in the preceding year, as calculated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is the same annual cost-of-living adjustment paid to Federal judges and senior executive branch officials and is timed to coincide with the annual January 1 adjustment of the general civil service schedule. The issue presented in this action was the subject of a lawsuit brought in 1992 by another Member of the House of Representatives, who sought unsuccessfully to enjoin the 1993 congressional COLA, based on the then newly-ratified 27th Amendment. This resolution authorizes the Senate Legal Counsel to represent the Secretary of the Senate and to seek dismissal of this action in order to defend the Secretary's ability to continue to carry out his duty under the law to disburse congressional compensation payable pursuant to the Constitution and Federal statute.”