“I am strongly committed to bringing real and meaningful ethics reform to Congress,” said Ross, Blue Dog Co-Chair for Communications. “This is an issue that is important to the American people, and I am confident that we will pass legislation which will ensure honesty, transparency and accountability in the nation’s Capitol.”

The House Ethics Commission Establishment Act would create an independent Ethics Committee comprised of 12 former Members of Congress – six Republicans and six Democrats – who are not federal lobbyists.  This Commission will have the authority to investigate complaints of possible ethics violations by Members of Congress, and present those findings and suggested penalties to the U.S. House of Representatives. The House would then vote on the Commission’s recommendation.  Any disciplinary actions suggested by the Ethics Commission must receive a majority vote by the full membership of the U.S. House in order to take effect.

H.R. 1754 is currently pending before the House Rules Committee.

The conservative Blue Dog Coalition was formed in 1995 with the goal of representing the center of the House of Representatives and appealing to the mainstream values of the American public.  The Blue Dogs are dedicated to a core set of beliefs that transcend partisan politics, including a deep commitment to the financial stability and national security of the United States. Currently there are 44 members of the Blue Dog Coalition.

Ross has been a member of the fiscally conservative Democratic Blue Dog Coalition since he was first elected to represent Arkansas’s Fourth Congressional District in Congress in 2000.  He currently serves as Co-Chair for Communications and is one of four elected leaders of the Coalition.

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