The Digital File Cabinet: House and Senate File Ethics Disclosures

Members of Congress in the House and Senate, candidates for federal office, senior congressional staff, nominees for executive branch positions, Cabinet members, the president and vice president and Supreme Court justices are required by the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 to file annual reports disclosing their personal finances. Compliance and enforcement of this requirement is overseen by the congressional ethics committees, the ethics offices of government agencies and, in the case of executive branch officials, the U.S. Office of Government Ethics.

These disclosures include financial forms, gift and travel filings, post-employment lobbying restrictions, and more. It’s a lot of disclosure information, and oftentimes, some disclosures must be filed in person rather than online. 

The following outlines the major types of information that must be reported on personal ethics disclosures, as well as if the information is publicly available online, in person, or both.

House Report Type	Available Online or Offline?	Senate Report Type	Available Online or Offline?
Financial Disclosure Forms and Reports	Both	Gift and Travel Disclosure	Both
Gift and Travel Filings	Both	Post Employment Restrictions on Lobbying	Both
Foreign Travel Reports and Expenditures	Both	Lobbying Disclosure	Both
Post Employment Lobbying Restrictions Database	Both	Personal Financial Disclosure	Both
Lobbying Disclosure Filing	Both	Post Employment Negotiation Conflict Forms for Members	Both
Lobbying Contribution	Both	Post Employment Negotiation Conflict Forms For Staff	Both
Franking Commission (Mass Mailings)	Both	Political Fund Activity Designees	Both
Legal Expense Fund Disclosures	Offline	Foreign Travel	Both
Statement of Recusal Arising from Negotiations for Future Employment for Members of Congress	Offline	Campaign Financial Disclosure	Both
Notification of Negotiations or Agreement for Future Employment	Both	Foreign Agents Registrations Act	Both
Statement of Recusal Arising from Negotiations for Future Employment for Congressional Staff	Offline	Semiannual Statement of Expenditures	Both
Federal Election Campaign Reports	Both	Mass Mailings/Franking	Offline
House Ethics Committee Reports	Online	Agreements to Comply with Code of Official Conduct	Offline
		Supervisor’s Report on Individuals who Perform Senate Services	Offline
		Legal Defense Funds	Offline
		Post Employment Negotiation Conflict Forms For Staff	Not Publicly Available

You can view the complete spreadsheet containing comprehensive information on all House and Senate ethics disclosures, including what must be filed, where they can be filed, who files them, and additional requirements for filing: