Lobbyist Paid for Democrat's 2001 Trip

Stephanie Tubbs Jones, an Ohio Democrat who sits on the House ethics committee, took a 2001 trip to Puerto Rico that was paid for by a registered lobbyist firm — an apparent violation of the chamber's ethics rules — according to documents that she filed with the House clerk.


A spokeswoman for Mrs. Jones disputed those records yesterday, saying "human error" led a staffer to list the name of D.C. lobbyist firm Smith, Dawson & Andrews as having paid the $3,366 tab for Mrs. Jones and her husband to travel to the Puerto Rican island of Vieques in the Caribbean.


Smith Dawson was put on the form in error," Jones spokeswoman Nicole Williams said. "The invitation came from Todo Puerto Rico con Vieques. They hired Smith Dawson to handle logistics for the trip." Miss Williams declined to provide The Washington Times with any evidence to support her assertion and refused to have either the lobbying firm or the group she says actually paid for the trip provide any documentation to prove her claim.


In addition to the travel disclosure form, which was filed two weeks after Mrs. Jones' return and bears her signature, the lobbyists also were listed as the trip's sponsor in the financial disclosure forms she signed and filed at the end of the year.

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