House members, particularly Democrats, are spending more of their official budgets on security since the Jan. 6 insurrection, according to a LegiStorm review of spending data.
Democrats spent nearly $713,000 last year on expenses explicitly described as security-related, a 64 percent increase from 2020 spending and an 11 percent increase from 2019 spending.
Republicans, on the other hand, spent a little more than $223,000 last year on the same type of expenses, a 38 percent increase from 2020 spending and an 11.5 percent increase from 2019 spending.
Overall, Democrats accounted for 76 percent of the expenses described as security-related in 2021, continuing their trend of consistently outspending Republicans in this area since 2016, when the spending data became more easily compared.
These expenses were ones explicitly labeled as a "security expense". They likely represent only a fraction of all official security-related spending by members, as some members even have staff on their payroll who handle security.
Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.) spent the most of any member, with nearly $79,000, or 30 percent of all expenses except payroll, being paid to the Department of Homeland Security.
The top-spending Republican, and the only Republican among the top 10 spenders, was Rep. Roger Williams (R-Texas). He spent more than $53,000, or 16 percent of all expenses except payroll, on security to Sentry Security & Investigations LP.
Reports suggest that the number of threats against members doubled in 2021 compared to 2020. Shortly after the Jan. 6 attack, members were reminded that "the purchase of a bulletproof vest is a reimbursable expense." In March 2021, the FEC ruled that members can use campaign funds to hire personal protection, among other security-related expenses. Such campaign expenses are not included here.
