LegiStorm

Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) has added a lobbyist to his legislative team.

Kevin Swanson is now an LA handling Young's labor, transportation and infrastructure portfolios.

He comes from Michael Best Strategies, where he spent the last four years as a senior associate. His most recent lobbying contracts there included work for a crude-oil-pipeline company and a number of agricultural businesses. He's also worked for Dutko Government Relations.

Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) has chosen a lobbyist to lead his office.

Chris Del Beccaro, now McCaul's chief of staff, comes from Card & Associates, where his lobbying clients included the Kellogg Co., vaping and e-cigarette manufacturer NJOY and the Greater New York Hospital Association.

Prior to his time on K Street, Del Beccaro worked for ex-Reps. Dan Donovan (R-N.Y.) and Jeff Denham (R-Calif.).

Two former GOP congressmen registered as lobbyists in the last week.

Ex-Rep. John Culberson (Texas) is working through Clark Hill on behalf of ColorTokens, a cybersecurity company, and Shipcom Wireless, a supply-chain tech company, according to a pair of recent disclosures. Culberson, who lost his 2018 reelection bid, joined the Clark Hill's government and public affairs practice group last spring.

Ex-Rep. Pat Meehan (Pa.), who left Congress mid-2018 after ackowledging that he had used taxpayer funds to settle a sexual harrassment claim, registered as a lobbyist on tariff issues for Almo Corp. The Pennsylvania wholesaler was one of the congressman's largest campaign donors, and the company's president and vice president previously maxed out their contributions to Meehan's reelection efforts.

Two Democratic representatives are on pace to overspend their 2019 office budgets, according to a new LegiStorm breakdown of member expenses.

Rep. David Scott (Ga.) tops the ranks with 50.45 spent in the first half of the year. The average representative spent 40.95 percent of her or his budget during that same time period. Scott has already spent nearly a tenth of his total annual budget on printing and franking alone — a common strategy to reach constituents. The average representative has spent less than one percent of her or his office budget on constituent outreach.

Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.) follows Scott with 50.04 percent of her budget gone, thanks mainly to her office's high travel expenses. Official expense books do not detail where Wilson's office traveled to rack up nearly $46,000 in taxpayer travel expenses in six months. But the spending includes roughly $23,000 on commercial transportation, $6,000 on car rentals and $2,000 on taxis, parking and tolls.

Although Democrats and Republicans have spent nearly identical portions of their budgets on average, Democrats hold the top seven spending spots. In addition to Scott and Wilson, Democratic Reps. Robin Kelly (Ill.), Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.), Lloyd Doggett (Texas), Darren Soto (Fla.) and Adam Schiff (Calif.) are the remaining top spenders.

After a year-long stint on K Street, a former Senate aide has returned to the Hill.

Melanie Lehnhardt Brown has joined Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.) as a policy adviser handling tax, financial services and small business issues.

She most recently worked as director of government relations and public affairs at Monument Advocacy, where her lobbying clients included the U.S. Travel Association and the Anti-Defamation League. She previously worked for now-retired Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.).