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Coble Returns Funds for the 19th Consecutive Year

For the 19th year he has held the office, U.S. Rep. Howard Coble (R-NC), announced today that his office did not spend all of the funds allocated for the operation of his congressional offices last year. Congressman Coble said that his office returned $89,682.36 in unspent funds for 2003. For his entire congressional career, Rep. Coble has returned close to $800,000.

“We try to spend our taxpayers’ funds as judiciously as we do our personal funds,” Rep. Coble stated. “We attempt to spend only what is absolutely needed to operate our offices as efficiently as possible while serving the needs of the citizens of the 6th District of North Carolina. I am proud of the level of constituent service we have provided over the years, while at the same time not spending every dollar allocated to us. It is and will remain our goal to return funds every year.”

The budget allocated to Rep. Coble in 2003 was $1,170,251.00. With those funds, Congressman Coble maintained a fulltime staff of 16, eight in Washington and eight in North Carolina. Four of the district staffers work in the main office in Greensboro and there are four, one-person offices in Asheboro, Graham, High Point, and Salisbury.

Below is a listing of the amount of unspent funds each year Congressman Coble has been in office:

· 1985 $5,176.47

· 1986 $7,344.00

· 1987 $5,000.02

· 1988 $17,700.00

· 1989 $32,661.16

· 1990 $17,592.26

· 1991 $14,002.00

· 1992 $32,436.24

· 1993 $38,000.00

· 1994 $19,216.18

· 1995 $16,114.65

· 1996 $123,005.79

· 1997 $71,544.91

· 1998 $37,409.22

· 1999 $66,106.77

· 2000 $41,388.13

· 2001 $77,469.50

· 2002 $55,922.55

· 2003 $89,682.36

Total $767,772.21

Congressman Coble noted that each House member receives approximately the same amount of funds and that the only difference is a larger travel allowance for members from states distant from Washington. One way that Rep. Coble has been able to save funds is that for more than a decade he has refused to distribute any unsolicited mail such as newsletters and questionnaires and responds only to constituents who contact his offices.

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