The PledgePending · On Deck
Five-Year Lobbying Cooling-Off for Former Members
This is a research page. Bill numbers belong to the 119th Congress and expire when the 120th Congress is seated in January 2027.
What this plank asks for
Congress passes a law that makes a former member of Congress wait 5 years before working as a lobbyist. The wait today is 1 year for former House members and 2 years for former senators. The plank covers members only. It leaves out staff and a lifetime ban.
A lifetime ban is a different policy. It draws First Amendment objections, and we found no admitted pollster that asked about it. It stays out of this plank.
Where it stands
PENDING (On Deck)
Zero of the 3 required pollsters on the Qualifying Pollster List have a counting poll on the question. Two polls asked about a five-year wait since 2022. One comes from the University of Maryland Program for Public Consultation. Its last data deposit with the Roper Center was in 2015, so the Qualifying Pollster List does not admit it. The other comes from Change Research, which holds a C+ grade. The list requires a B. Two planks on the slate, congressional term limits and a binding Supreme Court ethics code, are fully qualified today.
What moves it: three admitted pollsters asking about a five-year cooling-off for former members, with party crosstabs.
The evidence
| Pollster | Fieldwork | Question asked | National | Republicans | Democrats | Independents | Counts toward the test |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Change Research | Aug 8-13, 2026 | Support or oppose "prohibiting former members of Congress from becoming lobbyists for at least five years after leaving office" (release wording) | 88% | 90% | 88% | 83% | No, pollster not admitted |
| Program for Public Consultation, Univ. of Maryland | June 13-29, 2022 | "Extend the period former Members of Congress must wait before working as a lobbyist from 1-2 years to 5 years" (rated 0 to 10, share rating it 6 to 10) | 67.1% | 65.7% | 73.3% | 57.2% | No, pollster not admitted |
| Program for Public Consultation, Univ. of Maryland | Sept 7-Oct 3, 2017 | Extend the member wait from 2 to 5 years (release summary) | 77% | 80% | 73% | Not reported | No, pollster not admitted |
| Rasmussen Reports | July 28-29, 2011 | Members should be banned from lobbying for five years after they leave office (release summary) | 71% | Not published | Not published | Not published | No, 15 years old, context |
The test needs the median of admitted polls to reach 70% nationally and 60% in each party. No row counts, so no median exists. A counting poll needs fieldwork on or after October 16, 2025 under the recency rule. The newest poll was fielded in August 2026, and its pollster is not admitted.
Two cautions. "At least five years" covers any longer term, so the Change Research item does not separate a five-year wait from a lifetime ban. The Maryland poll gave respondents a briefing before it asked.
The five tests
- Consensus: PENDING. Zero of 3 admitted pollsters have asked about a five-year wait.
- Action: PASS. The wait is set by federal statute, so Congress can change it with a bill.
- Outcome: PASS. The result is checkable. The law reads 5 years for former members.
- Grading: PASS. Every lever is a recorded vote or a signature. No floor vote can be graded until a five-year bill exists.
- Single-Subject: PASS. One outcome. Staff and a lifetime ban are not in it.
In Congress right now
No bill in the 119th Congress sets the member wait at exactly five years. Every bill below sits in committee with no hearing or vote. A bill that bundles other outcomes would be labeled TAINTED under the cleanliness rule. The label speaks to whether votes can be graded, not to the merit of the added material.
- H.R. 358. Introduced Jan 13, 2025. 2 cosponsors. Latest action: referral to committees on Jan 13, 2025. Sets 6 years for senators and 3 years for House members. Status: no determination yet. Read under the cleanliness rule, it would be TAINTED. Title III repeals automatic pay adjustments, quoted as "Eliminating Member COLA." Expires January 2027.
- H.R. 9822. Introduced Jul 21, 2026. 0 cosponsors. Latest action: referral to committees on Jul 21, 2026. Sets 10 years. Status: no determination yet. Read under the cleanliness rule, it would be TAINTED. Sec. 3 reads "a Member of Congress may not accept compensation as a Federal contractor for the 10-year period that begins on the date that the Member leaves office." Expires January 2027.
- Lifetime ban bills: S. 4524 (introduced May 13, 2026, 1 cosponsor), H.R. 9130 (Jun 3, 2026, 4 cosponsors), H.R. 3554 (May 21, 2025, 7 cosponsors), S. 1850 (May 21, 2025, 0 cosponsors), and H.R. 2624 (Apr 3, 2025, 1 cosponsor). Each sets a lifetime ban, which this plank excludes. Status: no determination, because the bills do not carry the plank. Each expires January 2027.
Bill numbers above belong to the 119th Congress. They expire when the 120th Congress is seated in January 2027. The plank does not.
How signers would be graded
A member is graded only on levers the member holds.
- House: a discharge petition signature, rules votes and previous-question votes that decide whether a bill reaches the floor, the floor vote, and committee votes where recorded.
- Senate: cloture votes, the floor vote, and unanimous consent conduct. This plank has no confirmation standard.
The passage bar is a simple majority in the House. The Senate needs 60 votes to end debate, then a simple majority to pass. The president must sign the bill. No lever can be graded until a five-year bill exists in the 120th Congress.
Lines of attack and our answers
"Your newest poll shows 88%. Why not count it?" The pollster holds a C+ grade and the list requires a B. The rule is published. The poll sits in the table as context until an admitted pollster asks.
"Bills say 3, 6, 10 years or life. Which one is the plank?" The plank is five years. A bill with another number is not the plank, and the grade says so.
"Why not a lifetime ban?" It is a different policy. It draws First Amendment objections. We found no admitted pollster that asked about it. A voter can nominate it through the public form at any time.
"Ethics bills die at 60 votes." A stock trading bill failed a Senate cloture vote 53 to 47 on September 30, 2026. The pledge asks for a recorded vote on a clean bill. The grade records how each member used the levers that member holds.
"This is a messaging vote." A recorded floor vote ends that question. Every member's vote goes on the public record.
Sources
- Change Research release: changeresearch.com
- Program for Public Consultation release, 2022: publicconsultation.org
- Program for Public Consultation questionnaire with party breakouts, 2022: vop.org
- Program for Public Consultation release, 2017: publicconsultation.org
- Rasmussen Reports, 2011: rasmussenreports.com
- Congress.gov: congress.gov
- Congress.gov: congress.gov
- Congress.gov: congress.gov
- Congress.gov: congress.gov
- Congress.gov: congress.gov
- Congress.gov: congress.gov
- Congress.gov: congress.gov
- Congress.gov page for the stock trading bill: congress.gov
Last updated October 19, 2026. Criteria version: Draft 3, ratified October 16, 2026.