BOISE - Some Idaho officials said Tuesday that reforms, additional oversight and education may be in order after a pair of legislators billed taxpayers an extra $6,400 apiece for a second residence this year - while one sleeps on his law office couch and the other says he stays at his parents' home.

Idaho legislators received nearly $1 million in per diem payments in 2011, money with no public scrutiny over how it's spent. What's more, lawmakers concede they don't exactly know the rules governing how much per diem they should get.

William "Bud" Yost, a Nampa attorney who sits on the biennial citizens panel that advises Idaho's Legislature on compensation, said the current system is intended to make sure out-of-town lawmakers from distant cities don't face financial hardship due to housing expenses.

But Sen. John McGee, of Caldwell, whose home is 26 miles away from the Capitol, claims a second-residence per diem while staying with his parents.

And Sen. Curt McKenzie, of Nampa, who lives 20 miles away, takes the extra cash but sleeps on his law office couch. McKenzie also improperly received mileage reimbursements, The Associated Press found; he said Monday he'll return $2,402 to the state.

The two Republicans' living arrangements - as well as confusion over just who is entitled to get $122 a day - are signs that the compensation commission should address the issue when it meets again in September 2012, Yost said.

"It was not a perk," he said. "It's always been there to offset a legitimate expense. It would be reasonable for the committee to review it."

"I think if you're going to be claiming a second-residence (per diem), you should be paying for or renting a second residence," said Sen. Jim Hammond, R-Post Falls, who pays $800 monthly for a town home in Boise during the session.

Sen. Steve Vick, R-Dalton Gardens, was unfamiliar with the situation.

"I guess people need to follow the rules," he said.

Vick was housed for the session in a Boise condo at a rent of $1,100, he added.

"For those of us who live clear up here, you have to rent a place. You don't have any choice," he pointed out. "I expected that. I knew what I was getting paid, and I'm content with it."

Rep. Frank Henderson, R-Post Falls, said he didn't know the details of McKenzie's living arrangements.

But he respects the senator, he said.

"I know him to be an honorable young man. He's in the Senate, and is a young attorney," Henderson said.

Henderson rented an apartment for $1,100 a month during the session, he said. He's fairly certain the daily reimbursement has balanced his various expenses.

"I've never kept close track on it, but I've never felt it was a burden," he said.

Idaho's part-time legislators without a second residence are entitled to payments of $49 per day, on top of a $16,116 salary and a $1,875 expense account. These lawmakers can also get mileage reimbursements for travel between their homes and the Capitol.

Those lawmakers who claim a second residence in Ada County can get $122 per diem, an additional payment that must be approved by House and Senate leaders. They don't get mileage.

Combined, these payments amounted to some $941,000 for all 105 lawmakers for the 88-day 2011 legislative session.

The per diem is an "unvouchered expense allowance," meaning lawmakers don't have to account for how they spend the money.

A survey shows they spend it in a variety of ways.

Rep. Kathleen Sims, R-Coeur d'Alene, recalled paying for an expensive rental close to the capitol during her three months there, she added, but feels the $122 compensation is fair.

"Maybe we'd spend more if we were home, but they keep you busy, so it's OK," she said. "Just so you get your work done and you get out of there on time."

Hill, the Senate leader, said lawmakers like McGee and McKenzie followed the law when they claimed a second residence, entitling them to more money regardless of where they were actually sleeping.

But Hill added elected officials must judge for themselves what is the right thing to do because they are being held to a higher standard by a watchful public.