Capitol Hill in Washington, July 23.

Capitol Hill in Washington, July 23.

Photo: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

The House returned to Washington last week following another virtual committee work period. But some representatives didn’t bother showing up. Members can still cast votes by proxy and attend hearings virtually, thanks to House protocols in place since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. This approach to House operations is ineffective and abused by members of both parties.

Several House Republicans, for example, used proxy voting so they could attend the Conservative Political Action Conference in February. House Democrats cast votes via proxy for activities like campaigning in the New York City mayoral primary and accompanying President Biden during his recent visit to Wisconsin.

Holding committee hearings virtually isn’t the best use of time. Hearings are frequently interrupted by technical difficulties or user error, causing routine meetings to drag on much longer than they would in person. As with proxy voting, members aren’t using virtual hearings as intended. One representative was spotted waking up from a nap in the middle of a hearing, while another participated from a boat.

Virtual work periods also force district employees to staff hearings, taking them away from their primary job responsibility of assisting constituents with federal agencies. Policy experts work in Washington offices, where these hearings should be taking place in person. When district employees staff a five-hour virtual hearing, that is a misuse of taxpayer resources.

Frequent misuse of the House’s coronavirus protocols comes at a time when millions of Americans are back in the office and the public-health threat is fading. Despite positive developments, the House is failing to join the rest of the country in getting back to normal. It is an insult to taxpayers every time a House member skips official duties in Washington to go do something else.

Exploitation of the House’s coronavirus protocols won’t stop unless the rules change so that members are expected to show up to work and do their jobs. Speaker Nancy Pelosi needs to take a step back, look at the rest of the country, and re-evaluate how she is running the House. Her next opportunity comes on Aug. 17, when the speaker should let proxy voting expire and force members to be in Washington for votes.

There are also 29 virtual committee workdays left in 2021. Mrs. Pelosi and her leadership team should give these 29 days back to the taxpayers by converting them to in-person, in-session voting days.

I didn’t run for Congress to sit on Zoom in my district office or to have one of my colleagues cast votes on my behalf. These often-abused protocols were implemented in response to a pandemic that is in retreat. It’s time for House members to stop using coronavirus as an excuse not to show up for work.

Mr. Burchett, a Republican, represents Tennessee’s Second Congressional District.

Paul Gigot interviews Dr. Marty Makary of Johns Hopkins. Photo: Getty Images The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition