The Post reported yesterday that Rangel had flouted rules barring the storage of vehicles for more than 45 days and requiring all cars to have license plates and a valid House parking sticker.

"The new information about Chairman Rangel taking advantage of taxpayers to illegally store his vintage luxury car is appalling, mostly because it is part of a pattern - a pattern of Chairman Rangel abusing his public position for personal gain," said House GOP leader John Boehner's spokesman, Michael Steel.

Ken Spain, press secretary for the National Republican Congressional Committee, said, "In a way, this latest revelation is symbolic of how Charlie Rangel and the Democrat-led Congress have chosen to conduct themselves."

"Rangel continues to openly thumb his nose at the law while remaining parked atop the most powerful committee in Congress. The 'most ethical congress in history' continues to embarrass itself."

In addition to breaking House rules, Rangel's storage of his car may add to his already serious tax problems.

A House Web site on parking regulations informs anyone with a space that, under IRS regulations, the benefit of the free parking is considered "imputed income" and must be declared to the government.

The site says the spaces are valued by the House at $290 per month - about the cost of leasing a space in a private DC-area garage - and $100 of that is deemed taxable.