WASHINGTON ( CNN ) -- Once he roamed the streets , moving from shelter to shelter . Now , Oliver Gomes rubs shoulders with Washington 's elite . Oliver Gomes says working in the halls of Congress gave him the motivation and money to get off the streets . Squatting next to a white wall outside a Senate hearing room recently with a cell phone glued to his ear , Gomes is being paid to hold a place in line for a lobbyist at a hearing on the climate-change bill . Gomes -- 6 feet tall , with long curly hair pulled back , wearing a polo shirt and shorts -- is one of the contracted men and women holding places in line for this hearing . Many have been waiting since midnight to ensure their clients a seat . By 9 a.m. , more than 100 people are lined up for the hearing . Only 10 seats are available to the public , and the first 10 spots are held by line-standers . The rest are shut out . Though the practice is controversial , Gomes said it has lifted him from life on the street . `` Sitting in the halls of Congress made me feel a little better , '' he said . `` It elevated me and made me feel like , well , you know , maybe I do belong here , maybe I can contribute even at that little minute level . '' Watch Gomes tell his story » . As the need for couriers on Capitol Hill declined with e-mail and fax , courier services like Quick Messenger Service of DC , Inc. have added the service of contracting men and women to hold places in line for lobbyists at hearings . The seats are valuable to lobbyists because the hearing is often their only face time with legislators . For big hearings with limited availability , line-standers may wait 20 to 30 hours . They 're paid anywhere from $ 11 to $ 35 an hour . Gomes was living in a shelter when he started line-standing . He said working in the halls of Congress gave him the motivation and money he needed to get off the streets . He now makes extra money by recruiting men for the line-standing services from the homeless shelters where he used to stay . `` When I was down and out and I was on the Hill and I had that little bit of hope that while I was actually here , it gave me the incentive to dress a little better , more professional , '' Gomes said . Many of the contracted line-standers are homeless or formerly homeless like Gomes . Williams Howard Johnson Jr. , one of Gomes ' recruits , found his bright yellow button-down shirt , green patterned tie , and slacks at a donation center because he wanted to dress well for his job . `` That comes from being a part of something that 's really meaningful to not only me but to society , '' Johnson said . Johnson was among those who had been in line since midnight for the 10 a.m. climate-change bill hearing , but he said he was happy to be there . `` I 'm a part of something today and I 'm very happy about that , '' Johnson said . Although Johnson and Gomes are glad to have a job and a feeling of importance on Capitol Hill , many people are opposed to the practice of hiring line-standers . Kalen Pruss , a fellow at the Internet environmental group avaaz.org , and her group of cheering green T-shirted environmentalists were shut out of the hearing . `` It 's very unfortunate that the people who come here to line-stand always beat us here cause they can stand here all night , '' Pruss said . John Winslow , director of linestanding.com , said the committees might be creating the lines by limiting the number of seats for the public in the hearing rooms . At this hearing , some of his clients that paid for line-standers to wait at midnight were not able to get into the hearing . `` It 's really a question of logistics , how many people does the committee want to service , '' Winslow said . `` And it seems like overwhelmingly they try to limit the number of people who attend these hearings and that just drives up demand artificially . '' Critics see the practice as just another way lobbyists are buying influence on Capitol Hill . In 2007 , Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri introduced legislation to ban the practice of line-standing . `` I have no problem with lobbyists being in hearings , but they should n't be able to buy a seat , '' McCaskill said . `` It seems to me that if we are going to make sure lobbyists are n't buying meals for senators , and we are going to make sure lobbyists are n't buying elected officials gifts , then we ought to make sure they are n't buying seating at a public hearing . '' Maria Foscarinis , an advocate for the homeless , thinks it 's ironic that some of the most powerful people in the country are using some of the most vulnerable to hold a place in line for them . `` They 're likely to be standing in line for people who well may be opposed to universal health care that would be a benefit for poor and homeless people , '' Foscarinis said . `` And yet they may be standing there for the purpose of access for the interests that are opposed to their own . ''
Contracted line-holders stand for hours to ensure their clients get seats . Seats at hearings often only chance for lobbyists to get face time with legislators . Line-standers , some homeless , are paid anywhere from $ 11 to $ 35 an hour . Critics see practice as another way lobbyists are buying influence on Capitol Hill .