More than $300,000 in confidential sexual harassment settlements involving six former House members or their offices was paid with taxpayer money, according to Politico.
Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., told Politico that taxpayers had to pay more than $338,000 over the course of about 20 years. The Office of Congressional Workplace Rights gave the records to the House Oversight Committee after they were served with a subpoena related to a March vote that wanted additional information about past payments.
According to documents, the offices named include those of former Reps. Eric Massa, D-N.Y.; John Conyers, D-Mich.; Blake Farenthold, R-Texas; Patrick Meehan, R-Pa.; Carolyn McCarthy, D-N.Y.; and Rodney Alexander, R-La.
Mace also identified an $8,000 settlement from McCarthy’s office and a $15,000 payment from Alexander’s office, Politico reported. Alexander told Politico the complaint involved a former staffer who was later fired.
A former McCarthy aide did not respond to a request for comment, according to the report. McCarthy died last year.
Mace said she wants to release the records after personally identifiable information for victims and witnesses is properly redacted.
“Accountability is not a threat,” Mace said. “It is a promise.”
The Office of Congressional Workplace Rights said it approved 349 awards or settlements from Jan. 1, 1996, to Dec. 12, 2018, to resolve complaints against legislative branch offices, CNN reported, citing a letter sent to House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky.
Of those cases, 80 involved House or Senate offices for various reasons. Seven led to payments tied to sexual harassment allegations, according to CNN’s account of the records.
CNN reported that the settlement language did not require the accused offices to admit wrongdoing. The agreements said the offices settled to avoid the burden and cost of prolonged litigation.
Politico reported that the newly identified payout total is roughly double what lawmakers were told in 2017.
Congress changed the system in 2018 after scrutiny of taxpayer-funded settlements. The House Ethics Committee has said the 2018 Congressional Accountability Act Reform Act requires member reimbursement and publication of sexual harassment awards or settlements paid from a Treasury fund.
The committee said it has not been notified of any such awards or settlements since the law took effect.
Former Reps. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., and Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, resigned from Congress on April 14, 2026, according to the House Clerk. Their resignations followed separate sexual misconduct allegations, according to news reports.
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