The House effectively bottled up an attempt to force the release of sexual harassment claims against lawmakers after bipartisan leaders of the House Ethics Committee publicly condemned the effort led by Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.).
Ethics Chair Michael Guest (R-Miss.) and ranking member Mark DeSaulnier (D-Calif.) said in a joint statement that the effort would “chill” victims’ and witnesses’ cooperation.
Her resolution would also have forced the Ethics panel to share its records on cases where a lawmaker had a relationship with a subordinate — as Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) faces a probe over allegations that he had a romantic relationship with one of his staffers.
“Victims may be retraumatized by public disclosures of interim work product, excerpts of interview transcripts, and certain exhibits,” the two Ethics leaders said. “And witnesses, who often only speak to the Committee confidentially or on condition of future anonymity, could fear retaliation if their cooperation is made public.”
The House voted 357-65 to refer the resolution to the Ethics Committee, where it is almost certain to die given the top leaders’ opposition. House GOP leaders had also privately urged members to oppose Mace’s campaign.
“It’s shameful,” Mace said in an interview after the vote. She separately posted to X, “Both parties colluded today to protect predators. … The establishment always protects itself, never the victims.”
Later Wednesday, Mace forced a vote during a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing Wednesday to subpoena the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights for records about sexual harassment awards and settlements under the Congressional Accountability Act, which protects employees who work for the legislative branch.
That effort was successful, after striking a compromise with Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the panel, to limit her subpoena to only members of Congress; her original effort had included staffers, as well. Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) secured an additional caveat to ensure information related to payouts for congressional aides would also be released.
The subpoena will cover records before 2018, allows for redactions for alleged victims and witnesses. The House approved a measure in 2018 that forced lawmakers to pay for their own harassment settlements.
Meredith Lee Hill contributed to this report.
