{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://lance.house.gov/newsroom/press-releases/lance-bill-ends-taxpayer-funded-cover-ups-of-sexual-harassment", "Lance Bill Ends Taxpayer-Funded Cover Ups of Sexual Harassment", "2017-11-29", "2017", "2017-11", "Republican", "House", "NJ", "Leonard Lance", "L000567", "lance.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, D.C. --- \u00a0Congressman Leonard Lance (NJ- 07), New Jersey\u2019s only member of the House Ethics Committee, introduced legislation today to end taxpayer-funded settlements of sexual harassment claims and other workplace disputes against members of Congress and congressional staff. \u00a0Lance\u2019s bill would also reveal publicly the names of those perpetrators who have engaged in such conduct in the workplace.\n\u201cTaxpayers in congressional districts across the Nation are outraged over\u00a0allegations and the lack of transparency and accountability concerning taxpayer-financed harassment settlements in Congress. \u00a0Since 1997, Congress has paid millions of dollars out of a secret U.S. Treasury Department fund to settle hundreds of workplace claims against members of Congress and congressional aides. \u00a0Such secrecy is a gross betrayal of public trust and must end immediately. \u00a0My legislation, if enacted, would increase government transparency for the American taxpayer, create a safer work environment and hold members of Congress and congressional staff \u2014 past and present \u2014 accountable for their actions,\u201d Lance said.\nLance\u2019s\u00a0Ensure Transparency and Honesty in Congressional Settlements\u00a0(ETHICS) Act comes following news reports of millions of dollars in taxpayer-funded settlements to resolve workplace disputes on Capitol Hill. \u00a0The Seventh District lawmaker introduced this legislation on the same day the U.S. House unanimously passed legislation to mandate sexual harassment training and victim support services in Congress.\nOver the past several weeks, numerous individuals from all walks of life have voiced their stories of sexual harassment. \u00a0A number of these allegations are tied to members of Congress, both past and present. \u00a0According to the\u00a0congressional Office of Compliance, the federal government has paid more than $17 million in taxpayer money in workplace settlements since 1997, but has not said how much of that money has been spent settling sexual harassment claims.\u00a0\nLance\u2019s ETHICS Act would:\n1. Prohibit any future taxpayer-financed sexual harassment settlements;\n2. Require the Office of Compliance to\u00a0release more detailed information on sexual harassment settlements paid at taxpayer expense, including the names of the perpetrator, the employing office of the perpetrator and the amount paid to the victim. \u00a0\u00a0\nLance also spoke on the floor of the U.S. House during the debate on the resolution requiring workplace harassment training for members and staff where the Seventh District lawmaker urged his colleagues to address the problem on Capitol Hill immediately.\n\u00a0\u201cCongress should be leading on this issue, helping to foster a workplace environment free of sexual harassment, discrimination and other terrible behavior.\u00a0 Congress must create an atmosphere where those who serve their country feel protected, supported and believed \u2013 no matter the power of the offender,\u201d the Seventh District lawmaker said.\n\u00a0In the news:\nGOP rep: Taxpayer money should not pay for settlements\nThe Hill\n\u00a0Rep. Leonard Lance (R-N.J.) on Wednesday said that taxpayer money should not be used to pay sexual harassment settlements for members of Congress, adding that he would back a measure that would make individual congressional offices pay settlements themselves.\n\"I believe transparency is the best way to proceed regarding these matters,\"\u00a0Lance\u00a0said on CNN's \"New Day.\" \"I was not even aware of this.\"\nPressed by CNN's Chris Cuomo on whether he believed taxpayer funds should be used to cover the costs of sexual misconduct settlements involving lawmakers and their staffers, Lance bluntly replied, \"no.\"\nCuomo then asked if he would support a measure that would require those payments to come out of congressional office coffers, to which Lance replied, \"yes.\"\nLance's comments come as a growing number of powerful men in politics, business, media and beyond face allegations of sexual impropriety and harassment, particularly against female employees and co-workers.\nSome lawmakers, including Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.), have blasted the process by which congressional staffers can report misconduct by lawmakers, saying it lacks transparency and revealing that settlement money comes out of a Treasury fund. They have introduced legislation to change that process.\u00a0\nOn Tuesday, Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), the longest-serving current congressman, became the subject of allegations that he made inappropriate and unwanted sexual advances and remarks to former female staffers.\nIt was revealed that he had settled a wrongful dismissal complaint in 2015 with a former employee who alleged he fired her because she would not \"succumb to [his] sexual advances.\"\nSen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) has also faced allegations of sexual misconduct.\nLast week, a Los Angeles morning show host accused the comedian-turned-senator of forcibly kissing and groping her in 2006. And this week, another woman alleged that Franken had groped her while the two were taking a photo together in 2010.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://lance.house.gov/newsroom/press-releases/lance-bill-ends-taxpayer-funded-cover-ups-of-sexual-harassment"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.472138101235032, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}