Senate Admits to Paying $1.5 Million for Harassment

The Senate quietly released a bare-bones report late Thursday on what a statement called “harassment settlement” data, showing that nearly $1.5 million in taxpayers’ money has been spent over the past two decades to cover claims against lawmakers and other Senate offices.

The two-page release contained no names of senators or victims. It said $599,000 was for 13 settlements involving “member-led” Senate offices, while the remaining $853,000 was for 10 settlements involving “other” Senate offices.

The Senate’s Rules and Appropriations committees released the information on the evening of Congress’ final work day this year. It came during a period that has seen several lawmakers resign or announce their retirements following sexual harassment accusations, and growing condemnation for the secrecy with which Congress has guarded information about such cases.

While the release called the information “harassment settlement data,” none of the terse descriptions of each case used those words. Four of the cases involved sex discrimination, including two that also involved “reprisal,” while most of the rest were for race, age or disability discrimination. (Read more from “Senate Admits to Paying $1.5 Million for Harassment” HERE)

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