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Rep. Nancy Mace Releases Names From Congressional Sexual Misconduct Settlements

South Carolina Republican Rep. Nancy Mace said she obtained more than 1,000 pages of records from the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights through a subpoena. The documents detail settlements totaling more than $338,000 paid with taxpayer funds over a 10-year period ending in 2017. Mace shared the names of eight former members of Congress and one congressional office involved in the cases.

ABC News
1 source·May 6, 8:39 PM(7 days ago)·3m read
Rep. Nancy Mace Releases Names From Congressional Sexual Misconduct SettlementsABC News
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South Carolina Republican Rep. Nancy Mace said she has obtained records through a congressional subpoena that show settlements for sexual misconduct and harassment cases paid with taxpayer funds totaled more than $338,000 over a 10-year period. The documents cover cases from 2007 through 2017 handled by the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights.

A letter sent to the House Oversight Committee states that many additional records on the subject have been destroyed. Mace shared the names of eight former members of Congress and the office of one former member shortly after receiving the documents on Monday.

None of those named currently hold public office. The disclosures provide details on how the legislative branch has addressed sexual harassment complaints in the past. The settlements were paid through the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights Section 415 fund, authorized by the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995.

In a post on X, Mace shared an image of a binder she said contained the records. She said she will release the documents after reviewing them to ensure sensitive information about victims is redacted.

Among those named by Mace were former Rep.

, former Rep. , former Rep. , and former Rep. Carolyn McCarthy, D-N.Y. McCarthy faced a settlement of $8,000 in 2009 for her office related to mistreatment involving a consensual sexual relationship between an aide and a senior staffer as well as allegations of discrimination based on sex and disability and reprisal.

For Conyers, a $50,000 payment was made in 2010 over allegations he made advances on a staffer. Four years later, another case involving hostile workplace, sexual harassment, age discrimination and reprisal resulted in a $27,111.75 payout. Meehan had two cases involving alleged sexual harassment, with a severance pay period listed at $39,250.

Meehan confirmed to ABC News that he repaid the full settlement amount within 30 days of leaving Congress. Alexander faced an allegation tied to a consensual sexual relationship with a staffer prior to her employment that resulted in mistreatment and firing.

The payout was listed at $15,000. Alexander stated that the settlement was the result of the behavior of two staffers in his office, both of whom were terminated immediately after an investigation. He said no allegation was made against him personally.

Three cases involving former Rep. Eric Massa, D-N.Y., resulted in settlements totaling $115,000. An attorney for Massa said in 2017 that the former congressman had no knowledge of the payments. Former Rep. Blake Farenthold, R-Texas, was linked to an $84,000 settlement from a 2014 complaint.

Farenthold said in 2018 he had no intention of repaying it. He resigned in 2018 and died last year.

The records for nine cases were provided to Mace and the House Oversight Committee on Monday as an initial production in response to a subpoena. A letter signed by John N. Ohlweiler, general counsel at the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights, and sent to the committee on April 24 presented statistical information on cases from Jan.

1, 1996, through Dec. 12, 2018. The letter states that the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights approved a total of 349 awards or settlements to resolve complaints against legislative branch offices. Of those, 80 were settled by the office of a member of the House of Representatives or the office of a senator.

The letter explained the office's process for identifying cases involving allegations of member misconduct, particularly sexual misconduct or sexual harassment, that resulted in awards or settlements. Ohlweiler's letter noted that the Congressional Accountability Act Reform Act of 2018 requires the office to maintain a program for permanent retention of records.

The office's current policy calls for digital preservation of records from all filed cases. A source familiar with the document production confirmed that the names listed by Mace appear in the records provided.

Key Facts

$338,000
total value of listed sexual misconduct settlements over 10 years
1,000 pages
of records obtained by Rep. Nancy Mace from OCWR
349 awards
total OCWR settlements for legislative branch complaints 1996-2018
80 settlements
involved offices of House members or senators
Nine cases
provided in initial response to House Oversight Committee subpoena

Story Timeline

4 events
  1. April 24, 2026

    Office of Congressional Workplace Rights general counsel sent letter to House Oversight Committee with statistical information on past cases.

    1 sourceABC News
  2. April 30, 2026

    Subpoena deadline for document production set by House Oversight Committee.

    1 sourceABC News
  3. May 5, 2026

    Office of Congressional Workplace Rights provided initial records covering nine cases to the committee.

    1 sourceABC News
  4. May 6, 2026

    Rep. Nancy Mace publicly shared names of eight former members and one office from the documents.

    1 sourceABC News

Potential Impact

  1. 01

    Rep. Nancy Mace plans to release redacted versions of the obtained documents to the public.

  2. 02

    House Oversight Committee may request and review additional records from the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights.

  3. 03

    Public discussion of past congressional workplace settlements paid with taxpayer funds is likely to continue.

  4. 04

    Former members named in the records have issued statements addressing or confirming the settlements.

Transparency Panel

Sources cross-referenced1
Confidence score65%
Synthesized bySubstrate AI
Word count644 words
PublishedMay 6, 2026, 8:39 PM
Bias signals removed3 across 2 outlets
Signal Breakdown
Loaded 1Framing 1Editorializing 1

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