Congress to make members pay out of pocket for sexual harassment settlements
6 replies, posted
https://www.npr.org/2018/12/12/676209258/congress-to-make-members-pay-out-of-pocket-for-sexual-harassment-settlements
Congressional negotiators have reached an agreement to overhaul the system for handling accusations of sexual misconduct against members, including a requirement that members
pay out of pocket for some settlements and court judgments.
"For too long, victims of sexual harassment in Congress have been forced into a process that lacks transparency and accountability, and fails them at a time when they need the most
support," said Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., a lead negotiator on the bill. "Our bipartisan, bicameral legislation — which we expect to pass in the coming days — will overhaul this broken
process, ensure victims can immediately seek justice, and hold Members of Congress accountable."
The deal comes after nearly a year-long standoff between the House and the Senate over member liability and other issues in the bill. Senate Rules Committee Chairman Roy Blunt,
R-Mo., the chief GOP negotiator in the Senate, says he expects the bill will pass the Senate this week to ensure staff is better protected when a new Congress begins in January.
"We'll do it as quickly as we can," Blunt said. "No other employer in America would deal with this issue this way. We have here a level of exposure that you wouldn't have if you worked
anywhere else."
Blunt says the bill is a compromise between the House legislation, which would have made members liable for all settlements, and the Senate bill, which included caps on how much
members would have to pay out of their own pockets.
Under the new rules, member liability would be capped in cases where a court assesses damages, but there would be no cap when cases end in settlements, Blunt said. Currently
settlements are paid through taxpayer-funded accounts members use to pay for office salaries and expenses.
Watch them step it up from mere sexual *harassment* to full on sexual *assault* as a loophole to use taxpayer-funded accounts again.
Why could you ever use public money for this, it seems absolutely insane
imagine getting sexually assaulted/raped, and then your tax money is used to pay the legal fees of your attacker.
like i get for the past few decades. Shit like this has gotten better in terms of reporting this shit happening. But my god this country is still fucking insane when it comes to sexual harassment issues.
there's a general fund for defending against civil suits, there just weren't limits covering this stuff.
Politicians think they don't have to play by the same rules as everyone else. And sadly, for the most part they're correct about that.
So if you want the truth about your sex pest behaviour being covered up you have to cough up the cash instead of the tax payer? Sounds good to me, but it's how it should have been to begin with.
Surely if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to worry about in court, right? :^)
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