Part of: The House Ethics reimbursement investigation (2025-2026) · House Ethics Committee Investigation of Rep. Nancy Mace (OCC Review 25-5681)
House votes 357-65 to block Mace's push to release congressional harassment settlement records
Rep. Nancy Mace's H.Res. 1100 sought to force the release of records on taxpayer-funded sexual-harassment settlements paid on behalf of House members. The House voted 357-65 on March 4, 2026 to refer the resolution back to the Ethics Committee, shelving it. Mace's own office was later subpoenaed in May 2026 by the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights, which disclosed over $300,000 in settlements.
On March 4, 2026, the same day her House Oversight Committee pushed through two separate subpoenas related to the Epstein files, Rep. Nancy Mace's effort to pull back the curtain on a different set of congressional secrets hit a wall on the House floor.
H.Res. 1100 and the vote. Mace had introduced H.Res. 1100 to compel the release of records from the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights (OCWR), the body that administers taxpayer-funded settlements of sexual-harassment complaints against House members. The resolution sought transparency about how much public money had been paid out, and to whom. On March 4, 2026, the full House voted 357-65 to refer the resolution back to the House Ethics Committee, a procedural move that effectively shelved the effort, according to Roll Call's Nina Heller. Members of both parties voted to table it, drawing Mace's characterization that both sides were protecting their own.
Mace's position. Mace framed her push in accountability terms, characterizing the bipartisan vote to kill her resolution as an effort by "both parties to keep congressional misconduct hidden from taxpayers." Her office issued a statement after the vote saying members chose "secrecy over transparency."
The subpoena twist. The episode carried a notable irony: in May 2026, the OCWR itself subpoenaed Mace's congressional office in connection with harassment-related proceedings. Roll Call and other outlets reported that the subpoena disclosure revealed more than $300,000 in settlements connected to Mace's office. Mace's office disputed characterizations of those proceedings.
A separate strand. This records-push effort is distinct from the OCC's reimbursement investigation (Review No. 25-5681), which concerns lodging expenses and was also active during this period. Both are cataloged as part of the broader ethics record. The House Ethics Committee has made no finding of a violation in either matter; both remain subjects of ongoing review or proceedings.
Sources: Roll Call, Nina Heller (Mar. 4, 2026) · mace.house.gov, statement after House vote · House Ethics Investigation · Ethics Investigation hub
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