Sec. 111. Requiring Members of Congress to reimburse Treasury for amounts paid as settlements and awards in cases of acts by Members
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Section 415 ( 2 U.S.C. 1415 ) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: Subject to subparagraphs
(B)and (D), if a payment is made from the account described in subsection
(a)for an award or settlement in connection with a claim alleging a violation described in subparagraph
(C)committed personally by an individual who, at the time of committing the violation, was a Member of the House of Representatives (including a Delegate or Resident Commissioner to the Congress) or a Senator, the individual shall reimburse the account for the amount of the award or settlement for the claim involved. In the case of an award made pursuant to a decision of a hearing officer under section 405, or a court in a civil action, subparagraph
(A)shall apply only if the hearing officer or court makes a separate finding that a violation described in subparagraph
(C)occurred which was committed personally by an individual who, at the time of committing the violation, was a Member of the House of Representatives (including a Delegate or Resident Commissioner to the Congress) or a Senator, and such individual shall reimburse the account for the amount of compensatory damages included in the award as would be available if awarded under section 1977A(b)(3) of the Revised Statutes ( 42 U.S.C. 1981a(b)(3) ) irrespective of the size of the employing office. In the case of a settlement for a claim described in section 416(d)(3), subparagraph
(A)shall apply only if the conditions specified in section 416(d)(3) for requesting reimbursement are met. A violation described in this subparagraph is— harassment that is unlawful under section 201(a) or 206(a); or intimidation, reprisal, or discrimination that is unlawful under section 207 and is taken against a covered employee because of a claim alleging a violation described in clause (i). If an award or settlement is made for multiple claims, some of which do not require reimbursement under this subsection, the individual described in subparagraph
(A)shall only be required to reimburse for the amount (referred to in this Act as the reimbursable portion ) that is— described in subparagraph (A), subject to subparagraph (B); and included in the portion of the award or settlement attributable to a claim requiring reimbursement. For purposes of carrying out subparagraph (B), the applicable Committee shall establish a timetable and procedures for the withholding of amounts from the compensation of an individual who is a Member of the House of Representatives or a Senator. The payroll administrator shall withhold from an individual’s compensation and transfer to the account described in subsection
(a)(after making any deposit required under section 8432(f) of title 5, United States Code) such amounts as may be necessary to reimburse the account described in subsection
(a)for the reimbursable portion of the award or settlement described in paragraph
(1)if the individual has not reimbursed the account as required under paragraph
(1)prior to the expiration of the 90-day period which begins on the date a payment is made from the account for such an award or settlement. In this paragraph, the term applicable Committee means— the Committee on House Administration of the House of Representatives, in the case of an individual who, at the time of the withholding, is a Member of the House; or the Committee on Rules and Administration of the Senate, in the case of an individual who, at the time of the withholding, is a Senator. If, by the expiration of the 180-day period that begins on the date a payment is made from the account described in subsection
(a)for an award or settlement described in paragraph (1), an individual who is subject to a reimbursement requirement of this subsection has not reimbursed the account for the entire reimbursable portion as required under paragraph (1), withholding and transfers of amounts shall continue under paragraph
(2)if the individual remains employed in the same position, and the Executive Director of the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board shall make a transfer described in subparagraph (B). The transfer by such Executive Director is a transfer, from the account of the individual in the Thrift Savings Fund to the account described in subsection (a), of an amount equal to the amount of that reimbursable portion of the award or settlement, reduced by— any amount the individual has reimbursed, taking into account any amounts withheld under paragraph (2); and if the individual remains employed in the same position, any amount that the individual is scheduled to reimburse, taking into account any amounts to be withheld under the individual's timetable under paragraph (2). Notwithstanding section 8435 of title 5, United States Code, the Executive Director described in subparagraph
(A)shall make the transfer under subparagraph
(A)upon receipt of a written request to the Executive Director from the Secretary of the Treasury, in the form and manner required by the Executive Director. The payroll administrator and the Executive Director described in subparagraph
(A)shall carry out this paragraph in a manner that ensures the coordination of the withholding and transferring of amounts under this paragraph, in accordance with regulations promulgated by the Board under section 303 and such Executive Director. Subparagraph
(B)shall apply to an individual who is subject to a reimbursement requirement of this subsection if, at any time after the expiration of the 270-day period that begins on the date a payment is made from the account described in subsection
(a)for an award or settlement described in paragraph (1), the individual— has not reimbursed the account for the entire reimbursable portion as required under paragraph (1), through withholdings or transfers under paragraphs
(2)and (3); is not serving in a position as a Member of the House of Representatives or a Senator; and is employed in a subsequent non-Federal position. On the expiration of that 270-day period, the amount of the reimbursable portion of an award or settlement described in paragraph
(1)(reduced by any amount the individual has reimbursed, taking into account any amounts withheld or transferred under paragraph
(2)or (3)) shall be treated as a claim of the United States and transferred to the Secretary of the Treasury for collection. Upon that transfer, the Secretary of the Treasury shall collect the claim, in accordance with section 3711 of title 31, United States Code, including by administrative wage garnishment of the wages of the individual described in subparagraph
(A)from the position described in subparagraph (A)(iii). The Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer the collected amount to the account described in subsection (a). Subparagraph
(B)shall apply to an individual subject to a reimbursement requirement of this subsection if, at any time after the expiration of the 270-day period described in paragraph (4)(A), the individual— has not served in a position as a Member of the House of Representatives or a Senator during the preceding 90 days; and is not employed in a subsequent non-Federal position. If, at any time after the 270-day period described in paragraph (4)(A), the individual described in subparagraph
(A)has not reimbursed the account described in subsection
(a)for the entire reimbursable portion of the award or settlement described in paragraph
(1)(as determined by the Secretary of the Treasury), through withholdings, transfers, or collections under paragraphs
(2)through (4), the Secretary of the Treasury (after consultation with the payroll administrator)— shall notify the Director of the Office of Personnel Management, who shall take such actions as the Director considers appropriate to withhold from any annuity payable to the individual under chapter 83 or chapter 84 of title 5, United States Code, and transfer to the account described in subsection (a), such amounts as may be necessary to reimburse the account for the remainder of the reimbursable portion of an award or settlement described in paragraph (1); and shall (if necessary), notwithstanding section 207 of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 407 ), take such actions as the Secretary of the Treasury considers appropriate to withhold from any payment to the individual under title II of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 401 et seq.) and transfer to the account described in subsection (a), such amounts as may be necessary to reimburse the account for the remainder of the reimbursable portion of an award or settlement described in paragraph (1). The Director of the Office of Personnel Management and the Secretary of the Treasury shall carry out paragraph
(5)in a manner that ensures the coordination of the withholding and transferring of amounts under such paragraph, in accordance with regulations promulgated by the Director and the Secretary. Once the Executive Director determines that an individual who is subject to a reimbursement requirement of this subsection has reimbursed the account described in subsection
(a)for the entire reimbursable portion, the Executive Director shall prepare a certification that the individual has completed that reimbursement, and submit the certification to— the Committees on House Administration and Ethics of the House of Representatives, in the case of an individual who, at the time of committing the act involved, was a Member of the House of Representatives (including a Delegate or Resident Commissioner to the Congress); and the Select Committee on Ethics of the Senate, in the case of an individual who, at the time of committing the act involved, was a Senator. An individual who is subject to a reimbursement requirement of this subsection shall have the unconditional right to intervene in any mediation, hearing, or civil action under this title to protect the interests of the individual in the determination of whether an award or settlement described in paragraph
(1)should be made, and the amount of any such award or settlement, except that nothing in this paragraph may be construed to require the covered employee who filed the claim to be deposed by counsel for the individual in a deposition that is separate from any other deposition taken from the employee in connection with the hearing or civil action. In this subsection: The term non-Federal position means a position other than the position of an employee, as defined in section 2105(a) of title 5, United States Code. The term payroll administrator means— in the case of an individual who is a Member of the House of Representatives, the Chief Administrative Officer of the House of Representatives, or an employee of the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer who is designated by the Chief Administrative Officer to carry out this subsection; or in the case of an individual who is a Senator, the Secretary of the Senate, or an employee of the Office of the Secretary of the Senate who is designated by the Secretary to carry out this subsection. . Section 8437(e)(3) of title 5, United States Code, is amended by inserting an obligation of the Executive Director to make a transfer under section 415(d)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 ( before 2 U.S.C. 1415(d)(3) ), or an obligation . The amendments made by subsections
(a)and
(b)shall apply with respect to claims made on or after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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Sec. 111
Requiring Members of Congress to reimburse Treasury for amounts paid as settlements and awards in cases of acts by Members
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