Rep. Black Demands Full Transparency of Congressional 'Hush Fund'

Statement

Today, Congressman Diane Black (R-TN-06) released the following statement after signing on as a co-sponsor of the Congressional Accountability and Hush Fund Elimination Act:

"Today, I joined my colleagues in a bipartisan effort to bring more transparency to claims of sexual harassment and misconduct in Congress. No public official should be able to use taxpayer dollars as hush money to cover up their sexual misconduct. This behavior has gone on too long and it needs to stop. I'm proud to join my colleagues in this effort and look forward to considering this legislation on the House floor.

I also believe we need to go further. I believe that Congress and the Tennessee legislature should release all details of sexual harassment claims and settlements against legislators and staff. Victims should be released from their Non-Disclosure Agreements and Congress and the state legislature should identify perpetrators and produce redacted information that shields the identity and circumstance of the victim. Veils of secrecy only serve to protect the perpetrators. Full transparency and accountability is the only way to allow victims to heal and to bring perpetrators to justice. Those of us who are public servants should be held to a higher standard. We are not above the law. The time for action is now."

Source