Lawmakers face no sanctions for refusing to participate in investigations
More than a third of House members investigated by the Office of Congressional Ethics refused to fully cooperate with the probes since the office started investigating lawmakers in 2009, according to a new report by the Campaign Legal Center.
The report shows that 23 members did not completely participate in Office of Congressional Ethics investigations and, with the exception of the 113th Congress, member cooperation has steadily declined. The data is based on all the public OCE investigations into members.
Kedric Payne, a former OCE attorney and general counsel at the Campaign Legal Center, said one reason for the lack of cooperation is that “the members feel as though they can not cooperate and face no consequences.” Continue reading.