Taxpayers Liable for Capitol Hill Harassment Claims

Taxpayers are on the hook for hundreds of thousands of dollars to pay out discrimination and harassment claims by workers on Capitol Hill.

The claims have almost doubled over the last five years, and taxpayers are obligated to finance the settlements, Politico reports.

A new report from the congressional Office of Compliance shows that 168 claims were filed in fiscal 2010 charging discrimination and harassment, up from 87 claims in fiscal 2006.

Of last year’s claims, 57 were made on the basis of race, 41 on age, 34 on gender, and 28 on disabilities.

As for the money, taxpayers shelled out $246,271 last year to pay for the settlements of nine cases the OOC has dealt with over the years. In fiscal 2009, the total was $831,360 for 13 claims.