Former GOP Rep. Blake Farenthold Randolph (Blake) Blake FarentholdThe biggest political upsets of the decade Members spar over sexual harassment training deadline Female Dems see double standard in Klobuchar accusations MORE's (R-Texas) sudden resignation announcement earlier this month was prompted by an impending House Ethics ruling against him, the office of Rep. Jackie Speier Karen (Jackie) Lorraine Jacqueline SpeierOvernight Defense: House to vote on military justice bill spurred by Vanessa Guillén death | Biden courts veterans after Trump's military controversies House to vote on 'I Am Vanessa Guillén' bill Overnight Defense: Trump's battle with Pentagon poses risks in November | Lawmakers launch Fort Hood probe | Military members can't opt out of tax deferral MORE (D-Calif.) confirmed to The Hill on Tuesday.



The committee — which was investigating allegations he sexually harassed his employees and lied during his testimony — was forced to close its probe after Farenthold's abrupt departure. It remains unclear what the repercussions for the lawmaker would have been had they ruled against him.

HuffPost first reported the motivation behind Farenthold's April 6 resignation, which came months after he had already announced that he wouldn't run for reelection in 2018.

ADVERTISEMENT

Farenthold had come under fire late last year following revelations that he’d settled a sexual harassment claim to a former aide after she sued him over her 2014 firing. The $84,000 payout came from an obscure, taxpayer-backed settlement fund created for such purposes. Farenthold had vowed to repay the Treasury for the amount, but left Congress on April 6 without doing so.

The surprise resignation came just days after a subpanel of the Ethics Committee notified him of an April 11 vote on its findings against him, a document known as a Statement of Alleged Violation.

“Pursuant to Committee Rule 26(c), on March 30, 2018, the ISC informed Representative Farenthold it had scheduled a vote on a Statement of Alleged Violation in this matter, to occur on April 11, 2018," Ethics said in a statement last week. "Representative Farenthold resigned from Congress on April 6, 2018, before the scheduled vote on a Statement of Alleged Violation, at which time the ISC lost jurisdiction over him.”

The committee, Speaker Paul Ryan Paul Davis RyanKenosha will be a good bellwether in 2020 At indoor rally, Pence says election runs through Wisconsin Juan Williams: Breaking down the debates MORE (R-Wis.) and National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Steve Stivers Steven (Steve) Ernst StiversBusiness groups back pandemic insurance bill modeled on post-9/11 law National Retail Federation hosts virtual 'store tours' for lawmakers amid coronavirus Stronger patent rights would help promote US technological leadership MORE (R-Ohio) have all called on Farenthold to repay the settlement money.



Farenthold didn't respond to a request for comment.