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Congressional Research S~
Informing the Iegisl9tive debate since 191
0
February 12, 2025
Contempt Actions in the 118th Congress
During the 118th Congress, the House of Representatives
and the Senate both undertook actions related to contempt
of Congress. The Senate referred a witness to the
Department of Justice (DOJ) for contempt of Congress and
instituted a civil action seeking to compel his testimony.
The House voted to refer one executive branch officer to
DOJ for criminal contempt, and various House committees
passed resolutions recommending that the House vote on
contempt actions for three individuals; the full House took
up none of the actions.
On September 19, 2024, the Senate Health, Education,
Labor, and Pensions Committee (Senate HELP) approved a
pair of resolutions directing Senate Legal Counsel to bring
a civil action to enforce a subpoena for Ralph de la Torre,
then the chief executive officer of Steward Health Care, and
directing the President of the Senate to refer him to DOJ for
prosecution under 2 U.S.C. §§ 192 and 194.
On September 24, 2024, the House Foreign Affairs
Committee (HFAC) approved a resolution recommending
that the House hold then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken
in contempt and that the Speaker refer him for prosecution
under §§ 192 and 194. The full House never voted to make
this referral. The House Oversight and Accountability
Committee, as well as the House Judiciary Committee,
approved reports recommending contempt for Hunter
Biden, although the full chamber never acted on these
reports, either. Likewise, the House Judiciary Committee
published a report recommending referral of Mark
Zwonitzer, an author, to DOJ for contempt, but the House
never voted on it. In one case, the House did vote to make a
criminal contempt referral, on the Oversight and Judiciary
Committees' recommendation, for then-Attorney General
Merrick Garland. DOJ declined to prosecute upon that
referral.
This In Focus provides an overview of civil enforcement of
congressional subpoenas and criminal contempt of
Congress. It then summarizes the last actions in each
chamber-against de la Torre and Blinken-and details
what the next steps in each case in the 119th Congress
might be. The House, in adopting its rules for the 119th
Congress, specifically authorized the reissuance of
subpoenas to Garland and to two individuals involved in the
investigation of Hunter Biden. This In Focus does not
address Congress's inherent contempt power.
Contempt ofCongress and Subpoena
nforcenent
Congress has implied constitutional authority to conduct
investigations connected to a valid legislative purpose.
Either chamber may issue subpoenas for testimony or
documents and other materials. Willfully failing to comply
with a subpoena issued by Congress is criminalized by
2 U.S.C. § 192. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C.
Circuit has interpreted willful to mean deliberate and
intentional, without requiring evidence of bad faith. A
second statute, 2 U.S.C. § 194, establishes procedures for
referring alleged violations of § 192 to DOJ for prosecution.
Section 194 does not expressly require a full chamber to
approve a referral to DOJ, but each chamber typically does
so as a matter of longstanding congressional practice. At
least one judicial decision has recognized a full-chamber
vote as necessary for referral.
Congressional referrals to DOJ reflect separation of powers
principles. Because Congress is not a law enforcement or
trial agency, it must rely on the executive to prosecute
those that violate the contempt of Congress statutes. Further
reflecting this separation of powers, a criminal referral from
Congress does not require DOJ to initiate a prosecution.
Criminal prosecution may not ultimately result in
compliance with the subpoena, as prosecution serves
primarily to punish an individual and provide future
deterrence. Accordingly, each chamber may also seek to
enforce its subpoenas in federal court through civil lawsuits
to compel an individual to comply and share the demanded
information. A chamber that votes to hold an individual in
contempt may both make a criminal referral and direct its
legal counsel to file a civil lawsuit in federal court seeking
to enforce a subpoena.
The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (D.C.
district court) has jurisdiction to hear civil suits initiated by
the Senate under 28 U.S.C. § 1365 (this statutory authority
does not extend to actions to enforce a subpoena issued to
executive branch officials acting in their official capacity
and asserting a governmental privilege). Further, 2 U.S.C.
§ 288b authorizes Senate Legal Counsel to bring a civil
action to enforce a subpoena of the Senate or a committee
or subcommittee of the Senate . .. only when directed to do
so by the adoption of a resolution by the Senate, thus
requiring full Senate approval prior to the initiation of a
civil action to enforce a subpoena. House committees have
no corresponding statutory authority for civil enforcement,
but the D.C. district court has recognized that the House
may authorize a committee to file a civil claim to enforce a
subpoena on behalf of the body-a process used on various
occasions.
eIa Torre Subpoena
Senate HELP issued a subpoena to Ralph de la Torre on
July 25, 2024. De la Torre's counsel responded, seeking a
postponement of his testimony on the basis that his
company, Steward Health Care, was engaged in bankruptcy
proceedings and claiming that Senate HELP had made
predeterminations of [de la Torre's] alleged criminal](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.crs/govesll0001&div=1&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)