House banking scandal

The House banking scandal broke in early 1992, when it was revealed that the US House of Representatives allowed its members to overdraw their House checking accounts without the risk of being penalized by the House bank, which was actually a clearinghouse.

The scandal also sometimes known as Rubbergate (from the expressions "rubber check" (bounced check) and "Watergate)," but the term is misleading because House checks did not bounce but were honored because the House Bank provided overdraft protection to its account holders, and the Office of the Sergeant at Arms covered the House Bank with no penalties.[1]

It is also sometimes known as the "check-kiting scandal."

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference bankrate-comes-down was invoked but never defined (see the help page).