WASHINGTON — The U.S. House has tripled the cost cap for the legal expenses of hiring a private attorney to defend the Defense of Marriage Act in court to reach a potential total sum of $1.5 million.
According to recently approved contract modification dated Sept. 30, House General Counsel Kerry Kircher has agreed to pay Bancroft LLC private attorney Paul Clement a sum not to exceed $750,000 to defend DOMA, but this cap may be raised to $1.5 million under written notice.
“It is further understood and agreed that, effective October 1, 2011, the aforementioned $750,000.00 cap may be raised from time to time up to, but not exceeding, $1.5 million, upon written notice of the General Counsel to the Contractor specifying that the General Counsel is legally liable under this Agreement for a specific amount,” the contract modification states.
The contract modification is signed by Committee of House Administration Chair Dan Lungren (R-Calif.) as well as Kircher and Clement.
The Obama administration in February announced that it would no longer defend DOMA, which prohibits federal recognition of same-sex marriage, against litigation in court.
After the House’s Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group voted a 3-2 in March along a party-line basis to take up defense of DOMA, U.S. House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) directed Kircher to defend the law and hired Clement, a U.S. solicitor general for former President George W. Bush, for assistance in defending the statute. The initial contract hired Clement to defend the law at a blended rate of $520 an hour and initial total cost cap of $500,000.
In addition to raising the cost cap to $1.5 million, the contract modification also opens the door for further increases upon agreement of the parties involved.
Filed under: National Headlines
Florida teen fighting criminal charges related to same-sex relationship
Wash. florist who refused flowers for gay couple’s wedding files suit against state
Anti-gay marriage activist commits suicide on alter at Notre Dame cathedral
Texas judge enforces ‘morality clause’ to split up lesbian couple
Catholic school: Transgender student must wear girl’s graduation gown
Another Ore. bakery refuses to provide wedding cake for same-sex couple
Sex and the teenage girl: The Kaitlyn Hunt tragedy
UPDATED: Police call fatal New York City shooting an anti-gay hate crime
Iowa anti-gay activist explains his opposition to gay marriage: ‘It’s awful’
Details emerge in case against teen accused of lewd behavior with girlfriend
Scottish cardinal to atone for sexual misconduct with younger clergy
BREAKING: French president signs marriage equality bill into law
Everything is bigger in Texas – even the homophobia
Obama delivers LGBT-inclusive commencement address at all-male college
Pa. school still refuses to announce transgender grad by his chosen name
Absolutely negligent they are spending this much money on something that is going to happen. Equality will happen, they are just delaying the inevitable .. waste of taxpayers money.. OUR Money being used to stop our rights
SAVE MONEY REPEALL IT!
And this is the party that is against frivolous government spending? Idiots
The man’s last name says it all. I don’t care if he pronounces it “baner.”
I really HATE this man!
Waste of tax payer money that seems completely backwards because Boehner and his buddies are running for less spending and lower taxes HYPOCRITS!!!
WHY?
LMAO so they can’t produce jobs or economic recovery … they want to continue to cut taxes on higher incomes and increase taxes to middle class and they want to cancel all medicare benefits … and now they want to spend 1.5 million on a case that the white house won’t defend? … Why are these people still in office? Impeach all of them and move on …. it’s time.
He’s the biggest douche in washington
Oh Mr. Boner can find $$ for this but not for jobs. Idiot!!!
Just sent him a sweet little letter telling him DOMA is a POS and unconstitutional.
i wish we could impeach. maybe we should hire attorneys to sue them for defending DOMA. doesn’t this really deny us equal rights and these government idiots are denying us equal rights. they are taking my tax dollars to deny me rights, this is outright treasonous.
but, but, but . . . . won’t this INCREASE the deficit?!?!
Maybe Boner should be a post partum abortion? Party wise, republican foolish! Idiots! Push him into some ‘crosshairs’.
-_-
Again, I’m never voting for this douche. Or any of the other republican candidates. I’m willing to try another 4 years with Obama. Long as he can take care of everything else besides us.
Yeah, because we don’t know what else to spend our money on…education, for example, which this guy desperately needs.
It’s cuz his name is Boner he’s automatically a huge dick ROFL
In other news, people are starving all accross the world…
Well, they’re finally doing something about jobs…for lawyers.
Wasn’t this nimrod recently braying about saving money and cost containment? Right.
so this is where my money is goin to
Impeach Boehner for wasting US taxpayer money over a trivial item.
And ask him who’s giving him a kickback, too.
These kooks are willing to spend a whopping ONE POINT FIVE MILLION on preventing equality and yet has the AUDACITY to whine about Obama not being able to fix America’s economy? And Americans are actually oblivious to believe them?
*oblivious enough