US House panel votes to hold ex-IRS officer in contempt

WASHINGTON (REUTERS) - A US House of Representatives panel voted along party lines on Thursday to hold a former Internal Revenue Service officer in contempt of Congress over her role in a 2013 controversy involving IRS targeting of conservative political groups.

Lois Lerner, former head of the IRS tax-exempt division, twice exercised her right not to testify about the affair before the Republican-controlled House Oversight and Government Reform Committee at public hearings on Capitol Hill.

After almost a year of politically charged investigations, Republican committee members voted to approve a contempt resolution against Lerner, sending it to the full House for further consideration. Democratic members voted against it.

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