Former Trump appointee forced to repay Treasury for misuse of funds, GOP senator announces

U.S. taxpayer money that was "misused" by former Architect of the Capitol Brett Blanton was repaid to the federal government by withholding it from his final paycheck, Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said Tuesday.

In a letter shared by Grassley, the ranking member of the Budget Committee, Chere Rexroat, the acting architect of the Capitol, said last month that about $12,500 was withheld from Blanton's final paycheck after he didn't cooperate and repay the money himself. An insurance company contributed the remaining amount, about $1,400.

"When dealing with trillions of dollars in government spending, a dozen or so thousand can seem like an insignificant amount. However, this amount would be important to a family struggling to make ends meet in a time of record inflation and price hikes," Grassley said on the Senate floor.