H.Res. 1172

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1172 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES. 1172

Providing for the expulsion of Representative Tony Gonzales from the 
United States House of Representatives.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

April 14, 2026

Ms. Leger Fernandez submitted the following resolution; which was 
referred to the Committee on Ethics

_______________________________________________________________________

RESOLUTION

Providing for the expulsion of Representative Tony Gonzales from the 
United States House of Representatives.

Whereas Representative Tony Gonzales is a Member of the United States House of 
Representatives;
Whereas Representative Tony Gonzales assumed office on January 3, 2021;
Whereas Members of the House of Representatives are entrusted with positions of 
authority and are expected to uphold the highest standards of ethics in 
both their official and personal conduct;
Whereas the failure of Members of the House of Representatives to conduct 
themselves in accordance with the highest ethical standards reflects 
discredit on the House of Representatives and undermines the public 
trust;
Whereas, in 2018, the House of Representatives amended the Code of Official 
Conduct, which expressly states in clause 18 of rule XXIII that a 
``Member . . . may not engage in a sexual relationship with any employee 
of the House who worked under the supervision of the Member'' and that a 
``Member . . . may not engage in unwelcome sexual advances or conduct 
towards . . . [an] employee of the House'';
Whereas there is a significant power imbalance between Members of the House of 
Representatives and staff, and violations of clause 18 of rule XXIII of 
the Code of Official Conduct threaten the safety and well-being of staff 
and their ability to serve the American people;
Whereas Representative Tony Gonzales engaged in unwelcome sexual advances or 
conduct toward an employee of the House and engaged in a sexual 
relationship with an employee of the House working under his 
supervision;
Whereas, on March 4, 2026, Representative Tony Gonzales admitted to having had a 
sexual relationship with former staffer Regina Ann Santos-Aviles, a 
then-employee of the House of Representatives working under his direct 
supervision;
Whereas, according to text messages obtained by CBS News, in May 2024, 
Representative Tony Gonzales sent repeated sexual advances to Santos-
Aviles, including requesting that his employee describe her preferred 
sexual positions and send him a ``sexy pic,'' causing the employee to 
respond: ``This is going too far boss'' and at another time ``This is 
too far, Tony'';
Whereas, according to text messages published by the San Antonio Express-News, 
Santos-Aviles reportedly messaged a co-worker admitting to having an 
``affair with our boss'';
Whereas, on September 14, 2025, Representative Tony Gonzales' staffer Regina Ann 
Santos-Aviles died after having doused herself in gasoline and setting 
herself on fire;
Whereas Representative Tony Gonzales made repeated public false denials of 
allegations of sexual advances toward and a sexual relationship with his 
employee, before finally admitting to the conduct after news outlets 
published direct evidence of his text exchanges;
Whereas, in March 2026, Representative Tony Gonzales ended his campaign for re-
election after admitting to the sexual relationship, but has not 
resigned from office or faced any consequences for his violation of the 
Code of Official Conduct;
Whereas, in April 2026, a second former woman staffer for Representative Tony 
Gonzales publicly revealed sexually explicit text messages sent to her 
by then-candidate for office Tony Gonzales in 2020;
Whereas the former woman campaign staffer described the behavior of then-
candidate Tony Gonzales as ``sexual bullying'';
Whereas the sexual bullying and sexual relationship that Representative Tony 
Gonzales engaged in with his staffers shows a pattern of sexual abuse 
and harassment;
Whereas, by his own admission and consistent with publicly available credible 
evidence, Representative Tony Gonzales has violated the Code of Official 
Conduct;
Whereas, as a Member of the House of Representatives, Representative Tony 
Gonzales must be held accountable to the highest standards of conduct to 
safeguard the public's faith in this institution;
Whereas holding Representative Tony Gonzales accountable for his violations of 
the Code of Conduct and reprehensible behavior toward women staff is 
important to protect the safety of our women staff members;
Whereas the Constitution of the United States charges the House with policing 
the behavior of its own Members, and the House should take action 
against Representative Tony Gonzales commensurate with his violations of 
the Rules of the House;
Whereas Representative Tony Gonzales has the right to defend himself and present 
any argument or evidence during debate on the House Floor before any 
vote is taken on his expulsion; and
Whereas, given his egregious violations, Representative Tony Gonzales is not fit 
to serve as a Member of the United States House of Representatives: Now, 
therefore, be it
Resolved, That pursuant to article I, section 5, clause 2 of the 
Constitution of the United States, Representative Tony Gonzales, be, 
and he hereby is, expelled from the United States House of 
Representatives.
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