Buyer ethics complaint dismissed

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - An ethics complaint against Indiana Congressman Steve Buyer was terminated by the Office of Congressional Ethics.

Buyer learned that the complaint by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics (CREW) alleging that a special scholarship fund was being misused was dropped Monday.

Buyer released the following statement:

"I am pleased to learn today that the Board of the Office of Congressional Ethics, after reviewing the CREW complaint, voted to close the matter with no further action; thereby resolving the matter. This outcome verifies that my work in support of the Frontier Foundation's effort to raise $1 million to build an endowment was appropriate. I am confident the Frontier Foundation will have a positive effect on young adults for many years to come.

The political climate in Washington today is the worst I have seen in my 18 years of public service. The political attacks are more personal and negative in nature. Those in public office should be held to the highest standard; however, personal attacks by some media sources and outside political groups who maliciously assault an individual's credibility by using libel, slander, and innuendo without merit or facts are not serving the public good. Doing so is merely eroding any comity that exists in Congress and hurts the institution.

I appreciate the Office of Congressional Ethics' professionalism in resolving this matter."

The CREW complaint claimed that Buyer's fund had raised more than $880,000 since 2003 and hadn't awarded any scholarships.

The Republican announced in January that he wouldn't seek re-election this year after 18 years in Congress because his wife has been diagnosed with an incurable autoimmune disease.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.