California must pay $350,000 to settle harassment lawsuit against treasurer

California taxpayers will pay $350,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by a former state employee who claims that Treasury Secretary Fiona Ma, now running for lieutenant governor, sexually harassed her.

Former employee Judith Blackwell worked under Ma as executive director of the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee. Blackwell filed the lawsuit in Sacramento County Superior Court in 2021 after she was fired.

The complaint alleges that Ma offered to let Blackwell stay in hotel rooms and later in an Airbnb in Sacramento with Ma and her chief of staff to avoid the hour-long drive home after dark. The complaint states that Ma repeatedly exposed her “bare butt” to Blackwell in the hotel room and once crawled into Blackwell's bed in the Airbnb while she was sleeping.

A Sacramento County judge last year dismissed Blackwell's wrongful termination and racial discrimination claims but allowed the sexual harassment allegations to go forward. The case is scheduled to go to trial on Sept. 9.

“From day one, I have said this is a frivolous lawsuit filed by a disgruntled employee who fabricated allegations to embarrass me in the hope of a multimillion-dollar settlement,” Ma said in a statement on Friday. “After three years of delay, I have been fully vindicated and can continue my work on affordable housing, climate action and job creation without distraction.”

Waukeen McCoy, the San Francisco attorney who represented Blackwell, said Ma's portrayal of the case as a rehabilitation was “nonsense.”

“I cannot understand how she can believe she has redeemed herself – my client has redeemed herself,” McCoy said. “It seems that Ms. Ma does not feel she has done anything wrong. She does not take responsibility for her actions, which is unfortunate.”

The $350,000 settlement was signed by attorneys from the Department of Justice and the Treasury, both on Friday.

Ma was elected state banker in 2018 and previously served in the California Assembly, where she authored legislation to ban toxic chemicals and strengthen protections for victims of domestic violence.

Ma is a certified public accountant and has also served as a member of the California Board of Equalization and the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.