The House Ethics Committee launched an investigation into Rep. Cory Mills (R-Florida) hours before the chamber voted to refer a censure resolution to the House panel.
The committee said in a news release Wednesday that members voted to establish an investigative subcommittee to probe whether Mills violated the House’s code of conduct or any law following allegations that he failed to properly disclose required information to the House. The inquiry also would look into whether he violated campaign finance laws during campaigns in 2022 and 2024, improperly solicited and/or received gifts, including in connection with privately sponsored officially connected travel, used his position to receive special favors, engaged in misconduct with respect to allegations of sexual misconduct and/or dating violence and misused congressional resources or status.
The committee said it would release the names of the investigative subcommittee once the members are chosen.
Representatives for Mills did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Neither did representatives for House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana).
The committee’s investigation launch came hours before a scheduled House vote on censuring Mills that was instead referred to the Ethics Committee in a 310-103 vote. Eight Republicans voted against referring the censure, while 12 Democrats and Republicans voted present and eight did not not vote. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-South Carolina) on Wednesday offered a privileged resolution — a procedural move that circumvents leadership and fast-tracks a vote to the House floor — to censure Mills and remove him from the House Foreign Affairs and Armed Services committees.
Mace’s resolution about Mills points to, among other claims, allegations that he solicited and secured government contracts as a member, claims of stolen valor and two accusations of misconduct toward women.
“Congresswoman Nancy Mace’s latest stunt is a politically motivated attempt to grab headlines and settle personal scores,” Mills said in a statement Wednesday. “The American people deserve better than fabricated accusations and theatrics at a time when Republicans should be focused on governing.”
One of the women, Sarah Raviani, pushed back against Mace in a social media post Wednesday, saying the congresswoman was using Raviani’s private life as a “pawn for political gain” and clarified that she and Mills were “extremely jet-lagged, overwhelmed, and intoxicated” the night police officers were called to Mills’s residence in February. Raviani later recanted statements she gave police after calling 911, and prosecutors declined to pursue misdemeanor assault charges against Mills.
Mills’s military record came under scrutiny when NOTUS reported that service members had no recollection of him being at an incident in Iraq for which he was awarded a Bronze Star. The lawmaker’s chief of staff dismissed the scrutiny over the military award.
“Cory Mills earned his Bronze Star and the paperwork proves it,” Mills’s chief of staff, Catherine Treadwell, said Wednesday in a statement.
The ethics panel will tackle the battery of controversies Mills has faced since taking office in 2023, while appearing to leave off allegations made against Mills regarding stolen valor and a public eviction dispute. The Office of Congressional Conduct previously recommended that the House Ethics Committee investigate whether Mills benefited from federal weapons contracts while in office.
“Congressman Mills is committed to complying with all laws and ethics rules and is pleased that the Federal Election Commission recently dismissed a complaint with similar allegations,” Jillian Anderson, a spokesperson for Mills, told Politico in March. “We trust the House Ethics Committee will come to a similar conclusion.”
Last month, a Florida judge granted an order of protection against Mills in favor of an ex-girlfriend who accused him of threatening her with revenge porn. Mills denied any wrongdoing in connection with the claims. “These claims are false and misrepresent the nature of my interactions,” he said in a statement when the order was granted.
Mills has become a target for Democrats, as well. In September, Democrats threatened to censure Mills in response to a similar effort against Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-New Jersey) that ultimately failed. Democrats abandoned a separate censure push against Mills after a vote on a Republican-led reprimand failed Tuesday against Del. Stacey Plaskett (D-Virgin Islands) for text messages exchanged with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein during a 2019 congressional hearing.
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