Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz attracts attention over office spending

WASHINGTON — Rep. Matt Gaetz might be subject to even more scrutiny by the House Ethics Committee after a Politico report disclosed that he has paid more than $184,000 in office rent to a friend, who is also a donor, legal client and adviser, a revelation that could trigger an ethics investigation.

An investigative subcommittee of the House Ethics panel is currently looking into a tweet the Florida Republican directed at Michael Cohen last year that appeared to threaten the former Trump lawyer in relation to his congressional testimony against the president. Although it’s rare, the subcommittee’s inquiry could lead to a hearing and a House floor vote on the matter.

Gaetz and his friend Collier Merrill, a real estate developer and restaurateur, both told Politico the congressman paid Merrill’s Empire Partners LLC below market rent for the office space in downtown Pensacola, Fla. Gaetz later said the rent was “at or below market rate,” Politico reported. District office leases must be entered into at fair market value.

House Rules make it clear that the Members’ Representational Allowance, which pays for expenses such as district office rents and salaries, cannot be used for the direct benefit of someone who has a professional or legal relationship with the member.

“Unless specifically authorized by an applicable provision of federal law, House Rules, or Committee Regulations, no Member, relative of the Member, or anyone with whom the Member has a professional or legal relationship may directly benefit from the expenditure of the MRA,” the rules state.

The House Ethics Committee declined comment.