House Ethics Panel Finds 25 Counts Proven Against Rep. Cherfilus‑McCormick, Moving Toward Possible Expulsion Over FEMA Funds
After a rare, seven‑hour public House Ethics adjudicatory hearing, the panel concluded that 25 ethics violations against Rep. Sheila Cherfilus‑McCormick were proven, finding she improperly used a roughly $5 million pandemic‑relief overpayment tied to her family’s health‑care business that prosecutors allege was laundered into her 2021 campaign and personal purchases. The committee will reconvene after the House recess to recommend sanctions — including possible expulsion — as Democratic leaders are divided over how to proceed while Cherfilus‑McCormick, who has pleaded not guilty to parallel federal charges, has invoked her Fifth Amendment rights and disputed the process.
📌 Key Facts
- House Ethics investigators produced a 242‑page report and a 27‑count "statement of alleged violations" accusing Rep. Sheila Cherfilus‑McCormick of multiple ethics breaches related to pandemic relief funds.
- At a rare, contentious public adjudicatory hearing that lasted more than six hours, the Ethics adjudicatory subcommittee voted for summary judgment and found 25 of the alleged violations proven (Counts 1–15 and 17–26).
- Investigators and the Justice Department allege a roughly $5 million overpayment tied to Florida COVID‑19 vaccination relief paid to the family health‑care business (Trinity Healthcare Services) was routed through multiple bank accounts to disguise its source and to fund Cherfilus‑McCormick’s campaign and personal spending.
- Prosecutors say more than $1.1 million of the funds were transferred into accounts connected to her congressional campaign and funneled through friends and relatives as illegal straw donations; they also allege purchases of luxury items (including a large yellow diamond ring), inflated business expenses and false tax reporting (the indictment names her tax accountant David K. Spencer).
- Cherfilus‑McCormick has pleaded not guilty to the separate federal criminal indictment, declined to testify at the Ethics hearing invoking her Fifth Amendment rights, and her attorney has argued the committee is violating her due‑process rights and asked for closed proceedings.
- The case is highly unusual — the first public House ethics adjudicatory proceeding in nearly 15 years — and the hearing’s "fiery" tone and guilty finding are expected to shape political debate and possible expulsion efforts.
- House leaders are divided: Speaker Hakeem Jeffries has held closed‑door conversations as some Democrats privately warn that pursuing expulsion could fracture the caucus while others say failing to act would undercut anti‑corruption credibility; Rep. Greg Steube (R‑Fla.) says he will press an expulsion resolution regardless.
- The Ethics panel will reconvene after the House’s April/Easter recess to recommend sanctions (which could include expulsion), and the separate criminal trial in the federal case is expected in the coming months.
📰 Source Timeline (11)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
March 27, 2026
2:37 PM
House ethics panel finds Florida Democratic Rep. Cherfilus-McCormick committed 25 violations
New information:
- AP/PBS piece confirms the panel met into early Friday morning after a seven-hour hearing and formally announced that 25 ethics violations were found, with punishment to be recommended in coming weeks.
- Clarifies that the alleged $5 million overpayment came from Florida’s COVID-19 disaster relief funds for vaccination services paid to the family health care business, not directly from FEMA in this framing.
- Details the defense argument that Cherfilus-McCormick was 'entitled' to the money based on a family profit-sharing document, and notes bipartisan skepticism from ethics-panel members.
- Reports that this was the first public House ethics adjudicatory proceeding in nearly 15 years, underscoring the case’s rarity.
- Confirms she declined to testify at the hearing, invoking the Fifth Amendment, while her attorney accused the committee of railroading her based 'primarily on bank records.'
- Restates that she faces separate federal criminal charges over the same $5 million, including alleged personal purchases like a 3-carat yellow diamond ring, with trial expected in coming months.
2:07 PM
Ethics panel finds most violations proven against Rep. Cherfilus-McCormick
New information:
- CBS piece reiterates that the House Ethics Committee has found "most" allegations against Rep. Sheila Cherfilus‑McCormick proven in its adjudicatory process.
- It specifies the committee will wait until after the House’s April recess before recommending any disciplinary action.
- Restates that Cherfilus‑McCormick was indicted in November over an alleged $5 million FEMA pandemic‑relief fraud scheme and has pleaded not guilty.
2:03 PM
Fiery Ethics Committee hearing ends in guilty ruling for Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick
New information:
- Axios piece underscores that the adjudicatory hearing itself was 'fiery,' highlighting contentious exchanges and visible intra-House tensions as the panel reached its guilty findings.
- The article’s framing emphasizes that the panel reached a 'guilty' ruling on the ethics charges at the end of the hearing, language likely to be used in public and political reaction even though formal sanctions are still pending.
- Adds color about the tone and dynamics of the hearing that suggests this will be used as political ammunition in the expulsion fight and in broader debates over corruption and FEMA misuse.
1:59 PM
Indicted Democrat Rep Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick one step closer to expulsion
New information:
- The House Ethics adjudicatory subcommittee voted for summary judgment and found that Counts 1–15 and 17–26 of the Statement of Alleged Violations against Rep. Sheila Cherfilus‑McCormick have been proven.
- The decision came after a more than six‑hour rare public ethics hearing on Thursday, the first such public hearing by the Ethics Committee since 2010.
- The panel will reconvene after the Easter recess to recommend sanctions, which could include expulsion, while Rep. Greg Steube says he will push an expulsion resolution regardless of the committee’s ultimate recommendation.
- House Democratic leadership has so far largely stood by Cherfilus‑McCormick, but some Democrats, including Rep. Mark DeSaulnier, publicly stressed the seriousness of the allegations and their impact on public confidence.
- The article reiterates that Cherfilus‑McCormick has pleaded not guilty to a separate federal criminal indictment alleging she stole more than $5 million in FEMA disaster relief funds and faces up to 53 years in prison if convicted.
March 26, 2026
10:40 PM
News Wrap: Thune gives Democrats 'last and final' offer to end DHS shutdown
New information:
- PBS briefly notes that Florida Democrat Sheila Cherfilus‑McCormick "faced a rare public ethics hearing in Congress" on Thursday, aligning with the previously reported March 26, 2026 hearing but adding no new allegations, counts, or procedural outcomes beyond what is already detailed.
4:46 PM
House Democrat accused of funneling disaster relief funds to campaign faces rare public ethics hearing
New information:
- Confirms the Ethics Committee hearing is specifically to determine whether Rep. Cherfilus-McCormick violated House rules by using FEMA emergency relief funds intended for her family health care company for her congressional campaign.
- Restates that DOJ alleges she and her brother routed a $5 million FEMA overpayment through multiple accounts to disguise its source and support her 2021 campaign and personal spending.
- Notes that as part of the indictment, Cherfilus‑McCormick and her tax accountant, David K. Spencer, are accused of filing a false federal tax return mischaracterizing political and personal expenses and inflating charitable contributions.
- Includes Cherfilus‑McCormick’s current public stance, quoting her description of the indictment as an “unjust, baseless sham,” and reiterates that she faces up to 53 years in prison if convicted.
3:43 PM
WATCH LIVE: Rep. Cherfilus-McCormick faces ethics charges in House hearing
New information:
- The Ethics Committee is holding a two-hour public hearing on Thursday, March 26, 2026, beginning at 2 p.m. EDT, to present its findings on Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick.
- Committee investigators have produced a 242-page report concluding she committed 27 counts of ethics violations, including failing to follow campaign-finance laws, commingling campaign, personal and business funds, and using her position to benefit allies.
- The report and article specify that her 2022 special-election campaign, presented as self-financed, was allegedly funded in large part by a $5 million overpayment for COVID-19 vaccination services to her family’s company.
- Her attorney has warned the committee that to protect her Fifth Amendment rights in the parallel federal criminal case, Cherfilus-McCormick must remain silent before the committee, and he is again asking the panel to reconsider holding a public hearing.
- The article notes the extreme rarity of such public ethics proceedings, stating no sitting member has faced a public hearing in more than 15 years, since the 2010 Charles Rangel case.
12:00 PM
Indicted Democrat Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick faces rare House ethics hearing
New information:
- Confirms that Cherfilus‑McCormick is expected to testify in person at Thursday’s House Ethics Committee hearing, and it is unclear whether she will have legal counsel after losing her attorney earlier in March.
- Reports that the Ethics Committee has issued a 27‑count 'statement of alleged violations' that will be presented at the hearing.
- Notes her public statement accusing the committee of violating her due process rights and saying she is 'deeply disappointed' the bipartisan panel chose to proceed while the criminal case is pending.
- Details that Rep. Greg Steube, R‑Fla., plans to move forward with an expulsion resolution regardless of the ethics trial’s outcome.
- Reiterates that the underlying federal indictment alleges she and her brother laundered more than $5 million in FEMA overpayments through multiple bank accounts to fund her 2021 campaign and buy luxury items, including a large diamond ring.
10:00 AM
House Dem accused of stealing FEMA funds set to face rare ethics "trial"
New information:
- Details that the alleged fraud centers on a $5 million mistaken overpayment to Trinity Healthcare Services, a family-owned company with a FEMA-funded contract to register people for COVID vaccines.
- Prosecutors allege Cherfilus-McCormick and her brother moved the $5 million through multiple bank accounts to disguise its source instead of returning it to the state.
- More than $1.1 million of the funds were allegedly transferred to accounts connected to her congressional campaign and then funneled through friends and relatives as illegal straw donations.
- The indictment alleges she used some of the money to buy a 3.14‑carat yellow diamond ring and to falsely inflate business expenses and charitable donations to reduce her tax bill.
- The adjudicatory subcommittee will open Thursday’s hearing by reconsidering her request to hold the proceedings behind closed doors, and she says she is constrained in what she can say because of the parallel federal case.
12:00 AM
"No one's comfortable": Jeffries faces threat of revolt on ousting one of his members
New information:
- Axios reports that Hakeem Jeffries is facing a potential revolt inside the Democratic caucus over how aggressively to move against Rep. Sheila Cherfilus‑McCormick if the Ethics Committee finds she abused FEMA funds.
- Some House Democrats are privately warning that moving to expel her could backfire politically and fracture the caucus, while others argue keeping her would undercut their anti‑corruption message.
- The piece details that Jeffries has been holding closed‑door conversations to gauge members’ tolerance for expulsion or leadership pressure and that no clear consensus yet exists on how to respond if the Ethics panel issues a damaging report.
March 25, 2026