House Ethics Committee reviewing complaint against Cory Mills

The House Ethics Committee will review a complaint involving U.S. Rep. Cory Mills. But the bipartisan body provided few details on the impetus of any accusation against the New Smyrna Beach Republican.

A statement from the committee released late Monday said it “has extended the matter” involving Mills. The short statement said the action involved an issue transmitted to the committee on Aug. 29.

“The Committee will announce its course of action in this matter following its organizational meeting and adoption of Committee Rules in the 119th Congress.”

Mills won re-election in November to a second term over Democrat Jennifer Adams. He also defeated Republican Primary challenger Michael Johnson on Aug. 20, before the Ethics Committee received anything about the matter.

According to Mills, a complaint from a political opponent to the Office of Congressional Ethics prompted the Ethics Committee release.

“No ‘investigation’ is open or has been opened,” he said in a statement to Florida Politics. “This is a mandatory response letter to an outside entity which is not government affiliated (OCE). The letter is very clear and no investigation is or has been opened for a filed complaint by my former primary opponent.”

Johnson notably endorsed Adams after the Primary loss, questioning Mills’ character at the time.

“This Congressional seat is not about party affiliation. It’s about our local values: honor, integrity, trust, and doing what’s right for our community,” Johnson said.

Both Adams and Johnson questioned Mills’ residency and the amount of time he spent out of the district.

In July, Mills formed a rogue committee to independently investigate a failed assassination attempt on now-President-elect Donald Trump in Pennsylvania. He sparked controversy by questioning if “intentional” security failures contributed to the shooting, in which Trump was injured and a rally attendee was killed.

Mills has notably made headlines for philanthropic work outside his district, including evacuating Americans out of Haiti and Israel and flying supplies into hurricane-struck parts of the Carolinas. Much of the post-storm work was done in partnership with Mercury One, a conservative humanitarian group. Mills has worked directly with conservative social media influencer Benny Johnson and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, a billionaire now working closely with Trump.

The statement from the committee included a standard disclaimer that any action does not confirm guilt on Mills’ part.

“The Committee notes that the mere fact of a referral or an extension, and the mandatory disclosure of such an extension and the name of the subject of the matter, does not itself indicate that any violation has occurred, or reflect any judgment on behalf of the Committee,” the statement reads.

The Ethics Committee has recently scrutinized two other members of Congress from Florida, U.S. Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick and former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz.

Regarding Cherfilus-McCormick, the committee most recently extended a matter involving allegations the Miramar Democrat violated campaign finance laws. The committee plans to announce a course of action on Dec. 27.

With Gaetz, the Committee was expected to release a report on sexual misconduct and drug allegations against Gaetz last month, but the Fort Walton Beach Republican resigned before that occurred. He left Congress after Trump nominated him for Attorney General, but ultimately withdrew from consideration. The committee has declined to release a report since he no longer serves.

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This piece has been updated with a response from Mills regarding the committee matter.