Ethics allegations against Miramar congresswoman cast shadow over Broward County earmarks
A sweeping U.S. House Ethics Committee report released this week accuses South Florida Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick of what investigators describe as “extensive misconduct,” escalating a controversy that now directly intersects with the communities she represents across central and southern Broward County.
The bipartisan report, released Thursday, Jan. 29, concluded there is “substantial evidence” that Cherfilus-McCormick, a Miramar resident, can be charged for violating campaign finance laws, federal ethics requirements and House rules.
Those allegations go beyond the federal criminal charges the 47-year-old Democrat already faces for allegedly stealing disaster funds. She is awaiting arraignment in Miami federal court on Feb. 3.
In a statement to the Miami Herald, Cherfilus-McCormick rejected the committee’s conclusions.
“Today’s action was taken without giving me a fair opportunity to rebut or defend myself due to the constraints of an ongoing legal process,” she wrote.
For Broward residents, the stakes go beyond Washington politics. The report raises questions about how local projects could be affected if allegations of favoritism or improper spending are proven — potentially putting federal dollars for housing, infrastructure and community services at risk in her district.
The report says Cherfilus-McCormick’s office “may have dispensed special favors or privileges to friends in connection with her congressional office’s requests for community project funding.”
U.S. Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.) has announced his intention to force a vote to expel Cherfilus-McCormick from the House of Representatives.
She was elected in a 2022 special election to fill the vacancy created by the death of U.S. Rep. Alcee Hastings after spending heavily in the Democratic primary, ultimately winning the seat by just five votes.
Cherfilus-McCormick, who records show owns property in Miramar, where her health management company is based, represents Florida’s 20th Congressional District, which includes much of the Black-majority areas in and around Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach.
In November, Cherfilus-McCormick and other alleged co-conspirators were indicted in Miami on charges of allegedly stealing $5 million in federal disaster funds, laundering the proceeds and using the money to support her 2021 congressional campaign. The FEMA funds, related to COVID-19 relief, had been mistakenly sent to her family’s health care company.
Her attorney, Michael Stroud, has argued that the ethics proceedings to possibly remove her from Congress should have paused until the criminal case was resolved. The House Ethics Committee declined to halt the inquiry and has scheduled a public hearing for March 5.
The timing of the ethics report also intersects with Cherfilus-McCormick’s continued visibility in the district, where she is considered a champion for Haitians and low-income residents.
On Jan. 28, she participated in a protest at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in support of Haitian residents facing the potential loss of Temporary Protected Status, or TPS.
But the ethics report goes beyond legal filings and details several allegations of wrongdoing. One allegation investigated by the committee involves a local company, Petrogaz-Haiti S.A., LLC, based in Fort Lauderdale, according to Florida corporate records.
The report states that in 2022, when Cherfilus-McCormick was first running for Congress, Petrogaz-Haiti and its owner sent $810,000 to an organization connected to her husband and her political action committee.
That money was then passed to another group controlled by her senior campaign adviser and ultimately used to pay campaign expenses, according to the report.
Attempts by the Miramar News to obtain comment from Petrogaz-Haiti on Jan. 30 were unsuccessful.
The report also hints at potential misuse of local earmarks. Ethics investigators wrote that Cherfilus-McCormick may have provided “special favors or privileges to friends in connection with her congressional office’s requests for community project funding.”
The committee’s findings raise questions about whether any of these projects were improperly steered, leaving some federal dollars potentially compromised.
Among Cherfilus-McCormick’s 2024-2025 local funding appropriations, according to her website, are:
- Broward Partnership for the Homeless – Aspire 1650: $850,000
- Habitat for Humanity of Broward – Rick Case Habitat Community: $850,000
- The Urban League of Broward County – Village at Oakland Park: $850,000
- City of Fort Lauderdale – Lauderdale Manors Park Multimodal Connections: $720,000
- City of Lauderdale Lakes – Stormwater Conveyance & Water Quality Improvement: $500,000
- Blanche Ely Estates Affordable Housing Development: $850,000
This story was originally published January 30, 2026 at 3:45 PM.
