Lauren Boebert paid rent and utilities with campaign funds: FEC filings

Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) paid rent, utility and other personal expenses with campaign funds, according to a new Federal Election Commission (FEC) filing.

On Tuesday, September 21, Boebert submitted information to the FEC as she confirmed that $6,650 worth of payments had been reimbursed to the campaign, according to the Denver Post.

Per the publication:

"Each of the four payments in question (two for $2,000 each and another two for $1,325 each) were amended to show payments for the same amount, description and on the same days to John Pacheco, whose address is the same as Shooters Grill in Rifle, which Boebert owns. Pacheco's relationship to Boebert was not immediately clear."

Boebert faced a similar discrepancy back in July. The campaign's finance report for that month included personal expenses paid via Venmo. The description for those payments reportedly read: "Personal expense of Lauren Boebert billed to campaign account in error. Expense has been reimbursed."

The following month, FEC officials pressed Boebert's campaign about the purchases. Speaking to Forbes, her campaign spokesman Jake Settle said the payments were "personal expenses."

Shortly after, FEC Senior Campaign Finance Analyst Shannon Ringgold penned a letter to Boebert's campaign about the consequences the campaign could face if the Republican lawmaker is found to be in violation of campaign finance laws.

If the payments were “personal use of campaign funds, the Commission may consider taking further legal action," Ringgold wrote, adding,. “However, prompt action to obtain reimbursement of the funds in question will be taken into consideration."

Boebert's latest issues with the FEC follow a previous ordeal involving reimbursements for gas mileage. Questions and concerns were raised about the five-figure reimbursement she received for gas mileage.

The Denver Post reports: "Boebert was paid more than $22,000 in mileage reimbursements, which would have meant she drove 38,712 miles in 2020 during a stretch of the pandemic where travel was limited."

Although the campaign filed an amended version of its records, $17,000 still covered the gas mileage reimbursement.