Rep. Lauren Boebert failed to disclose that her husband raked in nearly $1 million from an energy company over 2 years
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Boebert revealed that her husband earned nearly $1 million between 2019-2020 for energy sector consulting.
The freshman congresswoman failed to disclose her husband's income during her campaign last year.
Boebert introduced legislation to reverse President Joe Biden's ban on oil and gas exploration on federal land.
Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert revealed this week that her husband earned nearly a million dollars over 2019 and 2020 for consulting work he did for an energy firm.
The freshman Colorado congresswoman failed to disclose her husband's income, which was $478,000 in 2020 and $460,000 in 2019, during her campaign last year, the Associated Press first reported. This failure is a violation of ethics and campaign finance laws, which require candidates to disclose their spouse's and children's income or assets.
"It is not common for members to not disclose their spouse's income because it's just a very clear requirement under the law," Kedric Payne, senior director of ethics for the Campaign Legal Center, told Insider.
In her 2020 financial disclosure statement, Boebert said her income came from a restaurant, Shooters Grill, and smokehouse she owns with her husband, Jayson. She also listed "Boebert Consulting - spouse" and recorded her husband's source of income as "N/A," according to the AP.
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Payne said Boebert should provide a "very public explanation" of the discrepancy. He expects the Office of Congressional Ethics will open an inquiry if they have questions about whether the violation was intentional. The required disclosures are designed to ensure that the public can evaluate a candidate's potential conflicts of interest.
The energy industry is a major player in Colorado's vast 3rd Congressional District and Boebert, who sits on the House Natural Resources Committee, has taken aggressively pro-oil and -gas positions. She introduced legislation earlier this year seeking to reverse President Joe Biden's ban on oil and gas leasing and permitting on some federally-owned land.
Her deputy chief of staff, Ben Stout, told the AP that Jayson Boebert "has worked in energy production for 18 years and has had Boebert Consulting since 2012."
But Boebert Consulting hasn't filed required regular reports to the state of Colorado and is classified as delinquent, The Washington Post reported. And there is no company called Terra Energy Productions registered in Colorado. There is a Texas firm called Terra Energy Partners, claiming to be "one of the largest producers of natural gas in Colorado." The congresswoman has previously said her husband is a drilling foreman on a natural gas rig and posted an Instagram photo of him wearing a "Terra" helmet in September 2020.
It's unclear whether the congresswoman's failure to disclose her husband's work and income was intentional or accidental, but the matter could be investigated by congressional ethics officials.
Boebert's office didn't respond to Insider's request for comment.
On Wednesday, the Federal Election Commission sent Boebert a letter demanding more information about four payments amounting to more than $6,000 that Boebert's campaign paid the congresswoman between May 3 and June 3. Stout told CNBC "the Venmo charges were personal expenses that were billed to the campaign account in error" and that Boebert has already reimbursed her campaign.
"If it is determined that the disbursement(s) constitutes the personal use of campaign funds, the Commission may consider taking further legal action," Shannon Ringgold, an FEC analyst, wrote.
-Dave Levinthal (@davelevinthal) August 18, 2021
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