Florida Republican Congressman Cory Mills is being sued over his alleged failure to pay $85,009 in rent for his Washington DC luxury penthouse apartment. Lashing out at a journalist after the news broke, Mills blamed the problem on the apartment's payment system -- but he's allegedly been late on 18 out of 24 payments since he moved in two years ago.
According to the legal complaint filed in DC Superior Court last week and first reported on X by the Daily Beast's Roger Sollenberger, Mills didn't pay $85,009 in rent covering the period between March and July, a sum that does not include late fees. His monthly rent for the posh quarters overlooking the Potomac River is $20,833, well above his base salary of $14,500 a month. However, Quiver Quantitative estimates his net worth is $24 million.
According to the apartment's website, the property offers “the services and amenities of a world-class hotel,” with Mills' penthouse boasting "access through private elevators for discrete comings and goings ... captivating views in every residence serve as scenic backdrops for everyday living."
Responding to Sollenberger's reporting, Mills posted screenshots of two emails he'd sent to the apartment managers -- on June 17 and July 3 -- asking for payment links. "Facts are a finicky thing but wouldn’t expect you to be anything other than a biased hack!" wrote Mills.
However, a ledger of Mills' payments that was attached to the legal complaint shows him repeatedly racking up late-payment charges of more than $850 each during the time he's lived in the building. In January, the apartment complex owner gave formal notice to Mills that he owed $18,229, along with a "notice of intent to file a lawsuit."
This isn't the first unflattering allegation against the 44-year-old congressman that relate to his Maryland Avenue address. In February, news broke that DC police were investigating him after an assault complaint was made by 27-year-old Sarah Raviani, who co-founded Iranians for Trump.
Though police requested a search warrant, prosecutors denied their request and declined to press charges. Raviani retracted the allegations she'd made to a 911 operator and first responders. She later told the Washington Post "no physical altercation took place." An initial Florida Politics report on Raviani's police complaint said "force was used to move Raviani to another location." Controversy arose over police officers' decision not to take Mills into custody when they responded to the 911 call, in light of her allegations and her purportedly observable injuries.
In March, a House Ethics Committee probe was launched after the Office of Congressional Conduct reported several potential violations by Mills, including:
- "Mills may have omitted or misrepresented required information in his financial disclosure statements"
- "Mills's campaign committee may have accepted excessive contributions in the form of personal loans and contributions that may not have derived from Rep. Mills’s personal funds"
- "Mills' may have entered into, enjoyed, or held contracts with federal agencies" in violation of "House rules, standards of conduct, and federal law."
Mills co-founded munitions manufacturer and security contractor Pacem Solutions. An Army veteran who has made his military service a major thrust of his campaigns, Mills was awarded a Bronze Star for having given "life-saving care" to two soldiers at "great risk to his own life" while "under intense enemy fire" in Iraq. However, doubts have been raised about the claims in the citation. One of the supposedly-saved soldiers said he didn't have life-threatening injuries, and "I don't recall [Mills] being there either," while the other one called the incident a "fabrication."
Mills represents Florida's 7th congressional district stretches between Orlando and Daytona Beach. The second-termer has already indicated he's likely to run for Senate next year. According to Florida Politics, Mills told reporters in January, "You can probably guarantee my hat is going to be thrown in the ring for 2026.”
Meanwhile, his rivals have a growing stack of ammo...
