Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse lashed out at FBI Director Kash Patel last week, claiming Patel will "cause evil" at the agency.

However, a watchdog group is now charging that the senator and his wife are guilty of serious ethics violations. 

Senator's wife has received $2,686,800 from non-profit group

According to Fox News, that allegation was put forward by the Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT) this week.

FACT noted how tax documents show that since 2010, Sandra Whitehouse has received a total of $2,686,800 from Ocean Conservancy through a salary as well as payments to her consulting firm.

COMPLAINT FILED: For years Sen. Whitehouse's wife has been employed by organizations getting millions of taxpayer-dollars in grants. These circular relationships between elected officials, their spouses, lobby groups & NGO's need to be closely scrutinized.https://t.co/2GWN3QhSp9

— FACT DC (@factdc) February 25, 2025

Ocean Conservancy has been the recipient of $14.2 million worth of federal grants since 2008, with some of that money coming from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, a law which Sen. Whitehouse voted for.

That information was highlighted in a press release put out on Tuesday afternoon by FACT's executive director Kendra Arnold.

FACT says Mrs. Whitehouse benefitted from husband's votes

"While these two grants alone appear to be a conflict of interest, it is even more egregious in the context of Senator Whitehouse’s long history of working on legislation being lobbied for by organizations tied to his wife," Arnold wrote.

"Altogether, Ocean Conservancy has spent millions on federal lobbying expenses over the years on issues relating to oceans, climate change, and environmental cleanup—issues directly championed by Senator Whitehouse, a longtime member (and current Ranking Member) of the Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee and the co-founder of the Senate’s so-called 'Oceans Caucus," she added.

FACT is asking the Senate Select Committee on Ethics to investigate whether the lawmaker "violated the Senate ethics rules on conflicts of interest."

Meanwhile, Jeff Watters serves as Ocean Conservancy’s vice president of external affairs, and he pushed back on FACT'S allegations in a statement provided to Fox News.

Ocean Conservancy defends its record

"Dr. Sandra Whitehouse, a well-respected marine ecologist and ocean policy consultant, has not received compensation from these federal grants allocated to Ocean Conservancy," Watters was quoted as saying.

"For 40 years, Ocean Conservancy has been a global leader in marine debris cleanup through our signature initiative, the International Coastal Cleanup," he asserted.

"The marine debris cleanup grants Ocean Conservancy received from NOAA came from laws passed with broad bipartisan support that then went through a competitive, independent selection process which designated Ocean Conservancy to be one among hundreds of NGOs to receive funding," Watters maintained.

Ocean Conservancy’s vice president went on to insist that his group's "selection was based on our decades of expertise in addressing marine debris and protecting the ocean."