U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) has been found to have broken the rules of the U.S. House of Representatives. 

As a result, Fox News reports that Ocasio-Cortez has been financially penalized.

With the amount of money that she is making, however, it is unlikely that she will notice a $3,000 fine.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez received a gentle spanking from the House Ethics Committee, which ruled she broke congressional rules with her 2021 appearance at the Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York -- and the attention-grabbing... https://t.co/ryaJKAfD1Y

— The Washington Times (@WashTimes) July 25, 2025

She underpayed

You may remember a publicity stunt that Ocasio-Cortez pulled back in 2021, when she attended the MET Gala. There, she infamously wore a dress with the words "Tax the Rich" on it.

It now turns out that Ocasio-Cortez underpaid for gifts related to her apparel.

Breitbart News quotes the House Ethics Committee as writing;

The Committee determined that Representative Ocasio-Cortez’s conduct was inconsistent with House Rules, laws, and other standards of conduct with respect to her acceptance of certain goods and services associated with her attendance at the 2021 Met Gala, and her delay in making appropriate payment for their receipt. While the Committee did not find that Representative Ocasio-Cortez’s violations were knowing and willful, she nonetheless received impermissible gifts and must bear responsibility for the other conduct that occurred with respect to the delays in payment.

For this violation, Ocasio-Cortez has been ordered to pay $2,733 "to vendors for the additional value of her."

Also, she has been ordered "to donate $250 for her fiancée Riley Roberts’ ticket to the Cosmetic Institute."

Ocasio-Cortez responds

It would appear that Ocasio-Cortez has decided not to make a big fuss out of this situation.

Her chief of staff, Mike Casca, said:

The Congresswoman appreciates the Committee finding that she made efforts to ensure her compliance with House Rules and sought to act consistently with her ethical requirements as a Member of the House. She accepts the ruling and will remedy the remaining amounts, as she’s done at each step in this process.

Previously, Ocasio-Cortez tried to blame the situation on her staff.

In 2023, she told investigators:

I just never, ever, ever would have allowed that to happen, knowing what I have learned. But I wasn't privy to the invoices, wasn't privy to the ones that had been sent.

Either way, it would appear that Ocasio-Cortez has essentially been let off the hook this time around.