Ethics watchdog the Foundation for Accountability & Civic Trust (FACT) filed a complaint accusing Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., of allegedly violating Senate ethics policy by advocating for legislation to award his wife’s nonprofit $7 million.

The senator’s wife, Sandra Whitehouse, works for advocacy group Ocean Conservancy, which received more than $14 million in government grants since she started in 2008. Half of this money came in fall 2024 alone and was supported by her husband, FACT wrote.

“Sen. Whitehouse directly voted for legislation that recently led to $6.9 million of taxpayer funds being paid to an organization for which his wife works and receives an income from,” the complaint reads. “This circular relationship appears to be directly contrary to the Senate rules that broadly prohibit Senators from using the power of their office to benefit or appear to benefit themselves or their spouses.

“We request the Senate Ethics Committee conduct a full investigation into Senator Whitehouse’s actions that, at a minimum, have created an appearance of a conflict of interest.”

Reacting to the complaint was Ocean Conservancy, which said the accusations have already been “debunked.”

“Dr. Sandra Whitehouse, a well-respected marine ecologist and ocean policy consultant, has not received compensation from these federal grants allocated to Ocean Conservancy,” Ocean Conservancy’s Vice President of External Affairs Jeff Watters wrote.

“The letter sent by the ‘Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust’ to the Senate Ethics Committee this week is similar to a letter sent by another organization one year ago,” he said. “The Senate Ethics Committee reviewed that complaint, and issued a letter on August 16, 2024 dismissing the complaint, stating: ‘The Committee carefully evaluated the allegations in the complaint and, based on all the information before it, the Committee concluded that Senator Whitehouse’s actions did not violate federal law, Senate Rules, and other standards of conduct.’ ”

A spokesperson for Whitehouse blamed “dark money” and Department of Government Efficiency head Elon Musk for the complaint filed against the senator.

“This is a repeat dark money performance, and the previous attempt by a dark money group to plant these same smears was roundly dismissed by Senate Ethics,” the spokesperson said. “The billionaires and Supreme Court capture operatives behind FACT would like to try to stop Sen. Whitehouse from shining a light on what they’ve done to deprive regular people of a fair shake before the Court.”

“But false accusations from far-right special interests and billionaires like Elon Musk — who is trying to silence critics of his raid on federal agencies — will not impede the Senator’s pursuit of an accountable, ethical government that responds to Americans’ needs.”

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