Congresswoman Maxine Waters has agreed to pay a $68,000 civil penalty following a Federal Election Commission (FEC) investigation into her 2020 re‑election campaign. The FEC concluded that Waters’ committee, Citizens for Waters, failed to properly report financial activity, accepted contributions beyond the legal limit, and made cash payments in violation of federal rules.

Specifically, the FEC found that seven donors contributed a total of $19,000 in excess of the allowed per‑person limit, and that those excess funds were not returned or reclassified within the required timeframe. The committee also made four cash disbursements totaling approximately $7,000, with each payment exceeding the federal $100 cap on cash transactions. As part of the settlement, the campaign must not only pay the penalty, but also ensure its treasurer participates in FEC compliance training within a year.

Waters’ campaign has characterized the violations as inadvertent, attributing them to staffing limitations during the pandemic, rather than intentional wrongdoing. It also asserts that it has since strengthened internal controls and amended its financial reports. While this is not the first time Waters’ campaign finances have been scrutinized—most notably for past payments to her daughter’s slate mailer operations—no formal violation was found in those instances.