Complaint: Nonprofit calls for ethics investigation into DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, staff
WASHINGTON () — A watchdog nonprofit organization filed a complaint on Tuesday, calling for an investigation into D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser to determine if she accepted illegal gifts.
The Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT) filed the with the (BEGA) against the mayor and four of her staffers for trips she has taken, alleging the mayor's office has provided false information or not answered questions posed by the public and the press.
According to the complaint, Bowser and four staffers traveled to Doha, Qatar, for the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Dubai.
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'Although it must be disclosed in order to be a legal donation to the District, there was no record of who paid for the trip (with the exception of a $3,500 receipt submitted by Mayor Bowser's Chief of Staff for a three-night taxpayer-funded stay at the Atlantis-Palm Hotel in Dubai),' the complaint read.
The mayor's office initially said the trip was paid for by the D.C. Chamber of Commerce — which the Chamber said was not true. Then, officials said the trip was paid for by the U.S. Conference of Mayors. That was also false, FACT claimed.
In February of this year, FACT says the mayor's office sent a letter to Qatar 'because it was Qatar that had actually paid for the trip.'
The letter asked for a breakdown and value of expenses, describing the payments as an 'in-kind donation' and requested a donation agreement for the trip, even though it happened in 2023.
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FACT said it wasn't until a reporter filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request in March 2025 that this information was publicly revealed, showing that Qatar paid nearly $62,000 for the trip.
'As of May 2025, the District still does not have a record of Qatar paying for Bowser's 2023 trip,' the complaint continues.
In addition to their Qatar excursion, Bowser has taken other trips which have gone unreported — such as to the Masters Golf Tournament, Las Vegas, Miami and Mar-a-Lago, FACT alleged.
'The Mayor's unwillingness to provide basic information about numerous high-profile trips is unacceptable. It is not simply the Qatar trip, but a troubling pattern from Mar-A-Lago to Doha to Augusta National–the District has no record of who paid for these trips or what public purpose they served, if there was one at all,' Kendra Arnold, Executive Director of FACT, said in part.
According to , D.C. employees 'may not, directly or indirectly, solicit or accept a gift from a prohibited source; or given because of the employee's official position or duties.'
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Gifts are defined by BEGA as any gratuity, favor, discount, entertainment, loan or any item of monetary value. Such includes services, as well as transportation, local travel, lodging and meals, whether provided by purchase of a ticket, advance payment or reimbursement after the expense has been incurred.
The also said that government employees must keep 'accurate and detailed records of the acceptance and use of any gift or donation … and shall make such records available for audit and public inspection.'
'Clearly Mayor Bowser's trip to Qatar qualifies as a gift, and one that elected officials arepersonally prohibited from accepting. Additionally, this gift would not qualify as a donationmade to the District because the donation was not recorded and approved before the donationwas used,' FACT's complaint alleges. 'The District still does not even have a record of it.'
'The ethics rules exist to protect against corruption and when they are ignored, the public's trust erodes. I urge the Board to investigate and enforce the law without delay,' Arnold continued in her statement.
DC News Now reached out to the Mayor's Office for comment but did not hear back in time for publication.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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