The House Ethics Committee has reportedly concluded its years-long investigation into Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s 2021 Met Gala appearance, but not without handing down a sharp rebuke — and a bill.
The progressive firebrand from New York has been directed to make nearly $3,000 in additional payments related to her now-infamous “Tax the Rich” dress and associated costs, after the Committee found she had accepted gifts that exceeded federal limits and House rules.
While the Committee stopped short of finding the violations “knowing and willful,” the outcome underscores persistent questions about how Ocasio-Cortez has navigated the very ethical boundaries she’s often quick to demand from others.
Though she previously paid $990.76 for the designer dress and accessories she wore to the exclusive Met Gala, the bipartisan panel found that amount fell far short of the outfit’s actual fair market rental value.
The gown — a custom Brother Vellies creation emblazoned with a slogan attacking the wealthy — was determined to have cost roughly $6,279 to create and would have rented for closer to $2,976.29. The Ethics Committee noted bluntly that the designer’s estimate was “vastly undervalued” and “unrealistic.”
Her fiancé’s meal, valued at $250, was also found to violate House gift rules. She’s been directed to donate that amount to the Met’s Costume Institute. Additional payments are expected to cover a floral hairpiece rental valued at $36.71.
The Committee concluded that “efforts to estimate the cost failed to account for the true cost of such unique goods,” particularly given that the custom-made items were unlikely to have value to other clients after the event.
It also criticized Ocasio-Cortez’s team for referencing the popular mass-market service Rent the Runway as a pricing comparison — an analogy the panel dismissed outright as “inapposite.”
The controversy, which sparked national headlines after the self-proclaimed democratic socialist paraded through one of the world’s most exclusive red carpets, drew attention not only for the message on her dress but also for the luxury and apparent hypocrisy surrounding it.
The Met Gala is an elite event with individual tickets costing up to $35,000, and Ocasio-Cortez’s presence was viewed by critics as performative at best — and rule-bending at worst.
Her chief of staff, Mike Casca, said in a statement that the Congresswoman “appreciates the Committee finding that she made efforts to ensure her compliance with House Rules” and would comply with the directive to pay the remaining amount.
In total, Ocasio-Cortez has now paid more than $10,000 to account for the cost of the evening, according to her counsel.
Those expenses include makeup, transportation, hotel stays, and other services — many of which were delayed in being paid for months, according to vendor complaints cited in the original 2023 report by what is now called the Office of Congressional Conduct.
While the Committee ultimately decided the delays were not intentional, the investigation served as a reminder that even the most vocal critics of privilege and excess are not immune to the very scrutiny they often demand of others.
As the Ethics Committee put it, the matter is now considered closed. But for many Americans watching the saga unfold, the image of a politician wearing a designer gown preaching “Tax the Rich” may prove harder to forget.
[READ MORE: Trump Floats Rebate Checks as Tariff Revenue Soars]
About Post Author
