USA Today: “[Collins] is also at the center of a House ethics investigation, one that included a previous chief of staff, and that hasn’t gone away now that he hopes to hop chambers from the House to the Senate.”

Atlanta, Ga. — New reporting from USA Today highlighted that GOP U.S. Senate candidate Mike Collins is still under active federal investigation into the illegal misuse of tax dollars. The House of Representatives Committee on Ethics announced that Collins’ investigation was referred to the Committee on October 7, 2025.

The report also reveals that Collins is “carrying a lot of political baggage” as he faces intense scrutiny over a slew of scandals, including propping up neo-Nazi propagandist David Alan Scheer, whose close ties to the congressman include being “featured in campaign photos, registered to vote at a Collins-owned property,” and “appearing at his victory party.” Scheer has also “helped produce promotional work for Collins’ trucking company.” Recent CNN reporting also revealed that Collins is refusing to say whether he ever paid the neo-Nazi propagandist either personally, or through his business, his campaign, or his office. 

USA Today: Is Mike Collins still under House ethics investigation? Where he stands
By Irene Wright | July 28, 2026

KEY EXCERPTS

• Representative Mike Collins is locked in a crucial race for a U.S. Senate seat in Georgia, and it won’t be easy to win. […]
  
• Collins is also carrying a lot of political baggage. A recent CNN investigation found his son-in-law propped up white supremacist groups and spread anti-Semitic messages to a large online audience. Collins responded by saying “nobody speaks for me,” but has yet to denounce the messages or speech used by his family member. His office has also been plagued by staffing changes as Collins works with his third chief of staff following inappropriate online posts and staff connections to Holocaust deniers.

• He is also at the center of a House ethics investigation, one that included a previous chief of staff, and that hasn’t gone away now that he hopes to hop chambers from the House to the Senate.

• […] In October 2025, the Office of Congressional Conduct transmitted a referral to the House Committee on Ethics over claims Collins may have used congressional resources for “unofficial or otherwise unauthorized purposes.” […]
  
• Collins was accused of retaining an employee who did no work for his office. The employee, a woman named Caroline Craze, was in a relationship with Phillips, Collins’ Chief of Staff at the time. Collins and Phillips were accused of paying Craze with congressional funds and “dispensing special favors or privileges,” both violations of the House rules and possibly a violation of federal law.
  
• In a January report, the ethics board recommended the investigation continue “because there is substantial reason to believe that Rep. Collins used congressional resources” to pay Craze. The Committee on Ethics said it would “continue to gather information necessary to complete its review,” but there has not been a public update to the investigation since.

• Collins long stood by Phillips, denying the accusations and continuing to work with him on his Senate campaign. But the investigation into Phillips died when he was fired for posting a joke on social media making fun of a woman who tried to take her own life after accusing Matt Lauer of rape. […]
  
• While the OCC is unable to comment on ongoing investigations, USA TODAY reached out to the office to clarify the next steps of the investigation should Collins win the Senate seat. We did not receive a response.

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