FITZGERALD FILES ETHICS COMPLAINT AGAINST CONGRESSMAN MAX MILLER

This giant billboard, paid for by tax dollars, stares down at motorists driving on Route 237 in Brook Park.

The campaign of Democrat Ed FitzGerald has filed a formal complaint with the Office of Congressional Conduct, alleging that Rep. Max Miller (R–OH) used taxpayer-funded official resources to pay for a campaign-style billboard along Route 237 in Brook Park.

In the filing, the campaign asserts: “It appears Congressman Miller has improperly used official congressional office funds to finance a billboard located on Route 237 in Brook Park, Ohio, which primarily serves as a campaign advertisement.” 

The complaint describes the display as featuring Miller’s name in large type and a full-color photograph, with constituent-service information minimized. “The message’s focus is promotional; the small notation inviting constituents to call an unidentified number is largely illegible to passing motorists, indicating the billboard’s primary purpose is campaign promotion rather than a bona fide constituent service communication.” The filing includes a photo of the billboard as an attachment.

The complaint cites House rules separating official functions from campaign activity and quotes the House Ethics Manual’s rationale that the rule “was to create a ‘wall’ between campaign funds used only for politically related expenses on one side, and official allowances used only for official purposes on the other.” It also invokes the Anti-Deficiency Act, arguing that any official funds used for a campaign-style billboard would constitute an unauthorized expenditure.

The complaint urges the Office of Congressional Conduct to launch a formal investigation into Miller’s use of official funds and determine whether corrective action is warranted.

“Let’s just call it what it is: It’s a huge campaign ad for Congressman Max Miller, and you paid for it. Why is our tax money being used to buy billboards for a politician whose real message is just: ‘Vote for me again.’ And if he really wanted to cut waste, why not start with cutting this waste of a billboard?,” FitzGerald charged in a video shot at the site of the billboard.

The controversy has been compounded by Miller’s billboard sharing space with controversial Cleveland landlord John Williams, whose face has appeared on numerous advertisements across the region. FitzGerald called the pairing a “bizarre twist” that underscored the billboard’s political character.

The grinning face of notorious Cleveland landlord John Williams is on the other side of the Miller billboard.

FitzGerald also highlighted what he called Miller’s double standard: “But here’s what’s really hypocritical — Max Miller is cutting essential services right here in his own district for the very same people who paid for this billboard.”

FitzGerald is a former prosecutor, FBI Special Agent, and mayor who will be facing Miller in a key Congressional election in November of next year.