The Board of Office of Congressional Ethics just released findings (with extensive  supporting documents) that there is "substantial reason to believe" Rep. Bobby Rush's state and federal campaign committees violated Illinois state law, House rules, and federal law.

The Washington Post reports,

"Rush, 67, has not paid an estimated $365,040 in rent for office space in a shopping center on Chicago's South Side over 20 years, according to the OCE investigation. The free rent, essentially an in-kind campaign contribution, violates House rules and state and federal law, the report said.

Rush originally rented the office space in 1989 when he was elected as a Chicago alderman and the City of Chicago paid office rent as part of his official duties. Since being elected to Congress in 1993, he has failed to pay rent while using the space intermittently for his reelection campaign and political responsibilities as a Cook County ward committeeman and a State Democratic Party committeeman, according to several of his aides who spoke with investigators.

The OCE report said that Rush understood that his rent was paid for by the Chicago city government when he was an alderman. In the years since, Rush said "that he has never paid rent for use of the office space and that he has never been asked to pay rent," according to the report.

Investigators found that on at least one occasion in 2009, the building's landlord, Draper & Kramer Property Management, agreed to waive $20,044.18 in unpaid office rent. A property manager told investigators that the company had set a "precedent" of not collecting rent from Rush prior to her taking control of the account and that company officials had never instructed her to seek rent money."

When contacting Jimmy Lee Tillman, II for comment he replied "As stated earlier, we are keeping our campaign open and plan to continue to campaign in lieu of the Special Election that's evident. We have only to look at the 2nd district in 2012 as precedent."