Herb Jackson and Herb Jackson | USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — The Senate's ethics committee "severely admonished" Sen. Bob Menendez Thursday for accepting gifts and advocating for the donor's personal and business interests.

"Your actions reflected discredit upon the Senate," the four-page "public letter of adominition" said.

The letter cited Menendez's use of a private jet owned by Florida eye specialist Salomon Melgen and the senator's intervention with Medicare officials about $8.9 million Melgen was accused of overcharging the government. It also said Menendez pressed customs and State Department officials about matters that affected Melgen's business and personal affairs.

Menendez reimbursed Melgen $58,500 for three of the flights when the scandal first erupted in 2013, but the committee said he needed to pay for all the gifts and trips taken. He was also ordered to update disclosure forms for prior years to show he received the gifts.

Melgen was sentenced to 17 years in prison in February after being convicted at a separate trial of 67 counts including health care fraud, submitting false claims and falsifying patients' records.

Menendez, D-N.J., was indicted in 2015 on criminal charges related to the gifts and his advocacy. A jury in November could not reach a verdict and a mistrial was declared. The judge then acquitted Menendez of some of the most serious charges before the government dropped the remainder of its case in January.

"The fact that your criminal trial did not result in a conviction ... neither enforces nor supplants the Senate's rules or standards of conduct," the committee's six members, evenly split between the two parties, wrote.

Menendez had no immediate response.

His attorney, Marc Elias, said on Twitter that the findings of the committee were "contradicted by the presiding judge and rejected by the jury" at last fall's trial. He said Menendez "looks forward to continuing to serve the people of New Jersey."

Here is a statement as counsel to Senator Menendez in response to today's Senate Ethics Committee letter. pic.twitter.com/kuGRLSh0SW — Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) April 26, 2018

Committee members said they recognized Menendez's advocacy was "consistent with your long-held policy beliefs on Medicare and post-9/11 port security." But it said the worthiness of the cause "does not negate the duty to ensure compliance with ethical standards."

The committee also found that Menendez's efforts for Melgen "went well beyond Senate norms."

Menendez pressed the State Department to approve visas so girlfriends of Melgen could visit him in Florida, for example. He also urged the State department to intervene in a contract dispute between a company Melgen owned and the Dominican Republic goernment.

"Notably, you have not disputed the fact that you accepted numerous gifts from Dr. Melgen and took official actions related to his interests," the committee said. "Your decision to accept and your failure to disclose numerous gifts while simultaneously using your Senate office in furtherance of Dr. Melgen's interest created, at a minimum, the appearance of impropriety."

While a trial jury must find evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that someone committed a crime, the ethics committee faced a lower standard of "clear and convincing evidence." It also had to find only that Menendez violated Senate rules, not the criminal statutes prohibiting bribery and honest services fraud that he was accused of violating in his indictment.

Menendez is seeking re-election to another six-year term this year. A Monmouth University poll released April 12 found he was leading potential Republican opponent Bob Hugin, a former CEO of the pharmaceutical company Celgene, by 52% to 32% among registered voters.

Hugin said the committee's findings were the same as a guilty verdict.