[Lucky9teen]

It appears to be called a "fine", no matter what the funds were to be paid back for.
,br> In the end, the House voted overwhelmingly, 395-28, to reprimand Gingrich and to fine him $300,000.

more here...

[CedarDave]

In the end, the House voted overwhelmingly, 395-28, to reprimand Gingrich and to fine him $300,000.

That was NPR's version. Here is the Washington Post's version:

Gingrich is paying $300,000 for the costs of an ethics committee investigation after admitting last year he made inaccurate statements during a lengthy probe into Democratic allegations that he misused tax-exempt donations. Gingrich denied the charges but submitted to a reprimand by the House
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/govt/leadership/stories/101198.htm.