Draft report says Missouri's House speaker stymied ethics investigation into his spending
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri ethics panel is at an impasse over reported misconduct by the powerful state House speaker, who allegedly used his office to stymie an investigation into his actions.
A draft of the Ethics Committee report recommended that the House formally denounce actions taken by Republican Speaker Dean Plocher that “substantially impair public confidence in the General Assembly.”
Committee members voted 6-2 against the report but made it publicly available Monday. Another Ethics Committee hearing is scheduled for Wednesday.
Plocher did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press on Tuesday.
At issue are complaints that Plocher last year tried to use his influence as speaker to get the House to contract with a company for a new constituent services program called Fireside.
Fireside’s parent company, FiscalNote, had hired Bardgett and Associates lobbyists in an attempt to win a $776,000 two-year contract with the House, independent investigator Beth Boggs wrote in a March 1 report. Plocher worked as a lawyer at the Blitz, Bardgett and Deutsch law firm.
Related articles
Sparks move home game against Caitlin Clark and Indiana from Long Beach to downtown Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Caitlin Clark’s first WNBA game in Los Angeles is being moved to a bigger stage.T2024-05-08- Several Chinese sci-fi writers as well as China's sci-fi blockbuster "The Wandering Earth I2024-05-08
- Several Chinese sci-fi writers as well as China's sci-fi blockbuster "The Wandering Earth I2024-05-08
Charlotte the virgin stingray is growing something besides just babies, her caretakers reveal
Charlotte the stingray, who earned a rabid following ever since she apparently got pregnant all by h2024-05-08- The victim of a road-rage driver who went viral for screaming abuse at her outside a Tesco has said2024-05-08
Koke extends Atletico Madrid contract until 2025
Atletico de Madrid's Koke (R) vies with Cadiz's Oussama Idrissi during the La Liga match bet2024-05-08
atest comment