JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – A Missouri ethics panel is at an impasse over reported misconduct by the powerful speaker of the state House, who allegedly used his office to obstruct an investigation into his actions.
A draft of the Ethics Commission report recommends that the House of Representatives formally denounce actions taken by Republican Speaker Dean Plocher that “substantially erode public confidence in the General Assembly.”
Committee members voted 6-2 against the report, but made it public Monday. Another Ethics Commission 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 tried to use his influence as speaker last year to get the House to contract with a company for a new constituent services program called Fireside.
Fireside’s parent company, FiscalNote, had hired lobbyists from Bardgett and Associates in an effort to win a two-year, $776,000 contract with the House of Representatives, independent researcher Beth Boggs wrote in a March 1 report. Plocher worked as a lawyer at the law firm Blitz, Bardgett and Deutsch.
Plocher also faces allegations that he improperly solicited taxpayer money to pay for a business class ticket for a flight to Hawaii, as well as the cost of several other business trips dating back to 2018.
Plocher admitted to accepting reimbursements for travel expenses from both the state and his political campaign, in violation of Missouri law. He has since repaid the state about $4,000.
The Ethics Committee had difficulty investigating claims about Plocher’s dealings with Fireside.
Boggs wrote in a March 1 letter to the committee that she hit a roadblock because witnesses, including Plocher, refused to talk to her.
“The level of fear expressed by a number of potential witnesses is a discouraging factor in completing this investigation,” Boggs wrote.
When the Ethics Commission asked the speaker, Plocher, for permission to compel witnesses to testify through subpoenas, he refused, the report said.
The draft report alleges that Plocher, as speaker, blocked payment of the independent investigator hired by the House to investigate him. In total, the study cost approximately $17,000 to complete.
According to the draft report, contractors have not been paid because the speaker’s approval is needed.
Missouri lawmakers have about a month left before the 2024 legislative session.
