JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – House Speaker Todd Richardson, R-Poplar Bluff, officially made his revised intern policy recommendations Friday after months of deliberation and discussion. The changes were prompted after a statewide uproar demanded change in the Capitol building after former Speaker John Diehl and former Sen. Paul LeVota both stepped down due to intern-related scandals.
A PDF of the policy proposals and the Speaker’s release can be viewed here.
“These proposed policy changes are not a cure-all, but they do take significant, substantive steps toward improving the work environment in the Capitol so that interns, staff, and members can have a workplace where they are treated with respect and free from harassment,” Richardson said in a statement.
The changes include mandatory ethics and conduct training for staff and members of the House covering sexual harassment policy and procedures; that complaints of sexual harassment involving House members or the chief clerk be investigated by outside counsel; and, most significantly, a formal prohibition on relationships between House members, staff and interns.
“We’ve come up with one of the strongest sexual harassment policies that will happen in any legislature,” Rep. Kevin Engler, R-Farmington said. Engler had discussed details of the plan with Richardson before they were released and worked on the task force designed to come up with a stronger intern policy.
“Some people may say we went too far, but I’d rather go too far than not far enough,” Engler added.
“In reviewing the intern policies, we realized it was equally important to improve our sexual harassment policies so that everyone who works in the building is better protected from inappropriate behavior,” Richardson noted. “I am proud of the steps we are taking and I believe they can improve the culture in the Capitol building by putting an effective process in place for preventing and resolving these problems.
The policy changes emerge a little more than five months after Diehl’s resignation. After some silence on the issue, some Democrats began to question whether or not Richardson would set policies in time for intern placement.
House Minority Leader Jake Hummel, D-St. Louis, sent a letter to Richardson Tuesday asking why such little public action had been taken to correct the House’s policies.
“The Missouri House of Representatives is obligated to ensure interns who come to the Capitol to learn and work are protected from inappropriate sexual advances and harassment,” Hummel wrote. “However, other than a vague outline of possible policy changes informally distributed a couple months ago, no action has been taken on this matter.”
Rep. Kip Kendrick, D-Columbia, has also spoken out about the perceived lack of work being done, venting his frustrations on Twitter as recently as Friday morning after he submitted recommendations for changes in July. Kendrick backed off that criticism when the changes were made public Friday afternoon.
“The process was frustrating,” Kendrick said. “I would have liked to have seen it handled differently, but at the end of the day it comes down to the end product. If the recommendations create substantial change, then that is the most important takeaway.”
Overall, Kendrick said that while he had a few details he would like to see added, he believed the policy recommendations were generally sound.
“The non-fraternization policy is the necessary step forward,” he said. “It was a glaring hole in existing policy that needed to be filled.”
Wendy Doyle, the president and CEO of the Women’s Foundation, released a statement shortly after the changes were made public in support of Richardson’s changes.
“The Women’s Foundation is dedicated to removing barriers for women so they can achieve their full economic and leadership potential,” she said. “As long as sexual harassment exists and is enabled in the Missouri State Capitol or anywhere else, that presents a barrier for women to advance professionally and to lead in the future.”
The policy changes will now go to the House Administration and Accounts Committee, chaired by Rep. Mike Leara, R-St. Louis, for review and public hearing.
“The people of Missouri expect and deserve public servants who conduct themselves professionally and honorably, and fortunately the vast majority of my colleagues do just that on a daily basis,” Richardson said. “However, we still have work to do if we are going to eliminate all inappropriate behavior from the workplace and create an environment we can all take pride in, and the people of Missouri can be proud of as well.”
“While I am Speaker, sexual harassment will not be tolerated.”
