A new development has come to light in the aftermath of sexual harassment complaints at the state capitol.
House Speaker Beth Harwell said she has planned to ask for a change to House rules in January to allow sexual harassment complaints to be heard by the Ethics Committee.
Any change must be approved by the Rules Committee and adopted by the House of Representatives
This all followed an investigation into former Representative Jeremy Durham after almost two dozen women at the capitol accused him of harassment. He was later expelled.
Harwell released the following statement:
"Currently, the House rules do not allow the Ethics Committee to hear sexual harassment complaints. In January, I will propose a rule change to the House Rules Committee whereby sexual harassment violations will be heard by the Ethics Committee, while protecting the confidentiality of complainants. The Ethics Committee will be able to recommend action to the entire House. This is appropriate given that the state constitution only allows the House as a whole to discipline members. Any change must be approved by the Rules Committee and adopted by the House of Representatives.
In addition, I will be implementing a House policy change whereby the number of violations of the Workplace Discrimination and Harassment Policy are reported annually."