Ethics Commission Offers Mixed Message on Jetton Consulting Work

The Missouri Ethics Commission has rendered an opinion that the political consulting business run by House Speaker Rod Jetton of Marble Hill is legal. but causes some serious concerns for the Commission. Jetton has been doing political consulting for a fellow Republican – Senator Jason Crowell of Cape Girardeau – for the past couple of years and asked the Commission whether it is legal for one lawmaker to operate a consulting business and be paid by another elected official. The Ethics Commission says while the arrangement itself might not break existing campaign finance and conflict of interest laws, there exists the possibility of the appearance of impropriety.