JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — A former state lawmaker wants to overturn a law barring members of the Missouri House and Senate from lobbying their former colleagues for two years after they leave office.
Rocky Miller, a Republican from Lake Ozark who left the House in January, filed a civil rights lawsuit in federal court Thursday against the Missouri Ethics Commission, saying the mandatory “cooling off” period for lawmakers seeking to become lobbyists is unconstitutional.
“Miller has lost income and faces the prospect of additional lost income, civil penalties and criminal conviction and penalties, the cost and expense of defending himself, and public embarrassment if MEC takes official action to enforce the lobbying ban against him,” the lawsuit says.
The legal action is in response to a 2018 voter-led change in the state constitution that barred lawmakers from immediately jumping into the lobbying ranks after they leave office.
In enacting the provision as part of a citizen-led overhaul of state ethics laws, voters were attempting to address a common practice in the Missouri Capitol, where lawmakers have quickly moved into the lobbying ranks.
A St. Louis Post-Dispatch tally shows at least 50 former Missouri legislators have registered to wine and dine their former colleagues, including former House Speaker Steve Tilley, R-Perryville, who has a lengthy roster of clients and is an ally and fundraiser for Gov. Mike Parson.
Others include former Senate Presidents Michael Gibbons and Tom Dempsey, both of who patrol the same marble corridors on behalf of their clients that they walked when they were serving in the Legislature.
At least 32 states impose waiting periods for lawmakers looking to move into lobbying, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
The two-year waiting period is commonly referred to as a revolving door prohibition, aimed at preventing elected officials from currying favor from special interests while in office and from having undue influence on former colleagues after leaving office, according to an ethics commission opinion issued in February.
In the lawsuit, Miller, a licensed professional engineer who left the House because of term limits, said he was approached by a potential client to lobby on environmental engineering issues. He claims the two-year prohibition is hurting him financially and infringing on his First Amendment rights to free expression.
“The First Amendment loathes burdens on free speech,” the lawsuit notes. “Likewise, discriminating on the basis of the speaker’s identity is just as impermissible.”
The lawsuit, which names the ethics commission and its director as defendants, says the lobbying ban “serves no lawful purpose.”
Miller, 56, is seeking a temporary restraining order in the U.S District Court for the Western District of Missouri that would stop the MEC from enforcing the ban.
MEC Executive Director Elizabeth Zeigler did not respond to a request for comment.
Miller said he would let the lawsuit speak for itself.
During his tenure in the House, which began in 2013, Miller championed legislation that would require both parents or legal guardian to be notified prior to a minor having an abortion.
He also tried to alter state law to allow for a gambling casino to be located in the Lake of the Ozarks region.
Miller also had a run-in with the House Ethics Committee, which found he had engaged in “unbecoming” conduct by creating a false rumor that another lawmaker was having an affair with a House employee.
An outside investigation concluded that Miller’s actions weren’t severe enough to qualify as sexual harassment under federal or state law but may have violated the House’s sexual harassment policy. The ethics panel did not recommend any action against Miller.
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