SPRINGFIELD – Members of the Illinois General Assembly’s bipartisan Legislative Ethics Commission (LEC) have voted unanimously to publish the report concerning the complaint against former State Representative Harry Benton (D).
Following the vote, Commission Chair State Representative Jeff Keicher released the following statement: “After considering the matter before us for case number 26-005 concerning the complaint against former Rep. Harry Benton, we voted to publish the report pursuant to our statutory obligations. To protect the privacy of those involved in this case, the respondent and complainant will be given the opportunity to review the report for potential redactions, which the Commission will review.”
Senator Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro), a member of the Legislative Ethics Commission (LEC), issued the following statement after the LEC announced plans to release the Legislative Inspector General’s report concerning allegations against former Democratic State Representative Harry Benton:
“Serving on the Legislative Ethics Commission is a responsibility I take very seriously. I am humbled to be entrusted with helping uphold the integrity and accountability the people of Illinois deserve from their government.
“I want to thank the Legislative Inspector General’s office for their thorough investigation, as well as my fellow members of the Legislative Ethics Commission for their work throughout this process.
As Keicher stated, now that the LEC has voted to make the report public, the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act requires the respondent and complainant to be permitted to review the report, offer redaction suggestions, and provide a response to be published with the report, if they wish. The LEC intends to have this process completed by July 31st.
The members of the LEC include Chairperson and State Representative Jeff Keicher (R), State Representatives Kelly Cassidy (D), Steven Reick (R), and Maurice West (D), and State Senators Terri Bryant (R), Cristina Castro (D), Linda Holmes (D), and Jil Tracy (R).