Professional Responsibility Committee
| Name | Service Start | Service End |
|---|---|---|
| Elise Brown, chair | 2024 | 2025 |
| Rocky Dallum | 2024 | 2025 |
| Betsy Earls | 2024 | 2025 |
| Pamela Leavitt | 2024 | 2025 |
| Elizabeth Remley | 2024 | 2025 |
| Matt Swanson | 2024 | 2025 |
| Vacant |
Article VI. Rules of the Professional Responsibility Committee
1. The Professional Responsibility Committee shall investigate all allegations, properly submitted, of improper behavior on the part of any lobbyist who is a member in good standing of the Capitol Club. Should the Capitol Club Board determine a member has violated the code of conduct, they may impose membership-related sanctions, as listed in Subsection 6, on a member. 2. Who May File: a. Any person, including members of the Capitol Club, elected officials, and employees of the legislative assembly or the State of Oregon, may bring a complaint against a member of the Capitol Club, acting in the course of their duties as a lobbyist, to the leadership of the Capitol Club or the Professional Responsibility Committee. b. The Professional Responsibility Committee may investigate matters on its own motion. 3. A complaint is considered justified when it: a. Alleges that a Standard of Conduct as specified in Article I of these Bylaws has been violated; or b. Alleges that the complainant, or an employee or agent of the complainant, has been subjected to dishonest or unprofessional treatment by a member of the Capitol Club. c. Alleges that the Policy on a Harassment Free Workplace has been violated. 4. Filing of Complaints a. Except complaints of harassment, any complaint brought against any member of the Capitol Club must be filed in writing and delivered to an officer of the Capitol Club within ten (10) working days of the alleged occurrence of improper behavior. The officer will deliver the complaint to the Chair of the Professional Responsibility Committee within one (1) working day of its receipt. b. Complaints of harassment against any member of the Capitol Club will be addressed in coordination with the Legislative Equity Office. Complaints may be filed verbally or in writing and delivered to an officer of the Capitol Club or directly to the Equity Office within (5) years of the alleged occurrence of improper behavior. The officer will deliver the complaint to the Equity Office within one (1) working day of its receipt. c. The Professional Responsibility Committee or the committee chair shall notify the accused within one (1) working day of the receipt of the complaint, or if the accused is not readily available, as soon as is practicable. A copy of the complaint shall be delivered to the accused. d. “Delivery” in this Article VI may be accomplished through personal delivery, electronic mail, telecopy, express mail service or US Postal Service first class mailing. If delivery is by US Postal Service first class mailing, it shall be deemed delivered 3 days after mailing. 5. Mediation-Seeking Informal Dispute Resolution a. When the legislature is in regular or special session, if both the complainant and the accused agree to mediation, the Professional Responsibility committee may hold an initial mediation meeting between the complainant and the accused within five (5) working days of the delivery of the complaint to the accused. b. When the legislature is not in regular or special session, if both the complainant and the accused agree to mediation, the Professional Responsibility Committee may hold an initial mediation meeting between the complainant and the accused within ten (10) working days of the delivery of the complaint to the accused. c. The purpose of the mediation session or sessions is to informally resolve the matter in a mutually agreeable manner. Mediation sessions will be open only to the accused, the complainant and the Professional Responsibility Committee members unless the committee decides otherwise. d. If either the complainant or the accused refuses to participate in mediation or other informal efforts to resolve the complaint, the committee shall proceed to consider the complaint pursuant to the formal dispute resolution provisions of section 6 of this article. The committee also may initiate formal proceedings at any time it determines that further informal proceedings are unlikely to be successful. e. Unless it agrees otherwise, the Professional Responsibility Committee shall decide within five (5) working days of the initial mediation session whether the matter should go to a formal hearing because mediation has failed or whether the matter should go to a hearing if conditions agreed to at the mediation are not fulfilled. Nothing in this section shall be construed to preclude the committee, the committee chair or a subcommittee from meeting individually with the accused or the complainant in order to resolve the complaint informally. f. The complainant and accused may agree to extend any of the deadlines in this Article VI. 6. Hearing-Formal Dispute Resolution a. When the legislature is in regular or special session, in the event the Professional Responsibility Committee decides to conduct a formal hearing, the hearing shall be held within ten (10) working days of delivery of the complaint to the accused or within five (5) days of the Professional Responsibility Committee’s decision to hold the hearing, whichever is later. b. When the legislature is not in regular or special session, in the event the Professional Responsibility Committee decides to conduct a formal hearing, the hearing shall be held within twenty (20) working days of delivery of the complaint to the accused or within five (5) days of the Professional Responsibility Committee’s decision to hold the hearing, whichever is later. c. Each party to the complaint shall have a full opportunity to be heard, to call witnesses on their behalf and to be represented by counsel. The hearing shall be open only to the Professional Responsibility Committee members, the accused, the complainant, counsel and to witnesses only during their testimony. d. Within five (5) working days of the end of the hearing, the Professional Responsibility Committee shall render its conclusion that the accused is either guilty or innocent of the charges set forth in the complaint. If the committee concludes that the accused is guilty, written findings of fact and recommended sanctions, if any, shall be forwarded immediately to the Board of Directors, for their review and concurrence prior to any sanction being officially imposed. e. Complaints and Professional Responsibility Committee proceedings will be treated as confidential. f. If the accused is found guilty of the charges, the sanctions that may be imposed by the Board include one or more of the following: 1. Verbal reprimands. 2. Probation with a return to full membership status dependent upon the satisfactory completion of conditions designed to rectify the violation, such as the execution of a formal written apology to those involved. 3. Termination or non-renewal of membership under such terms and conditions as the board deems warranted. 4. Notice of the decision of the Board distributed to the members of the Capitol Club. g. Both the complainant and the accused shall be notified by: 1. The chair of the Professional Responsibility Committee if the accused is found not guilty of the complaint. 2. The President of the sanction or sanctions determined by the Board upon a finding of guilt by the Professional Responsibility Committee. 7. Appeal In the event of a finding of guilty, the accused may elect to appeal the matter to the full membership of the Capitol Club at the next annual meeting or at a special meeting called by the Board of Directors. For purposes of this appeal, full membership means all members present at the meeting. Either party to the complaint shall have a full opportunity to be heard and to be rep resented by counsel during such an appeal. The Capitol Club membership, by a majority of those voting, shall dispose of the complaint by affirming the sanction or sanctions imposed by the Board of Directors, by reversing the Board’s decision to impose sanctions, or by modifying the sanction or sanctions imposed by the Board.