A day before the House is expected to pass an overhaul of its sexual harassment rules and policies, no one showed up to testify for or against a bill that would create an independent commission to field reports of harassment and assault at the State House.
Sen. Jamie Eldridge’s bill was up before the Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight on Wednesday, but the committee adjourned after a six-minute hearing that included testimony on one unrelated bill. Eldridge was tied up with events in his district Wednesday afternoon, his office said.
Eldridge’s bill would create a nine-member commission to investigate claims of harassment from employees or interns of the Legislature, or “a person whose essential job functions are substantially related to the operation of the general court.”
The subject of the complaint would also need to fall into one of those categories or be someone who “the reporting individual reasonably believes could affect his job security or career opportunities.” The commission would publish an annual report on the complaints it received.
Eldridge, an Acton Democrat, said it is critical that the commission be independent, have broad jurisdiction and not be under the oversight of either branch of the Legislature. He said the commission’s general counsel would have subpoena power, so the commission could compel witnesses to come forward without having to disclose their identities to any lawmakers.
“I think we need a separate independent commission outside the State House that people feel comfortable making complaints to,” he told the News Service in a phone interview. “One of the things the revelations of the past few months about harassment and assault in the State House or involving elected officials have shown us is that people don’t feel comfortable reporting to the Senate or House. There needs to be an independent body where people will feel comfortable and where that information is held confidential.”
The Boston Globe in late October, based on interviews with a dozen women, reported on a “climate of harassment and sexual misconduct” at the State House. A later story, published Nov. 30, detailed allegations that Bryon Hefner, the husband of Sen. Stanley Rosenberg, made unwanted sexual advances on at least four men who do business on Beacon Hill, and claimed to wield influence over policy decisions in the Senate.
That report led Rosenberg to step down as the Senate’s leader as an outside team of lawyers investigates whether Rosenberg violated any Senate rules and whether Hefner wielded undue influence in the Senate.
Had Tuesday’s snowstorm not altered the House schedule, Eldridge’s bill would have been up for its one public hearing at the same time that the House was scheduled to be debating updates to its policies around workplace harassment, including a new investigation process for harassment claims and new human resources employees.
That debate is now expected to take place Thursday, when the House is scheduled to consider House counsel James Kennedy’s proposal for new House rules that would establish a new structure for reporting, investigating and adjudicating complaints.