The public meeting could provide the first details of the House panel’s still-undisclosed recommendations involving the Seminole Republican.
OKLAHOMA CITY — The House Rules Committee will meet Thursday morning to publicly take up recommendations involving state Rep. Danny Williams after members reached agreement during three days of closed-door review earlier this month.
The meeting is set for 9 a.m. in Room 206 at the state Capitol. It will be the committee’s first public consideration of what, if anything, the House should do in response to allegations concerning the Seminole Republican’s workplace behavior.
Recommendations remain undisclosed
Rules Committee Chairman Mike Osburn, R-Edmond, announced Sept. 10 that the committee had reached agreement on recommendations to present to House Speaker Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow.
“After thorough discussion and consideration of the information presented to the committee, we have reached an agreement on recommendations to present to the speaker,” Osburn said.
Osburn did not disclose the recommendations. The House also has not released the investigative reports or detailed allegations reviewed by the committee.
It remains unclear whether the recommendations call for disciplinary action and, if so, whether House leadership could carry it out or the full House would have to act. Expulsion, the most severe action available to the House, would require approval by two-thirds of its members.
Review began with employee complaint
Hilbert previously said he learned early in the summer of a complaint alleging improper conduct by Williams toward a House employee. Additional allegations prompted investigations by House human resources staff and an outside law firm, and concerns about potential misuse of state resources also emerged.
Hilbert referred the findings to the Rules Committee, removed Williams from his committee chairmanships and relocated his Capitol office. Williams has denied wrongdoing.
Thursday’s meeting comes less than six weeks before the Nov. 3 general election. Williams faces Democrat Blake Cummings in House District 28, which includes Seminole County and part of Pottawatomie County.
Separate ethics investigation remains open
The Oklahoma Ethics Commission is conducting a separate formal investigation involving Williams. The commission authorized the investigation Aug. 13 after determining there was reasonable cause to believe he may have violated Ethics Rule 4, which governs conflicts of interest.
The reasonable-cause determination allowed the investigation to proceed; it was not a finding that Williams violated ethics rules. The commission’s public notice did not identify the conduct under investigation, and the public record has not established whether it concerns the same conduct examined by the House.
