Parson fills Missouri Ethics Commission vacancies after five dismissed complaints
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson on Wednesday announced two new members to the Missouri Ethics Commission, providing enough members for the ethics watchdog to take action on complaints after more than two months without a quorum.
Parson appointed former state Rep. Kathie Conway of Wentzville and William Villapiano of Houston, Missouri, the governor’s office announced.
Both appointees are Republicans. Their appointments are interim, meaning the Missouri Senate will have to confirm them when the legislature reconvenes in January.
The appointments mean there are now four members on the commission — enough for the group to meet. The panel, which investigates ethics complaints against public officials and lobbyists, had been without a quorum since March 16, leaving the state without a commission to oversee campaign finance laws in preparation for the upcoming 2022 election.
Without enough members, the group was forced to dismiss or take “no action” on five complaints since March. Asked about the lack of a quorum last week, spokesperson Kelli Jones told The Star that Parson had planned to make the appointments on June 1.
“As interim appointments, they can start serving with immediate effect and don’t have to go through the confirmation process until the next legislative session begins,” she wrote in an email.
Conway served in the state legislature from 2010 to 2018, according to the governor’s office. She previously worked as an investigator for Sedgwick Claims Management Services in St. Louis and the Missouri Real Estate Commission.
Villapiano has served as a minister for Faith Fellowship, a nondenominational church in Houston, since 1984, the announcement said. He is also the chairman of the Association of Faith Churches and Ministers International.
With the addition of Conway and Villapiano, there are now three Republicans, one Democrat and two vacancies on the non-partisan panel. The group is set to hold a teleconference meeting on Thursday, according to the commission’s calendar.
Over the last two months, the commission was forced to dismiss a February complaint filed against Hickman Mills School Board members Bryon Townsend and Daron McGee, alleging violation of school board purchasing policies.
The panel earlier this month also could not act on a complaint against St. Louis County Council member Rita Heard Days that alleged “improper identification of the committee’s name and treasurer on campaign materials.”
