Mo. housing agency to redo secret vote on ethics

A Missouri agency that finances low-income housing will redo a vote on ethics policy changes that occurred in a closed session.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Thursday that it raised concerns the closed meeting by a subcommittee of the Missouri Housing Development Commission may have violated the state's open-meetings law.

The group met privately Tuesday to discuss a lawsuit by a former employee who wants to work as a consultant on projects that may come before the commission. In that closed meeting, the subcommittee endorsed changes to an ethics rule that includes a one-year ban on former employees seeking to influence the commission on behalf of private firms.

Agency director Margaret Lineberry told the Post-Dispatch the subcommittee will meet again to vote on the ethics policy in a public session.