Former Lake Ozark lawmaker's attempt to overturn Missouri's revolving door ban rejected by judge

JEFFERSON CITY — A federal judge ruled last week that Missouri's two-year ban on lawmakers becoming lobbyists after their time in office would not be overturned, rejecting an argument by a former legislator that the law violated his freedom of speech.

Rep. Rocky Miller, a Lake Ozark Republican, sued the Missouri Ethics Commission last month in an attempt to block the law, alleging that his inability to register and serve a prospective client was denying him income and "bans (him) from saying certain things."

In a Thursday order, U.S. District Judge Douglas Harpool denied Miller's request, saying he "conflates his right to speak and petition with his desire to receive compensation for doing so" and that Miller's "speech is not directly burdened" by the law.

The Missouri Ethics Commission, which oversees campaign finance and lobbyist registration in the state, "has a substantial interest in regulation of quid pro quo corruption," Harpool wrote, justifying the two-year ban as defending a "sufficiently important governmental interest."

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With term limits currently in place for Missouri lawmakers, many of them pivot to lobbying to use the connections and reputation they built in Jefferson City. A 2018 ballot initiative imposed a mandatory two-year gap between the end of a lawmaker's time in office and their registration as a paid lobbyist.

"The public interest in preventing quid pro quo corruption or the appearance thereof outweighs (Miller)'s purported harm in not being permitted to be paid for speech and petitioning," Harpool wrote.

Miller left the Missouri House in 2021 after eight years due to term limits. He is a licensed engineer and was seeking to lobby on behalf of a client who he said in his lawsuit he was "uniquely qualified" to serve. Paid lobbying on behalf of a client without registering with the Missouri Ethics Commission violates state law.

Galen Bacharier covers Missouri politics & government for the News-Leader. Contact him at gbacharier@news-leader.com, (573) 219-7440 or on Twitter @galenbacharier.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Ex-lawmaker's request to overturn Missouri lobbying ban rejected