Republican State Representative Lynn Bechler of west Kentucky said he believes former House Speaker Jeff Hoover’s sexual harassment scandal might “torpedo” the proposed pension reform bill.
Hoover was heavily involved with the creation of the bill, and resigned Sunday in the wake of reports saying he settled a sexual harassment lawsuit.
Bechler said, however, even though Hoover was involved with the bill on a day-to-day basis, he expects the rest of the House leadership to still champion the measure.
“The entire House leadership team -from our perspective- was involved in it," Bechler said. "And I have every confidence in the world in Speaker Pro Tem David Osborne to continue the dialogue.”
Bechler said he believes Hoover’s resignation was the right thing to do, and that it would be “almost impossible to get anything done” if he chose to stay.
He said he was shocked to hear of the news about Hoover and that the whole situation puts him at a loss for words. He said any kind of sexual harassment is reprehensible.