Conflict of Interest? What Conflict of Interest?

Submitted by .Sean on March 18, 2010 - 1:53pm

Shouldn't legislators abstain from votes on legislation that affects their personal income?

During this week's House debate on HB1472, Majority Leader Steve Tilley (R-Perryville) and Rep. David Sater (R-Cassville) spoke and voted against an amendment to require prescriptions to buy pseudoephedrine.  Under current law, the cold medicine is only sold behind counters at pharmacies, but amendment sponsor Jeff Roorda (D-Barnhart) wants to require prescriptions for use because it is abused to create methamphetamine.  After some debate, the House rejected Roorda's proposal.

Tilley and Sater are very familiar with how this change in law would impact pharamicists' bottom lines: Sater is a licensed pharmacist, and Tilley is married to a pharmacist. Kellie Tilley receives income from two companies in Perryville: Tricorex, Inc. and Convenient Healthcare Clinic.*  Tricorex is a pharmacy and wholesale drug distributor. 

Tilley was especially vocal in his opposition to the pseudoephedrine amendment.  He questioned Roorda on the House floor and spoke against the amendment -- actions that are extremely rare for Tilley now that he's serving as Majority Leader.   Listen:

Tilley was unusually forceful in his opposition to the amendment. He also has direct interest in protecting his wife's income as a pharmacist. Sater spoke against the amendment as a person "actually being in the retail pharmacy business." Coincidence?

The House Rules seem to address this sort of situation. Rule 89:

Rule 89. (a) Every member shall be present within the hall of the House during its sittings, unless excused or necessarily prevented; and shall vote on each question put; unless he/she has a direct personal or pecuniary interest in such question...

Given their personal interests in protecting the profits of pharmacists, why didn't Tilley and Sater abstain from the floor debate and vote on the amendment?   

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*Side note: Former Rep. and major Tilley donor Tom Burcham is the attorney for Convenient Healthcare.

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