LINCOLN- A special Legislative committee has been created to build Nebraska's first lawmaker 'code of conduct' amid complaints about the Legislature's handling of workplace harassment. The resignation of former Senator Mike Groene prompted the committee's creation.

Besides the 'code of conduct,' the Nebraska Legislature is also considering hiring an attorney with expertise in workplace issues to assist in dealing with harassment cases at the Capitol.

The committee, which was created by the Legislature's Executive Board amid Groene's resignation, is called the Select Interim Ethics Committee and is tasked with reviewing the body's workplace policies. State Sens. Mike Hilgers and Wendy DeBoer will sit on the committee, along with four other state senators.

Former Sen. Mike Groene was investigated last summer after it was revealed that he had taken, and saved, pictures of a female staffer that she described as "objectifying and demeaning." Groene maintained that the complaints against him were "trumped up," but the Legislature concluded that the pictures were "boorish, brainless and bizarre, especially for the workplace."

After Groene's exit from the Legislature, State Sens. Megan Hunt and Machaela Cavanaugh said his case called for a thorough review of the Legislature's harassment policies. They also wanted to see improvements in how complaints are handled, especially since the Nebraska Attorney General's Office declined to prosecute.

Hilgers, in a statement, said the Nebraska Legislature currently has no code of conduct for its members, and that outlining and defining one would allow the body to establish what is and isn't appropriate in the workplace. Hilgers also claimed that a social media policy is being outlined, and believes this will also help.

DeBoer, another committee member, believes proper training of legislators and staff will help make clear the new rules. On a briefing Friday to fellow senators, however, DeBoer and Hilgers confirmed that the six-member committee has yet to vote on either the hiring of a workplace attorney or a code of conduct.

Sen. Dan Hughes, who leads the Executive Board, questioned whether or not a full-time attorney would be necessary. The Groene case, he said, was the only significant case of workplace harrassment to appear in the Legislature in a long time.

DeBoer then said that the attorney would be hired on part-time, and Hilgers said the attorney could handle other issues in the Legislature besides harrassment.

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