His attorney, Thomas Karrenberg, was dismissive of the committee's letter.

"You could write that letter and that every person up here, at some time or another, had unbecoming behavior," he said. Asked if the letter hurt his client, Karrenberg said, "quit seeing the glass as half-empty. It's three-quarters, 98 percent full."

The committee separated the charges of attempted bribery, extortion and abuse of office into 30 separate counts. On 23 of the counts, the committee voted unanimously for dismissal, and on three, they tied.

It takes a majority vote of the committee to recommend that the full House consider sanctions against a member. The committee chairman, Rep. Todd Kiser, R-Sandy, said the votes effectively end the investigation into the allegations against Hughes.

Kiser said some 40 witnesses were subpoenaed by the committee and more than 30 testified during the seven days of hearings.

"It's been long and hard and stressful," the committee chairman said. "There's been a lot of pressure."

He said the committee has been criticized for closing the hearings as well as for moving slowly. "We came to see a weakness in our rules as we were required to follow them," Kiser said.

Most of the attention had been focused on the first of the six charges against Hughes, that he attempted to bribe former GOP Rep. Susan Lawrence by offering to arrange a $50,000 campaign contribution if she changed her opposition to school vouchers.

He was also accused of attempting to "shakedown" lobbyists for contributions to his pro-voucher political issues committee; of pressuring lobbyists and a primary opponent; and of misusing his office to obtain confidential information used in the voucher campaign.

Supporters of Hughes say internal polling shows he has fallen behind his Democratic challenger, Lisa Johnson, in his re-election bid and worry he may not have enough time left before Nov. 4 to counter the effects of the hearing.

Hughes said Friday he wanted "to get back to my district and start campaigning."

The other Democrats involved in the complaint against Hughes were clearly frustrated Friday.

Rep. Roz McGee, D-Salt Lake, who signed Riesen's complain along with Rep. Neil Hansen, D-Ogden, said the problems with the secretive process could have been avoided had lawmakers approved a bill last session setting up an independent ethics commission.

And Hansen said the complaint was not politically motivated.

"The Republicans are saying this is an 'October surprise' — it's all about elections. I think they are dead wrong on that," Hansen said. "The public needs to understand this was not about politics. This was about the integrity of the state Legislature."

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