JEFFERSON CITY — House Speaker Tim Jones, R-St. Louis County, said the chairman of the committee investigating a report of improper behavior by Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster intends to issue a report before the end of the year.

Jones created the committee in response to a New York Times investigation reporting Koster’s office made favorable legal decisions for businesses that had provided him campaign contributions and gifts. Rep. Jay Barnes, R-Jefferson City, will chair the committee and intends to hold a hearing before the end of the year, Jones said.

“His desire and hope was to come up with some recommendations for the attorney general’s office by the end of the year in the form of a report as to how to address all of the issues raised in the New York Times piece,” Jones said.

He said Barnes wanted a “serious group … that would not be on a witch hunt of any sort.”

The committee includes Rep. Stanley Cox, R-Sedalia, and Rep. Chris Kelly, D-Columbia, who will both leave office come January due to term limits.

Cox, a former prosecuting attorney, said he participated in a special investigative committee on the Department of Revenue regarding alleged wrongdoing during summer 2013.

“The facts are more important than what someone reports them to be,” Cox said. “I think that we, as a Legislature, need to be more involved in legislative oversight and reviewing the actions of the executive.”

Kelly said no one has accused Koster of breaking any laws. As such, he said the committee should investigate the state’s oversight and campaign finance laws rather than trying to determine if there was any wrongdoing by the attorney general.

Jones said the next House speaker — expected to be Rep. John Diehl, R-St. Louis County — will be able to replace Cox and Kelly if he feels the committee needs to continue after the first of the year. He can also create a new committee during the general session beginning in January.