SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The press secretary for one of California’s top leaders was terminated this week, following allegations that she made inappropriate comments of a sexual nature, according to public records released by the Assembly Rules Committee.
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Cynthia Moreno served as the press secretary for Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas.
The public records surrounding the allegations against Moreno are heavily redacted to protect the reporting party, but portions of the termination letter addressed to Moreno state, “Given the serious nature of your repeated conduct in violation of the Legislature’s Policy and the Assembly’s Personnel Policy Manual, your lack of candor during the investigation, the highvisibility position you hold as a member of the Speaker’s Office… [redacted]… the Assembly has decided to terminate your at-will employment, effective immediately.” See the letter here.
It’s the first Workplace Conduct Unit complaint released since 2020.
The California Legislature has a thorough policy on appropriate workplace conduct. In one section, it states, “the Legislature will not tolerate inappropriate conduct toward others, even if the conduct does not meet the legal definition of unlawful discrimination, harassment, or retaliation.” Read the policy in full here.
The legislature provided KCRA 3 with a redacted copy of the complaint filed against Moreno. In it, the person who made the report noted their desire to stay anonymous because, “I have heard from others that Ms. Moreno has leveraged her position in ways that could harm reputations.”
The individual notes, “one particularly uncomfortable instance involved a sexual remark.”
However, the majority of the complaint is redacted, so additional context surrounding the allegation has not been made public. See the record here.
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