Meetings
 
Agenda Item
Docket No. 14-102
 
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RE:
Advisory opinion request regarding whether a conflict of interest will exist if Troy Bergeron is elected as a member of the council for the Town of Scott, Lafayette Parish, at a time when he also serves as the insurance provider for employees of the Town.
Facts:
Since February 2010, Mr. Bergeron has provided insurance to approximately half of the employees of the Town of Scott and their family members who have purchased "individual policies" with him at MetLife. As a courtesy Mayor Meyers in 2010 agreed (now Mayor Morrison since 2011) to provide a payroll deduction program for payment of premiums on MetLife's "individual" "voluntary" life insurance policies. This program is available to anyone who receives insurance with MetLife. The payroll clerk simply deducts from the salary or wages of all participating employees the premiums on their policies and remits the amount deducted to MetLife. Any employee of the Town may participate in this program. At anytime the employer may terminate the agreement to provide the payroll deduction.

In doing so, these individual policies are then paid directly by policy owners through their own personal checking account or direct home billing. If or when a participating employee is no longer employed, (retires, quits) they may keep those same policies by simply paying for them on their own. Each year in February/March, Mr. Bergeron visits the various town departments and speaks with employees to discuss the opportunities of an individual life insurance policy for them and or family members. Mr. Bergeron states that he contacts the different agency head and sets up a particular time to come to the different departments. It is strictly voluntary.

The town has no ownership or beneficiary rights to the policies. The town only provides an agreement to deduct payroll and submit premiums, with no rights to those policies. As the agent who calls on these individuals, Mr. Bergeron sells directly to clients and assists them in the exact same method as he would any other client.

Law:
Section 1111C(2)(d) prohibits a public servant from performing compensated services to persons that (1) have or is seek to obtain a contractual or other business or financial relationships with the public servant's agency, (2) seeks, for compensation, to influence the passage or defeat of legislation by the public servant's agency, (3) Conducts operations or activities which are regulated by the public employee's agency, or (4) has a substantial economic interests which may be substantially affected by the performance or nonperformance of the public employee's official duty.

Section 1116 of the Code prohibits a public servant from compelling or coercing a person to provide him with a thing of economic value.

Recommendations:
Adopt the proposed advisory opinion.
Assigned Attorney: Aneatra Boykin
 
 
ATTACHMENTS:
Description:
2014-102: Advisory Opinion Request
2014-102 (2).docx