| Advisory opinion request by Ken Bradford, Assistant Superintendent of the Louisiana Department of Education, regarding whether La. R.S. 42:1111C(2)(d) would prohibit his spouse from entering into a business transaction of setting up a yard greeting for a public school or individual who is a school system employee. |
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Ken Bradford is currently employed as an Assistant Superintendent at the Louisiana Department of Education in the Office of Student Opportunities. His responsibilities include implementation of the Jump Start Career Education program, Advanced Placement and other college-level programs; dropout prevention programs; and, financial aid planning. This requires sending principals/counselors periodic reports of student FAFSA completion rates; providing counselors with a hard copy of the High School Student Planning and webinar produced by his division; sending a monthly counselor newsletter; and, providing high schools that offer the Jobs for America program with a one day training session and quarterly webinar meetings related to the program.
Additionally, his division coordinates a statewide Career and Technical Education Teacher Professional session (CTE) that a teacher could attend from one of the high schools. A local school system determines if an individual teacher should attend CTE sessions. A teacher does not receive a grade or pass fail determination; however, they have an option to take an industry-based credentialing exam for their craft that is administered by the industry.
Mr. Bradford's spouse, Vickie Bradford, will own more than a twenty-five percent (25%) interest in Sign Gypsies St. James. Sign Gypsies is a yard greeting company that will serve the cities of Edgard, Garyville, Gramercy, Lutcher, Mount Airy, Reserve, Saint James, Vacherie, Convent, Hester, and Paulina. A Sign Gypsies' transaction includes a temporary setup in a yard to celebrate important events such as birthdays, birth announcements, and graduations at a cost of approximately sixty-five dollars ($65) per daytime setup. The following schools are the only schools within the cities or towns listed above that may directly or indirectly receive a service from the Office of Student Opportunities: Lutcher High School, St. James High School, East St. John High School, and West John High School.
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La. R.S. 42:1111C(2)(d) provides that no public servant and no legal entity in which the public servant exercises control or owns an interest in excess of twenty-five percent, shall receive any thing of economic value for or in consideration of services rendered, or to be rendered, to or for any person during his public service unless such services are: (d) Neither performed for nor compensated by any person or from any officer, director, agent, or employee of such person, if such public servant knows or reasonably should know that such person has or is seeking to obtain contractual or other business or financial relationships with the public servant's agency; conducts operations or activities which are regulated by the public employee's agency; or has substantial economic interests which may be substantially affected by the performance or nonperformance of the public employee's official duty.
La. R.S. 42:1113A states no public servant, or a member of such a public servant's immediate family, or a legal entity in which he has a controlling interest shall bid on or enter into any contract, subcontract or other transaction that is under the supervision or jurisdiction of the agency of such public servant.
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Adopt proposed advisory opinion.
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| Assigned Attorney: |
Brett Robinson |
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