| Advisory opinion request regarding whether the hiring of the auditing firm owned by Roy Durbin would present a conflict of interest for Avoyelles Progress Action Committee, Inc. |
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The Avoyelles Progress Action Committee, Inc. (APAC) has served as a community action agency for the Parish of Avoyelles since 1965. Its goal is to provide a central agency to distribute available local, state, federal and private resources to assist the disadvantaged residents of Avoyelles Parish. The Board of Directors for APAC voted to hire an auditing firm owned by Roy Durbin to do its 2012 audit. Felix Bordelon, the accountant for APAC, previously worked in his private business doing tax work with Kenneth Rachal, an employee of Roy Durbin's company. Mr. Bordelon has agreed that he will no longer work with Mr. Rachal.
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La. R.S. 42:1111C(2)(d) prohibits a public servant and a legal entity in which the public servant exercises control or owns an interest from receiving any thing of economic value for services rendered to or for any person during his public service unless such services are neither performed for nor compensated by any person from whom such public servant would be prohibited by Section 1115(A)(1) or (B) from receiving a gift. La. R.S. 42:1115A(1) prohibits a public servant from soliciting or accepting, directly or indirectly, any thing of economic value as a gift or gratuity from 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 have a contractual, business or financial relationship with the public servant's agency.
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Adopt the proposed advisory opinion.
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| Assigned Attorney: |
Jennifer Land |
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