| A Request for an Advisory Opinion, submitted by Emán Williams, M.S.P.H. M.A., regarding whether the Louisiana Code of Governmental Ethics ("Code") would prohibit Louisiana Department of Health's ("LDH") Section of Environmental Epidemiology and Toxicology("SEET") from accepting donated children's books from the Southeast Louisiana Area Health Education Center ("SELAHEC"). |
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LDH/SEET is interested in engaging child care owners and other early child care stakeholders in their Choose Safe Places for Early Care and Education Program ("CSPECE"). LDH/SEET would like to distribute children's books to child care providers who visited booths at conferences and other events related to CSPECE. Previously, SELAHEC partnered with LDH/SEET in June 2019, where SELAHEC provided children's books for conference participants who attended LDH/SEET's Environmental Health Symposium. SELAHEC has offered to donate children's books for CSPECE, even though the SELAHEC program that provided books in June 2019 has been discontinued. No SELAHEC employees are employed by LDH/SEET and vice versa.
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La. R.S. 42:1111(C)(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. 42:1123(30) provides that a public servant, a legal entity in which he has a controlling interest, or a member of his immediate family may donate services, movable property, or funds to his agency. Nothing herein shall be construed to allow a public servant to make an appointment of a person which is otherwise prohibited by this Chapter.
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Adopt the proposed advisory opinion.
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| Assigned Attorney: |
LaToya D. Jordan |
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