| Advisory Opinion Request from Melissa Gueldner, former member of the Ponchatoula City Council, regarding a newspaper she owns serving as the official journal for the City of Ponchatoula. |
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Ms. Gueldner previously served as a member of the Ponchatoula City Council (the "Council"), having been elected to the office of Council Member, District A, City of Ponchatoula, Tangipahoa Parish, in the October 12, 2019 election. She resigned from the Council effective May 11, 2023.
Ms. Gueldner also recently purchased The Ponchatoula Times, L.L.C., (the "LLC") which publishes the The Ponchatoula Times (the "Newspaper"). She is the sole owner of the LLC.
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La. R.S. 42:1102(2)(a)(vi) defines "agency" to mean a department, office, division, agency, commission, board, committee, or other organizational unit of a governmental entity. "Agency of the public servant" and "his agency" when used in reference to the agency of a public servant shall mean for public servants of political subdivisions, it shall mean the agency in which the public servant serves, except that for members of any governing authority and for the elected or appointed chief executive of a governmental entity, it shall mean the governmental entity. Public servants of political subdivisions shall include, but shall not be limited to, elected officials and public employees of municipalities, parishes, and other political subdivisions; sheriffs and their employees; district attorneys and their employees; coroners and their employees; and clerks of court and their employees
La. R.S. 42:1102(9) defines "elected official" to mean any person holding an office in a governmental entity which is filled by the vote of the appropriate electorate. It shall also include any person appointed to fill a vacancy in such offices.
La. R.S. 42:1102(11) defines "governing authority" to mean the body which exercises the legislative functions of a political subdivision.
La. R.S. 42:1121A(1) provides that no former agency head or elected official shall, for a period of two years following the termination of his public service as the head of such agency or as an elected public official serving in such agency, assist another person, for compensation, in a transaction, or in an appearance in connection with a transaction, involving that former agency or render any service on a contractual basis to or for such agency.
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Adopt proposed advisory opinion.
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| Assigned Attorney: |
Charles Reeves |
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