| Proposed disqualification plans concerning Judy Jones's promotion to the Assistant Director of Nursing at Eastern Louisiana Mental Health Systems (ELMHS) while her sister, Laura Williams, serves as the Director of Nursing for ELMHS. |
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Judy Jones and Laura Williams are sisters. Both are employed with the ELMHS East Division. Judy Jones has been employed with ELMHS since June of 2020. Ms. Jones currently serves as a Registered Nurse Manager on the East Division. Her sister, Laura Williams, has been employed with ELMHS for over 21 years. Ms. Williams became the Assistant Director of Nursing A of the East Division in 2022, while Ms. Jones was a RN Manager on the East Division. A Disqualification Plan was instituted in 2022 setting forth that Ms. Williams would not serve as the immediate supervisor of Ms. Jones and would recuse herself from any matters in which Ms. Jones has a substantial economic interest.
In February 2023, Ms. Williams was promoted to the Director of Nursing A of the East Division, and is now the Department Head. Ms. Jones remains a RN Manager on the East Division. ELMHS Administration stated in February 2023 that the same Disqualification Plan remains in full force and effect. Ms. Jones and Ms. Williams believed the Disqualification Plan had been submitted for approval and now are seeking such approval.
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La. R.S. 42:1112B(1)
: No public servant shall participate in a transaction involving the governmental entity in which, to his actual knowledge, any member of his immediate family has a substantial economic interest. qualification plan to be developed in accordance with rules adopted by the Board to remove a public servant from participating in transactions that would otherwise present violations of Section 1112 of the Code.
La. R.S. 42:1112C allows a disqualification plan to be developed in accordance with rules adopted by the Board to remove a public servant from participating in transactions that would otherwise present violations of Section 1112 of the Code. La. R.S. 42:1119: No member of the immediate family of an agency head shall be employed in his agency.
La. R.S. 42:1119C(2) provides that the provisions of this Section shall not prohibit the continued employment of any public employee nor shall it be construed to hinder, alter, or in any way affect normal promotional advancements for such public employee where a member of public employee's immediate family becomes the agency head of such public employee's agency, provided that such public employee has been employed in the agency for a period of at least one year prior to the member of the public employee's immediate family becoming the agency head.
La. R.S. 42:1102(2)(a)defines "agency" for public servants of political subdivisions to mean the office, division, agency, commission, board, committee, or other organizational unit in which he works.
La. R.S. 42:1102(3) defines "agency head" to mean the chief executive or administrative officer of an agency.
La. R.S. 42:1102(13) defines "immediate family" to include a public servant's siblings.
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Adopt proposed disqualification plan.
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| Assigned Attorney: |
Suzanne Mooney |
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