| Advisory opinion regarding whether the Code of
Governmental Ethics ("Code") prohibits
Louis Lambert, an elected member of the Ascension Parish School Board, from
rendering compensated services to Atmos Gas Company while it has a contractual,
financial, or business relationship with the Ascension Parish School Board. |
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Louis Lambert is an elected member of the Ascension Parish School Board
and has continuously served since January 2015.
Mr. Lambert has been employed with Atmos Gas Company since 1992. He is a wage-earning employee with no
ownership interest in the company. He
does not serve as an officer, director, trustee or partner of Atmos Gas
Company. His salary is not affected by
the contractual, business or financial relationship between the Ascension
Parish School Board and Atmos Gas Company. Since being elected to the school
board, Mr. Lambert has filed annual personal financial disclosure statements
pursuant to La. R.S. 42:1124.2.
Atmos Gas Company has provided natural gas to the Ascension Parish
School Board since the 1960's. Atmos Gas
Company is the sole provider/source of natural gas for almost the entire Parish
of Ascension.
Prior to 2019, the BOE recognized an exception created in Docket No.
1982-02D, which permitted an elected official to receive a thing of economic
value for services rendered to a person that has or was seeking to have a
contractual, business or financial relationship with the elected official's
agency provided the elected official was salaried; did not receive commissions;
was not an owner, officer, director, trustee, or partner; his salary was
unaffected by the contractual, financial or business relationship; did not
participate in the transaction; and, he filed annual financial disclosure statements
pursuant to La. R.S. 42:1114.
In January 2019, the BOE stopped applying the
exception created in Docket No. 1982-02D.
Effective June 5, 2024, the Louisiana Legislature enacted La. R.S. 42:1111C(6).
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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.
La.
R.S. 42:1111C(6) Notwithstanding the provisions of
Subparagraph (2)(d) of this Subsection, a member of a school board or parish or
municipal governing authority may continue employment with a person who has or
is seeking a contractual or other business or financial relationship with his
governmental entity or an agency under the jurisdiction or supervision of his
governmental entity provided all of the following conditions are met:
(a) The member is a salaried or wage-earning
employee of his employer.
(b) The compensation of the member is
substantially unaffected by his employer's contractual or other business or
financial relationship with his governmental entity or other agency under the
jurisdiction or supervision of his governmental entity.
(c) The member is not an officer, director,
trustee, or partner of his employer.
(d) The member does not own an interest which
exceeds one percent of the legal entity which employs him.
(e) The member does not participate in any
transaction with his governmental entity or agency under the jurisdiction or
supervision of his governmental entity, including recusing himself from any
vote, involving his employer.
(f) The member complies with the disclosure
requirements in R.S. 42:1114.
La. R.S. 42:1114A.
Other than a legislator, each public servant and each member of his
immediate family who derives any thing of economic value, directly, through any
transaction involving the agency of such public servant or who derives any
thing of economic value of which he may be reasonably expected to know through
a person which (1) is regulated by the agency of such public servant, or (2)
has bid on or entered into or is in any way financially interested in any
contract, subcontract, or any transaction under the supervision or jurisdiction
of the agency of such public servant shall disclose the following: (1) The amount of income or value of any thing of
economic value derived; (2) The nature
of the business activity; (3) Name and
address, and relationship to the public servant, if applicable; and (4) The name and business address of the legal
entity, if applicable.
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Adopt proposed advisory opinion.
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| Assigned Attorney: |
Tracy Barker |
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