| Advisory opinion regarding whether the Code of Governmental Ethics prohibits the continued employment of Lisa Thevenot with Career Compass if she is elected to the Avoyelles Parish School Board and Career Compass has a contract with the School Board. |
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Lisa Thevenot is considering running for election to the Avoyelles Parish School Board. She has been employed part-time for three years as a College Counselor with Career Compass, a Louisiana-based non-profit organization which contracts with Avoyelles Parish School District, and which contract is renewed annually. As a College Counselor, Ms. Thevenot assists students throughout the district with completing applications for college admission and financial aid, as well as with preparing resumes and other documents necessary for college applications. Neither Ms. Thevenot nor Career Compass transacts any business or performs any service which is otherwise under the jurisdiction of the School District.
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La. R.S. 42:1111C(1) prohibits a public servant from receiving any thing of economic value for any service, the subject matter of which is devoted substantially to the responsibilities, programs, or operations of the agency of the public servant and in which the public servant has participated.
La. R.S. 42:1111C(2) 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. 42:1111C(6) provides that, notwithstanding La. R.S. 42:1111C(2)(d), 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 that 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; and
(f) The member complies with the disclosure requirements in R.S. 42:1114.
La. R.S. 42:1112A provides that no public servant, except as provided in R.S. 42:1120, shall participate in a transaction in which he has a personal substantial economic interest of which he may be reasonably expected to know involving the governmental entity.
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Adopt proposed advisory opinion.
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| Assigned Attorney: |
Kelsey Simmons |
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