2017-766 - Laserfiche WebLink

STATE OF LOUISIANA ,,'pF toUj- DEPARTMENT OF STATE CIVIL SERVICE cn , . LOUISIANA BOARD OF ETHICS puy;.: ; P.O.BOX 4368 ;.1.' = BATON ROUGE,LA 70821 CO •Rr. ,• (225)219-5600 FAX (225)381-7271 1-800-842-6630 wwwethics.la.gov September 15, 2017 Mr. Joe E. Ford,Jr. 9992 Grassy Knoll Circle Shreveport, Louisiana 71106 Re: Louisiana Board of Ethics Docket No. 2017-766 Dear Mr. Ford: The Louisiana Board of Ethics, at its September 15, 2017 meeting, considered your request for an advisory opinion as to whether Section 1121 of the Code of Governmental Ethics(Code)would prohibit you, after your retirement as the Bossier Parish Engineer, from being employed by Beast Engineering,LLC. Beast Engineering,LLC is an engineering consultant firm that currently provides engineering services to Bossier Parish,primarily in the construction engineering and inspection area. Those contracts are approved by the parish police jury and administered by the parish administrator. You stated that as Parish Engineer your agency does not contract,assign jobs or approve invoices for Beast Engineering, LLC but you do have direct contact including assigning jobs with Beast Engineering employees in the field when they are working on parish projects. You are set to retire in January 2018, and have been offered a position by Beast Engineering as a Senior Engineer with responsibilities on projects other than those administered by Bossier Parish for at least two years.You provided that as an employee of Beast you will not participate on any contract Beast Engineering, LLC has with Bossier Parish nor will you accept any bonus or other type of compensation derived from Beast Engineering, LLC's contracts with the Parish. The Board concluded, and instructed me to advise you that, under the facts provided, you would not be prohibited by La. R.S. 42:1121A from accepting the position of Senior Engineer with Beast Engineering, LLC . La. R.S. 42:1121A(1)prohibits a former agency head, for a period of two years following the termination of his public service as the head of such agency, from assisting another person for compensation, in a transaction,or appearance in a connection with a transaction, involving that agency or rendering any service on a contractual basis to that agency. As a Senior Engineer for Beast Engineering, LLC as described above you would not be assisting any person in an a transaction or rendering any service on a contractual basis to or for your former agency. Further,the Board instructed me to caution you that La.R.S.42:1112B(4)prohibits you from participating on any transaction involving with Beast Engineering,LLC while you are negotiating or have an arrangement for future employment.La.R.S.42:1112B(4)prohibits a public servant,except as provided in R.S.42:1120,from participating in a transaction involving the governmental entity in which, to his actual knowledge, any person of which he is negotiating or has an arrangement concerning prospective employment has a substantial economic interest.Therefore,you should avoid any participation in any transaction with your agency in which Beast Engineering, LLC has a substantial economic interest until you have retired or decided not to accept employment with Beast Engineering, LLC. AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER