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STATE OF LOUISIANA <br /> OF.LOU1DEPARTMENT OF STATE CIVIL SERVICE <br /> LOUISIANA BOARD OF ETHICS <br /> P.O.BOX 4368 <br /> I '` BATON ROUGE,LA 70821 <br /> °°NFiDfN (225)219-5600 <br /> »o» ' <br /> FAX (225)381-7271 <br /> 1-800-842-6630 <br /> www.ethics.la.gov <br /> January 7, 2020 <br /> Charley Lemons, Superintendent <br /> Cameron Parish Schools <br /> 510 Marshall Street <br /> Cameron, LA 70631 <br /> Re: Board Docket No. 2019-1216 <br /> Dear Mr. Lemons: <br /> The Louisiana Board of Ethics, at its December 20, 2019 meeting, considered your request for an <br /> advisory opinion as to whether the Cameron Parish School Board (CPSB) may contract with <br /> former Cameron Parish Assistant District Attorney W. Thomas Barrett to manage the leases of <br /> Section 16 properties. <br /> FACTS PROVIDED <br /> You stated that CPSB contracts with a third party to manage the leases associated with Section 16 <br /> properties and that the contract in place at the time of submission of this opinion request was set <br /> to expire on December 31, 2019. You also stated the following: that after seeking requests for <br /> proposals for the new management contract set to commence on January 1, 2020 you received a <br /> proposal to manage the properties in question from the Barrett Law Firm, Inc.; that W. Thomas <br /> Barrett of the Barrett Law Firm, Inc. previously served as an assistant district attorney for the <br /> Cameron Parish District Attorney's Office until leaving the office in August 2019; and that while <br /> serving as an assistant district attorney he did not provide legal services related to the management <br /> or leasing of Section 16 properties. Additionally, you stated that during his tenure as an assistant <br /> district attorney Mr. Barrett did not provide any legal services to CPSB and did not serve as a <br /> board member of the CPSB. <br /> LAW <br /> La. R.S. 42:1121B provides no former public employee shall, for a period of two years following <br /> the termination of his public employment,assist another person,for compensation,in a transaction, <br /> or in an appearance in connection with a transaction in which such former public employee <br /> participated at any time during his public employment and involving the governmental entity by <br /> which he was formerly employed, or for a period of two years following the termination of his <br /> public employment, render, any service which such former public employee had rendered to the <br /> agency during the term of his public employment on a contractual basis, regardless of the parties <br /> to the contract, to, for, or on behalf of the agency with which he was formerly employed. <br /> AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER <br />