2021-332 - Laserfiche WebLink

STATE OF LOUISIANA oF,L°LDEPARTMENT OF STATE CIVIL SERVICE LOUISIANA BOARD OF ETHICS P.O. BOX 4368 * * BATON ROUGE, LA 70821 Oeriocr� (225)219-5600 .o.• FAX:(225)381-7271 1-800-842-6630 www.ethics.1a.gov July 13, 2021 Sanettria Glasper Pleasant Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development P.O. Box 94245 Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70504 Re: Ethics Board Docket No. 2021-332 Dear Ms. Pleasant: The Louisiana Board of Ethics,at its July 9,2021 meeting,considered a request from the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development ("DOTD") to approve a plan allowing DOTD to hire Levi Townsend,the son of DOTD employee Angela Townsend,as a mobile equipment operator and for Ms. Townsend to recuse herself from any matters relating to her son's employment. FACTS PROVIDED You provided that Angela Townsend is currently employed as Administrative Coodinator 4 for DOTD District 05. Her duties do not generally include management or supervisory duties over mobile equipment operators, but do include serving as the backup timekeeper when the primary timekeeper is not available. DOTD would like to hire Ms. Townsend's son, Levi Townsend, as a Mobile Equipment Operator within DOTD District 05. DOTD has submitted.a plan to avoid any potential violation of La.R.S.42:1112 or La.R.S.42:1119, whereby Ms. Townsend would recuse herself from participating in any transaction or appointing authority duties involving Levi Townsend including, but not limited to, approving leave, signing performance evaluation documents and recommending hiring/promotions. Further, Ms. Townsend would recuse herself from performing any functional supervision of Levi Townsend at any time, which includes,but is not limited to,determining work assignments,training,reviewing work,and approving work. Lesa "Shari" Wade, Administrative Coordinator 4, would act as the primary timekeeper for Levi Townsend, and in the event that Ms. Wade in unavailable, Lisa Brinson, Accounting Technician, will act as the backup timekeeper. LA`NS La. R.S. 42:111211(l) states that 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. La. R.S. 42:1119A states that no member of the immediate family of an agency head shall be employed in his agency. La.R.S.42:1112C allows a disqualification plan to be developed in accordance with rules adopted by the Board to rem,:►ve a public servant from participating in transactions that would otherwise present violations of Section 1112 of the Code. AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER