Latest news with #HouseBill160
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
In Louisiana, it's still safe to call out ethical misdeeds
Gov. Jeff Landry addresses the Louisiana Legislature on opening day of legislative session, Monday, April 14, 2025, at the Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge. (Hilary Scheinuk/The Advocate-Pool) As Gov. Jeff Landry's assault on state ethics laws continues to unfold, there remains a small glimmer of hope for those who wish to see Louisiana politics to depart from its history of corruption and cronyism. It comes from the demise of House Bill 160, by Rep. Kellee Hennessy Dickerson, R-Denham Springs, which would have removed confidentiality protections from anyone filing an ethics complaint. A tipster's identity would have been revealed to the elected official, lobbyist, public employee or government contractor they accused of wrongdoing, even if the complaint or tip didn't result in an investigation. Dickerson placed multiple hindrances in her bill to deter individuals from coming forward with damning information. To submit a tip, complainants would have been required to submit a notarized, signed document by mail or to deliver it in person to the state ethics administration's offices in downtown Baton Rouge, where they would be required to present identification. The representative insisted tipsters need not feel intimidated because, under her bill, they could sue for damages if they were harassed as a result of submitting a tip or complaint. As with the governor's ethics law upheaval, Dickerson's legislation places the interests of the politically powerful ahead of the individual citizen seeking to do right. The provisions in her bill would have created needless costs, inconvenience and unwarranted public scrutiny for whistleblowers. Dickerson also wanted to limit what materials ethics investigators could use to begin a probe to materials submitted by government agencies and officials. News reports, which triggered 18 ethics investigations from 2020-23, would have been declared off-limits – an especially disappointing restriction given Dickerson's background as a journalist. Her motivation for bringing the bill was clear. As a member of the Livingston Parish School Board, she ran afoul of ethics rules in 2023 when she helped a high school teacher obtain a contract to perform construction work on the same campus – a double-dip that's not allowed under state law. Dickerson, who was running for state representative at the time, was fined $1,500. She said a political opponent brought the incident to the attention of the state ethics board, and she has described the process as 'abusive' and 'very chilling.' The same words could easily apply to her legislation, which fizzled in the Louisiana Senate after ethics board members wrote to senators asking that they shelve the measure. Dickerson credited their letter with killing her bill, calling their action 'harassing.' 'I guess people fear the retaliation of the ethics board being against it,' Dickerson told the Illuminator. No, representative. The only thing public officials should fear are the consequences from breaking ethics laws. But as the governor continues to chip away at what are largely toothless regulations to begin with, there's not so much to be frightened of these days. At least there's some comfort in knowing, at least for now, whistleblowers won't face more scrutiny than the scofflaws they hope to hold accountable. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Whistleblower tips to Louisiana ethics board will remain confidential
The Louisiana State Capitol. (Julie O'Donoghue/Louisiana Illuminator) An effort to eliminate confidentiality for people who provide tips to the Louisiana Board of Ethics over government misconduct has failed. Louisiana Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, said House Bill 160 won't come up for consideration after it missed a crucial deadline for an initial vote in the Senate chamber Monday. 'There weren't the votes' to pass the proposal, Rep. Kellee Hennessey Dickerson, R-Denham Springs, who sponsored the legislation, said in an interview Monday night. The bill would have required the ethics board to reveal the name of a person who provides a tip about alleged wrongdoing to whoever the person accuses of misconduct. Currently, the ethics board never shares a tipster's identity with the target of the investigation. The proposal would also have required ethics board tips to be either signed by a notary or delivered in person to the ethics board staff at their office in downtown Baton Rouge. The board enforces the state's ethics and campaign finance laws for elected officials, public employees, lobbyists and government contractors. On Friday, board members sent a letter to senators encouraging them to vote against the legislation, saying it would have a chilling effect on the public's willingness to provide the board information. Dickerson described the ethics board's letter as 'harassing' and said it helped kill the bill. 'I guess people fear the retaliation of the ethics board being against it,' she said. Dickerson drafted the legislation in response to her own experience with the ethics board. In 2023, the board fined her $1,500 when she was a member of the Livingston Parish School Board and running for state representative. The ethics board concluded she had broken state ethics laws by inappropriately helping a public school teacher get a construction contract at the high school where the teacher was employed. Before Dickerson's bill stalled, lawmakers had already approved another piece of legislation that creates new barriers for bringing charges over an ethics violation. A large share of the board will need to vote in favor of launching an ethics investigation, and the deadline for bringing charges will be more difficult to meet, under House Bill 674 by Rep. Beau Beaullieu, R-New Iberia. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
07-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Louisiana ethics board wants state Senate to reject bill that lifts complaint confidentiality
The Louisiana Board of Ethics is pushing back against legislation that would eliminate confidentiality for people for provide tips about misconduct. (Wes Muller/Louisiana Illuminator). The Louisiana Board of Ethics expressed alarm Friday that the Louisiana Legislature is just one vote away from eliminating confidentiality for people who provide tips about government misconduct. 'This is all just abusive. It's just trying to dissuade someone from filing a complaint,' said retired attorney William Grimley, a Louisiana Senate appointee to the ethics board since 2022, about House Bill 160 sponsored by Rep. Kellee Hennessy Dickerson, R-Denham Springs. Other members of the 15-person board nodded in agreement with Grimley. As a last-minute effort to stop the legislation, they instructed their staff to send a letter from the board expressing their concerns about the bill. The board members also said they intended to personally contact their own senators and Gov. Jeff Landry's office to warn about the legislation. 'I think it will have a drastic chilling effect on the number of complaints you receive,' Ethics Administrator David Bordelon told board members. 'We often receive complaints that are asking not to be disclosed because there's some sort of relationship or some sort of fear of retaliation.' Under the bill, investigations into ethics law violations would still be kept private and shielded from the public unless the board votes to bring charges. But the name of a person who provides a tip about alleged wrongdoing would be revealed to whoever they accused of misconduct. Currently, the identity of someone providing a tip to the ethics board is never shared with the target of an investigation. Dickerson said she is bringing the bill to protect government officials from political retaliation similar to what she experienced personally. In 2023, the ethics board voted to fine Dickerson $1,500 when she was a member of the Livingston Parish School Board and running for state representative. The members concluded she had broken state ethics laws by inappropriately helping a public school teacher get paid for doing construction work at the high school where the teacher was employed. State law doesn't allow public employees to perform contract work for their employers. 'I believe this is a fight for truth and justice and to give you the knowledge to know who is fighting against you,' Dickerson said of her legislation. Her bill would likely encourage 'witness tampering and documents not being provided,' Bordelon said. The tipster might experience harassment and intimidation from the subject of the investigation even before the probe gets underway, he added. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE Dickerson said she has guarded against intimidation in her bill by allowing any tipsters to sue the accused for damages if they experience harassment. Critics of the legislation said those lawsuits would be expensive and not financially feasible for many members of the public. The ethics administrator also reiterated that the board – not the person providing the tip – decides whether to charge someone with ethical misconduct. Even if the person who submitted the complaint to the board is politically motivated, the board is not. 'It's the board that is the accuser,' Bordelon told members. 'You make your decision based on the facts and the evidence that we present to you as staff.' Dickerson included another barrier to ethics investigations the board found troubling. It requires people submitting tips to the board to either have them signed by a notary, which costs money, or to deliver them personally to state ethics administration headquarters in downtown Baton Rouge. Currently, the public can submit tips via mail and sometimes electronically. 'Imagine somebody in Grand Isle complaining about their local councilman. They would have to either pay a notary to notarize a statement … or drive to Baton Rouge and file it with us in person here,' Bordelon said. Dickerson also wants to limit materials the ethics board can use to launch an investigation to just tips from the public and reports from state officials. The board has no existing limits on the sources it can use to launch an investigation. For example, it undertook 18 investigations from 2020-23 based on news reports that resulted in a discovery of wrongdoing. Under the bill from Dickerson, a former broadcast journalist, they would no longer be able to use a news story as the basis for an inquiry. This year, Landry and legislative leaders have gotten behind a few bills that would dramatically curb the ethics board's authority to pursue investigations. Lawmakers said the effort is a response to overzealous enforcement by the ethics board that crossed the line into harassment. Still, it's not clear whether Landry supports Dickerson's legislation. His staff hasn't endorsed it during public hearings like they have other ethics bills. Recent ethics board appointees from Landry and lawmakers are also among those worried about Dickerson's bill. 'I would love for 100% compliance and to put us out of business. But you know, that's not happening,' said Jason Amato, a former St. James Parish Council member who Landry picked to lead the ethics board earlier this year. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE 'I'd love to be able to cancel our monthly meeting because we didn't have any items on the agenda. But I'm only six months in, and that isn't happening anytime soon,' he added. Lawmakers have until Thursday to decide whether to send Dickerson's proposal to Gov. Jeff Landry's desk to be signed into law. The House voted 88-7 for the bill last month, and it is scheduled for Senate debate Sunday.
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ohio legislature closing in on tweaks to voter-approved recreational marijuana laws
Jun. 5—A Frankenstein's monster of sorts is coming alive in Columbus as members of the Ohio House and Senate work to close the gap in their chamber's different approaches to recreational marijuana reform. That gap has existed since Ohio voters approved recreational marijuana at the ballot box in 2023, with the Ohio Senate broadly pushing for more restrictions than the House was willing to tolerate. The House adopted a plan to try to find the middle: Amend Senate Bill 56 to include large portions of House Bill 160 and Senate Bill 86. Here's the broad overview of the hodgepodge piece of legislation, as things stand: — There would be no ban on the sharing of recreational marijuana between of-age adults. — The state's current flat 10% tax would be maintained on recreational sales and expanded onto intoxicating hemp products. Previous plans have sought to raise the tax to 15% or 20%. — Intoxicating hemp products would be banned from retail sales and only be purchasable at dispensaries. That's except for low-dose THC-infused beverages, which could still be sold retail. — The state's current host community financial kickback would be phased out seven years after the bill's effective date. Previous plans have considered cutting out that funding immediately. — The limit of Ohio dispensaries would rise from 350 to 400. — The minimum distance between dispensaries would be one mile. Previous plans have looked at a half-mile limit. — Public use would be allowed in permitting concert venues. Bars and restaurants still would not have the authority to permit marijuana consumption on their patios or outdoor areas. — THC concentration in certain products would be capped at 70%, with Ohio's Division of Cannabis Control having the regulatory power to bump it higher. The bill is likely to see further amendments in the House Judiciary Committee over the coming weeks. Rep. Brian Stewart, R-Ashville, who has headed the House's legislative efforts on intoxicating hemp and recreational marijuana, said that he hopes the compromise will be enough to get the Senate on board. The Senate's go-to expert on the subject, Sen. Steve Huffman, R-Tipp City, did not respond before publication when this news outlet asked if he approved of the House's changes. ------ For more stories like this, sign up for our Ohio Politics newsletter. It's free, curated, and delivered straight to your inbox every Thursday evening. Avery Kreemer can be reached at 614-981-1422, on X, via email, or you can drop him a comment/tip with the survey below.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Confidential ethics complaints against Louisiana officials, gov't workers might be eliminated
Louisiana legislators may eliminate the ability of the public to confidentially or anonymously file complaints about unethical behavior by government workers and elected officials. (Julie O'Donoghue/Louisiana Illuminator) Louisiana legislators could remove the public's ability to confidentially or anonymously raise concerns about illegal activity by government employees and elected officials. The Louisiana House and Governmental Affairs Committee voted 10-4 Wednesday for House Bill 160 from Rep. Kellee Dickerson, R-Denham Springs, despite a warning from the state ethics board that it would have a 'chilling effect' on ethics complaints about public employees and leaders. All four lawmakers who voted against the proposal are Republicans. 'The Board regularly receives complaints requesting that the complainant's identity remain confidential due to fears of retaliation,' state Ethics Administrator David Bordelon wrote in a letter to the committee sent Monday on behalf of ethics board members. 'This is seen most often when a complaint is received from an individual who has information regarding a potential violation by a supervisor or their local elected official.' 'The board still supports that during the investigation the complainant should remain confidential,' Bordelon said Wednesday during a legislative hearing on the proposal. Dickerson's legislation would require the ethics board to provide the identity of anyone who reported an ethics complaint to the target of the investigation. Currently, the identity of a complainant remains unknown to anyone outside of the ethics board and staff, unless the person chooses to identify themselves. 'If any of you have had to go before the ethics board, it is a very intense process,' Dickerson said Wednesday during the committee hearing. 'When you're brought before the ethics committee, who has quite the reputation … It's difficult.' 'This is to kind of bring some of those frivolous, if you will, complaints down and to help you face your accuser,' she said. Dickerson's legislation would also eliminate the ability to file an ethics complaint against someone anonymously. From 2020-23, the ethics board also received 137 anonymous complaints – where the board and staff doesn't even know the identity of the complainant – that would no longer be allowed. In her bill, Dickerson said she's tried to protect those who report ethics violations from retaliation. It includes a provision to allow lawsuits to be filed against anyone who threatens or coerces someone into not raising a concern with the ethics board. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE Yet Bordelon said the proposal would also create an inconsistency when it comes to the confidentiality of potential whistleblowers. Dickerson's bill only eliminates confidentiality for people complaining about government ethics violations. People who report illegal activity related to political campaign fundraising and spending would still be allowed to keep their identity from the target of the investigation, he said. Dickerson's bill is also part of a broader effort since Gov. Jeff Landry came into office to weaken the authority of the ethics board and water down anti-corruption laws. Two other major bills are moving through the Legislature this session that would make it harder to investigate government ethics and political campaign wrongdoing. Last year, Landry and lawmakers passed legislation to allow the governor to have more influence over ethics board appointees. The ethics board oversees the enforcement of laws related to government corruption, nepotism, lobbying and political campaign finances. It supervises the activities of state and local government, including public employees and elected officials at all levels. Landry has had several personal disputes with the ethics board dating back to when he became attorney general in 2016. Most recently, he has been in negotiations over ethics charges the board filed against him in 2023 for not disclosing a trip he took to Hawaii on a political donor's private plane. On top of eliminating confidential and anonymous complaints, Dickerson's bill would also create other challenges for launching an ethics investigation. It limits the materials ethics board members can use to instigate a probe. They would only be able to look into misconduct if an individual filed a formal complaint with the board. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Currently, the board uses a much wider swath of information to launch its investigations. They can initiate inquiries based on state legislative audits, news coverage and required annual reports from the heads of state agencies on potential ethics violations in their departments. All of those avenues for pursuing an ethics investigation would be cut off if Dickerson's bill becomes law. Almost half of the board's 177 investigations from 2020-23 that resulted in a discovery of wrongdoing came from either a legislative audit (21), one of the annual state agency head reports (44) or a news story (18), according to information provided by the ethics board. None of these investigations would have been launched if Dickerson's legislation had been in place. Also, a large number of the ethics complaints would also have to be filed in person at the ethics board's office in downtown Baton Rouge under Dickerson's bill. All 'non-sworn' complaints from an individual would have to be delivered by hand, and the person would have to present their government-issued identification when dropping it off. 'Sworn' complaints – those made under a legal oath attesting to the truthfulness of its statements – could be delivered by mail, fax or electronic means, under Dickerson's legislation. The in-person delivery standard for 'non-sworn' complaints would apply to people making complaints about local government officials in all corners of the state. For example, a person who was complaining about potential problems with a local official in Bastrop, in the far northeastern part of the state would have to drive to Baton Rouge to submit their concerns. From 2020-23, the board received more than four times as many 'non-sworn' complaints as sworn ones from the public, according to information the ethics staff provided. Non-sworn complaints also resulted in the largest number of 'findings' of an ethics violation. Out of the 177 cases where the board concluded there was wrongdoing, 52 came from non-sworn complaints during the four-year period. Voting in favor of the bill: Reps. Michael Bayham, R-Chalmette; Beth Billings, R-Destrehan; Wilford Carter, D-Lake Charles; Ed Larvadain, D-Alexandria; Rodney Lyons, D-Marrero; Denise Marcelle, D-Baton Rouge; Dixon McMakin, R-Baton Rouge; Candance Newell, D-New Orleans; Rodney Schamerhorn, R-Hornbeck; and John Wyble, R-Franklinton. Voting against the bill: Reps. Les Farnum. R-Sulphur; Foy Gadberry, R-West Monroe; Polly Thomas, R-Metairie; and Mark Wright, R-Covington.
