Louisiana Revised Statutes 42:1169 – Freedom from reprisal for disclosure of improper acts
Terms Used In Louisiana Revised Statutes 42:1169
- Agency: means a department, office, division, agency, commission, board, committee, or other organizational unit of a governmental entity. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 42:1102
- Agency head: means the chief executive or administrative officer of an agency or any member of a board or commission who exercises supervision over the agency. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 42:1102
- Board: means the Board of Ethics. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 42:1102
- Compensation: means any thing of economic value which is paid, loaned, granted, given, donated, or transferred or to be paid, loaned, granted, given, donated, or transferred for or in consideration of personal services to any person. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 42:1102
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
- Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. Source:
- Elected official: means any person holding an office in a governmental entity which is filled by the vote of the appropriate electorate. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 42:1102
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Governing authority: means the body which exercises the legislative functions of a political subdivision. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 42:1102
- Governmental entity: means the state or any political subdivision which employs the public employee or employed the former public employee or to which the elected official is elected, as the case may be. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 42:1102
- his agency: when used in reference to the agency of a public servant shall mean:
(i) For public servants in the twenty principal departments of the executive branch of state government, the office in which such public servant carries out his primary responsibilities; except that in the case of the secretary, deputy secretary, or undersecretary of any such department and officials carrying out the responsibilities of such department officers it shall mean the department in which he serves; and except that in the case of public servants who are members or employees of a board or commission or who provide staff assistance to a board or commission, it shall mean the board or commission. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 42:1102
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Person: means an individual or legal entity other than a governmental entity, or an agency thereof. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 42:1102
- Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
- Political subdivision: means any unit of local government, including a special district, authorized by law to perform governmental functions. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 42:1102
- Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
- Public employee: means anyone, whether compensated or not, who is:
(i) An administrative officer or official of a governmental entity who is not filling an elective office. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 42:1102
- public office: means any state, district, parish or municipal office, elective or appointive, or any position as member on a board or commission, elective or appointive, when the office or position is established by the constitution or laws of this state. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 42:1
A. Any public employee who reports to a person or entity of competent authority or jurisdiction information which he reasonably believes indicates a violation of any law or of any order, rule, or regulation issued in accordance with law or any other alleged acts of impropriety related to the scope or duties of public employment or public office within any branch of state government or any political subdivision shall be free from discipline, reprisal, or threats of discipline or reprisal by the public employer for reporting such acts of alleged impropriety. No employee with authority to hire, fire, or discipline employees, supervisor, agency head, nor any elected official shall subject to reprisal or threaten to subject to reprisal any such public employee because of the employee’s efforts to disclose such acts of alleged impropriety.
B.(1)(a) If any public employee is suspended, demoted, dismissed, or threatened with such suspension, demotion, or dismissal as an act of reprisal for reporting an alleged act of impropriety in violation of this Section, the public employee shall report such action to the board.
(b) If any person that is a public employee because of a contractual arrangement with a governmental entity or agency thereof has the contract with the governmental entity or agency suspended, reduced, or terminated or is threatened with the suspension, reduction, or termination of the contract with the governmental entity or agency as an act of reprisal for reporting an alleged act of impropriety in violation of this Section, the public employee shall report such action to the board.
(2)(a) A public employee who is wrongfully suspended, demoted, or dismissed shall be entitled to reinstatement of his employment and entitled to receive any lost income and benefits for the period of any suspension, demotion, or dismissal.
(b) A person that is a public employee because of a contractual arrangement with a governmental entity or agency thereof whose contract is wrongfully suspended, reduced, or terminated shall be entitled to reinstatement of his contract and entitled to receive any lost compensation under the terms of the contract.
C. The board shall provide written notice of the commencement of an investigation of a report of a violation of this Section to the agency head of the employee, or if the agency head is the defendant, then to an agency head of the governmental entity that supervises the agency, or if none, then to the governing authority of the governmental entity not less than ten days prior to the date set for the investigation. If the board determines, following an investigation, that it shall offer a consent opinion or conduct a public or private hearing to receive evidence and determine whether any violation of this Section has occurred, the board shall provide written notice of the hearing or consent opinion to the agency head of the employee, or if the agency head is the defendant, then to an agency head of the governmental entity that supervises the agency, or if none, then to the governing authority of the governmental entity not less than sixty days prior to the date set for the action by the board. The employee’s agency shall cooperate in every possible manner in connection with any investigation conducted by the board. The agency shall be considered to be an indispensable party to any investigation, hearing, or consent opinion and may have legal counsel, cross-examine witnesses, call witnesses, and present evidence on its behalf.
D. Any employee with the authority to hire, fire, or discipline employees, supervisor, agency head, or elected official who violates this Section shall be subject to the same fines and penalties provided for other violations of this Chapter. In addition, if the board, following a public hearing, finds there is probable cause to believe that a person has violated a criminal law of this state, pursuant to La. Rev. Stat. 42:1156, the board shall forward a copy of its findings to the district attorney of the parish in which the violation occurred for appropriate action. Thereafter, notwithstanding any other provision of this Chapter, such district attorney shall have access to all records of the board relative to such findings.
E. Upon notification by the employee, the employee’s agency, the defendant, or the defendant’s agency that the employee has commenced a civil action in a district or federal court or with a federal agency with adjudicatory authority over employment complaints against his agency pursuant to La. Rev. Stat. 23:967(B) or other relevant state or federal statutes at any time prior to the board’s final determination as to whether a violation of this Section has occurred, the board shall stay any action pending before the board until a final order in the civil or adjudicatory action is issued, and the prescriptive period provided for in La. Rev. Stat. 42:1163 for action shall be suspended while such civil or adjudicatory action is pending and shall resume when such final order is issued. The final order of the court in the civil action or agency in an adjudicatory action, except if the action is dismissed by the plaintiff, shall resolve all matters the employee has pending before the board regarding this Section.
F. Each agency head shall ensure that a notice containing an explanation in plain language of the rights of employees under this Section is posted and maintained at some convenient and conspicuous point in each building where more than ten public employees are employed. The specific content of this notice shall be determined by the board.
Acts 1979, No. 443, §1, eff. April 1, 1980; Acts 1995, No. 1115, §1; Acts 1996, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 64, §6, eff. Jan. 1, 1997; Acts 1999, No. 327, §1; Acts 2006, No. 373, §1, eff. June 15, 2006; Acts 2007, No. 148, §1; Acts 2008, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 5, §1, eff. April 26, 2008; Acts 2014, No. 362, §1.