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.
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