Latest news with #PAR
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
As charges linger over Landry, Louisiana Legislature passes dramatic changes to ethics law
The Louisiana Legislature has approved an overhaul of the state ethics laws that will make it harder to bring ethics charges against public servants. (Photo credit: Wes Muller/Louisiana Illuminator) Louisiana lawmakers overwhelmingly approved a set of dramatic changes to state ethics laws Wednesday that will make it much more difficult to charge elected officials and public employees with misconduct. House Bill 674 alters the process the state ethics board used to bring charges against Gov. Jeff Landry two years ago that are still pending. Landry's charges won't be affected by the legislation, but he pushed for the bill and is expected to let it pass into law. The governor's personal attorney, Stephen Gelé, helped craft the language contained in it. Beyond making it harder to bring ethics charges, the legislation also loosens limits on elected officials' and state employees' state travel, weakens restrictions on government contracts with public servants and their families, and reduces requirements for elected officials and political candidates' disclosure of financial interests. The bill's sponsor, Rep. Beau Beaullieu, R-New Iberia, said it is a reaction to the ethics board's overzealous enforcement that has frustrated officials in both parties. The anger toward the board was reflected in lawmakers' overwhelming support of the bill. The Louisiana Senate and House voted 34-2 and 92-1, respectively, for the ethics overhaul this week. Yet ethics board members expressed concerns about the bill during its May meeting. Its top staff member, Ethics Administrator David Bordelon, described it as 'skewing' the ethics investigation process in favor of the person accused of wrongdoing. The state's preeminent government watchdog group, the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana (PAR), also vociferously opposed the legislation. 'This is designed to make sure we don't have ethics investigations,' PAR President Steven Procopio told lawmakers at a hearing last week. This is a developing story. Please check back for more details.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Louisiana political campaigns might get to withhold more donation, spending info
Matthew Perschall/Louisiana Illuminator Louisiana lawmakers might diminish information available to the public about political donations and election spending through a sprawling rewrite of the state's campaign finance law. Gov. Jeff Landry is pushing House Bill 693, sponsored by House Republican Caucus Chairman Mark Wright, R-Covington. It carves out more circumstances under which political contributions and expenditures don't have to be disclosed on a public campaign finance report. The 101-page proposal is difficult to understand for people who don't deal with campaign finance regulations frequently. Even staff attorneys for the Louisiana Board of Ethics, which enforces the campaign finance laws, admit the changes are confusing. 'To be honest with you, it's going to take quite a grace period to figure all this out,' Ethics Administrator David Bordelon said when presenting the bill to the state ethics board last month. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Private attorneys Stephen Gelé and Charles Spies helped write the bill. They have represented Landry in multiple disputes he has had with the ethics board, including over campaign finance laws and enforcement. Gelé has said the proposal respects constitutional rights, including freedom of speech, while still providing transparency and 'preventing the appearance of corruption.' The state's preeminent government watchdog group disagrees. The Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana (PAR) has come out against the legislation, saying the bill would benefit politicians while offering little for the general public. 'There is a very large bill, and I don't quite understand the problem it is trying to solve,' PAR President Steven Procopio said at a legislative hearing last month. In more than 20 places in the law, the bill increases the minimum dollar threshold at which a donation or expense has to be included on a public campaign finance report. For example, national political committees that raise most of their money outside Louisiana are required to publicly disclose their spending on a Louisiana election once it reaches $20,000. The proposed bill would hike that disclosure threshold to $50,000. The current law also requires any campaign contributions or expenditures over $200 given within the 20 days before the election to be reported on a public campaign finance report. The proposed law would hike that disclosure threshold to $5,000. Louisiana set to spend at least $7 million to bring Saudi-owned LIV Golf to New Orleans Over a dozen similar changes are also part of the legislation. Individuals who are not political candidates and groups that are not explicitly political committees could also spend money on an election without disclosing contributions they accepted for the politicking. Those who are not a candidate or a designated political committee would only be required to disclose election spending over $1,000 in a political cycle and if it involved: federally-regulated broadcast media; 500 pieces of mail; a phone bank of 500 calls within a 30-day period; or digital or print advertising with a candidate's image that's distributed in the area the candidate would represent within 30 days of their primary and 60 days of their general election These changes would apply to large, statewide elections and smaller ones such as those for police juries, town councils and school boards. Money spent to communicate with people in a 'membership organization' – such as a union, industry association or an athletic club – as well as employees and stockholders of a business also would not have to be reported as a political expense. This could include communication sent to thousands of people at once. In some cases, current campaign finance law obliges people to report this type of spending that would be shielded under the Wright bill. Supporters of the legislation said these exceptions were mainly carved out with so-called social welfare organizations in mind. The organizations, which critics call 'dark money' political groups, are registered with the IRS as 501(c)(4) nonprofits for tax purposes and are not required to disclose their donors under federal regulations. It's unclear to what extent the groups have to disclose their spending on Louisiana elections under current state campaign finance laws. Landry has set up at least of these 'dark money' groups, Protect Louisiana Values, to advance his political agenda. It also notably put up the money for Landry to rent a live tiger to attend an LSU football game last year. Defying Landry, Louisiana lawmakers reject giving him more control over licensing boards Former Gov. John Bel Edwards also established two of his own 'dark money' groups during his eight years in office: Rebuild Louisiana and A Stronger Louisiana. While limiting disclosure on political spending, Wright's legislation does open up allowable uses of politician's campaign funds to a much wider group of expenses, including their home mortgages, country club fees and gym memberships. The legislation is also one of a few bills Landry is pushing to soften ethics laws and regulations this session. Lawmakers in favor of them said they are reacting to overzealous enforcement by the ethics board. In 2007, former Gov. Bobby Jindal and legislators passed dozens of restrictions and public disclosure requirements for elected officials and public employees as part of Jindal's effort to reach a 'gold standard' of ethics for Louisiana that would be a model around the country. Lawmakers are now saying that effort was overreach that needs to be corrected. 'I haven't come across an elected official who has enjoyed working through this process and hasn't questioned what they did back in the Jindal era,' Wright said of ethics and campaign finance regulations. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
IOL News
2 days ago
- Health
- IOL News
Hamlett looking add to his galaxy of Comrades champions
JOHN HAMLETT 's passion for the Comrades Marathon is contagious. Spend time in the former South Africa Defence Colonel's presence and you suddenly find yourself wanting to lace-up for the grueling race between the KwaZulu/Natal cities of Durban and Pietermaritzburg. A renowned champion-producer who has run the race himself, he specializes in training athletes just to tackle The Ultimate Human Race. It's been a while since he had a runner be the first to breast the finish line tape, but that has not dissuaded him from pushing on – Hamlett yet again taking a sizeable group of runners to the race taking place this weekend. 'We've got a good group Mats, and they are all ready to challenge for honours,' he says of the Pan African Resources Club (PAR) athletes who will line up among the elites at the start of the 98th running of this world famous ultra in front of the Pietermaritzburg City Hall early on Sunday. Leading the charge for glory will no doubt be the highly experienced Gordon Lesetedi, the three-time gold medalist who will be lining up for his 10th race. Out in the high-altitude, quaint small tourist town of Dullstroom which has served as Hamlett's base for cooking up Comrades Marathon champions – Lesetedi is the senior citizen following the retirement of 2015 king Gift Kelehe. And he always leads by example during the long and hard training runs Hamlett gets the athletes doing so they are ready on race day. I visited them a fortnight ago and they all looked lean and ready to hand Hamlett his fifth champion – eager to follow in the footsteps of Kelehe, his older brother Andrew as well as 2016 Down Run winner with a record David Gatebe plus Ann Ashworth. Lesetedi was in particularly high spirits, confident that he would eventually get that podium finish (top three) he has been chasing for years. 'Ke nako,' he tells me as we settle out in the suny backyard of the cozy little house they've called home for six weeks then. 'It might be the 10th race and I know that for a lot of runners the Green Number (given after you've completed the race 10 times) is special. But for me it is just like any other ace and I am going to give it my best. I've generally done well in the Down Run (From Maritzburg to Durban) and I believe I usually get it right.' His dream of the top three is yet to happen because he believes the Comrades Marathon is always dependent on what happens on race day. 'It is a very long race and you can say before the race that you are ready to win or to do well, but then things might go wrong on the day. I am confident I can do well this year because I believe I can break the 5:20 that I ran in 2023 and of course if I get that time, then I will definitely be in the top three. I think a 5:17 will be good enough to put you up there.' Lesetedi is experienced enough to know that the race only begins after the 60km mark and he figured that it is different from the past and unlike then, it is hard to break from the leading bunch early on in the race. Though yet to podium, the man from Sekhing in the North West – the home of the Kelehe brothers who are his role models and inspiration - looks back at his Comrades career with delight because 'my times are always improving with every race'. 'And for now, it is no longer just about the gold, we are going for the podium and the win. I've got the experience and I am coached by a man who knows how to win this thing.' Alongside Lesetedi in the black, gold and white colours of PAR will be a handful of young men with a bright future in ultra-running who have got Hamlett excited that he could produce a champion yet again – if not this year in the near future.. Gift Mokoena has been with Hamlett since after the Covid pandemic and has been gradually improving, so much so that he narrowly missed out on gold last year. 'I was in the top 10 when we got to Polly Shortts but I cramped a little and that's when I lost out on gold,' said the man from Bethlehem of his 13th place finish and he is confident he will do better this time around. He was particularly disappointed at missing out on a target he'd set himself when he got into ultra running: 'My goal was to get my first gold last year for it to coincide with my 40th birthday. But I missed out on that and it was very disappointing. But I am this guy who learns from my mistakes everytime and I now know exactly what to do to get that gold.' Inspired by Andrew Kelehe and 2003 champions Fusi Nhlapo – who was trained by Hamlett until shortly before the race – Mokoena says he has done everything right and is looking forward to making his coach, himself and family proud. Proud Chauke is a confident 31-year-old from Malamulele who wears his heart on his sleeve: 'I always run a race to win, all races. My mentality is always to win the race. According to the races I ran this year and what the coach has been telling me, I am confident that I will do very well this time. The coach has been telling me that I can win Comrades and I believe I can do it. I am going there to compete for a win.' Chauke also derives his confidence from his victory at the Border to Border ultra (between Mozambique and Swaziland) in a good time of 3:54 and even went on to finish second in the Balwin Marthon in Durban. With three Comrades Marathons to his name, Chauke says he owes himself a good race given that the previous ones were ran on injuries and that he also made some rookie mistakes in some of them – once pulling out of the lead bunch thinking they were going too fast and that he would catch them one by one. 'I was not aware that there were no longer hills after that and they left me and I just could not catch them. That was a painful lesson because if I had stuck with them I could have done very well. But I am experienced now and coach has taught me all the tricks and I am ready to run a PB. I have a 5:41 but this time I want a 5:20. It's a time that we believe can give me a podium finish if not a win.' Chauke wants to see the Comrades title going back to Limpopo to end the long drought given that the last time a runner from that province won was back in 2012 when Ludwick Mamabolo reigned supreme. The other athletes in Hamlett's group are Musa Zweni, Vuyo Hagiole as well as the roses among the thorns in Kelebogile Motshabi and Wanda Britz. Will any of them give Hamlett yet a nother win to cement his legacy as a Comrades Champion Coach?
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
PAR Technology Corporation to Participate at the William Blair 45th Annual Growth Stock Conference
NEW HARTFORD, N.Y., June 02, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--PAR Technology Corporation (NYSE: PAR) a global foodservice technology company providing unified solutions for restaurants and retailers, today announced PAR CEO, Savneet Singh, will present at the upcoming William Blair 45th Annual Growth Stock Conference. Mr. Singh will present at the conference on Wednesday, June 4th at 3:40 p.m. ET. PAR management will also conduct one-on-one meetings with investors and analysts during the conference. Live webcast of the presentation will be available by visiting PAR Technology's website at Replays of the webcasts will be available following the conclusion of each live presentation broadcast. ABOUT PAR TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION For more than 40 years, PAR Technology Corporation's (NYSE Symbol: PAR) cutting-edge products and services have helped bold and passionate restaurant brands build lasting guest relationships. We are the partner enterprise restaurants rely on when they need to serve amazing moments from open to close, during the most hectic rush hours, and when the world forces them to adapt and overcome. More than 70,000 restaurants in more than 110 countries use PAR's restaurant point-of-sale, customer loyalty and engagement, payments, omnichannel digital ordering and delivery, and back-office software solutions as well as industry leading hardware and drive-thru offerings. To learn more, visit or connect with us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. The Company's Environmental, Social, and Governance report can be found at View source version on Contacts Christopher R. Byrnes (315) 743-8376chris_byrnes@
Business Wire
3 days ago
- Business
- Business Wire
PAR Technology Corporation to Participate at the William Blair 45th Annual Growth Stock Conference
NEW HARTFORD, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--PAR Technology Corporation (NYSE: PAR) a global foodservice technology company providing unified solutions for restaurants and retailers, today announced PAR CEO, Savneet Singh, will present at the upcoming William Blair 45th Annual Growth Stock Conference. Mr. Singh will present at the conference on Wednesday, June 4 th at 3:40 p.m. ET. PAR management will also conduct one-on-one meetings with investors and analysts during the conference. Live webcast of the presentation will be available by visiting PAR Technology's website at Replays of the webcasts will be available following the conclusion of each live presentation broadcast. For more than 40 years, PAR Technology Corporation's (NYSE Symbol: PAR) cutting-edge products and services have helped bold and passionate restaurant brands build lasting guest relationships. We are the partner enterprise restaurants rely on when they need to serve amazing moments from open to close, during the most hectic rush hours, and when the world forces them to adapt and overcome. More than 70,000 restaurants in more than 110 countries use PAR's restaurant point-of-sale, customer loyalty and engagement, payments, omnichannel digital ordering and delivery, and back-office software solutions as well as industry leading hardware and drive-thru offerings. To learn more, visit or connect with us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. The Company's Environmental, Social, and Governance report can be found at
