HB 160 revises Louisiana law governing complaints filed with the Board of Ethics. It expands and clarifies how the board may receive and act on complaints, including allowing the board to consider certain non-sworn complaints by a two-thirds vote, and allowing the board to open matters identified in reports that other government agencies or officials are required by law to submit. The bill also changes the complaint-filing process by requiring non-sworn complaints to be filed in person with identification, while sworn complaints must be notarized and may be filed by mail, fax, online, or in person.
The bill also adds protections for complainants and penalties for abuse of the complaint process. It prohibits threats, intimidation, coercion, and retaliation against a person who files a sworn or non-sworn ethics complaint, and it creates a civil cause of action for a complainant who suffers retaliatory action. In addition, if a person is found to have knowingly and willfully made a false complaint, the Ethics Adjudicatory Board must assess attorney fees against that person.
Impact
HB 160 amends R.S. 42:1141 and adds new provisions to R.S. 42:1141 and 1153, affecting the Board of Ethics’ investigative authority, complaint procedures, and enforcement tools. It changes who may file complaints and how they must be submitted, modifies what information is sent to the accused, authorizes investigations based on certain required government reports, and adds a retaliation remedy and fee-shifting penalty for false complaints. The bill primarily affects complainants, accused public officials or others subject to ethics jurisdiction, and the Board of Ethics and Ethics Adjudicatory Board.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have received strong support overall, passing the House 87-7 on final passage. The broad margin suggests general agreement with tightening complaint procedures, protecting complainants from retaliation, and discouraging false complaints. No committee transcript was provided, so the available record shows support through the vote rather than detailed debate.
Contention
The main points of contention likely center on balancing access to the ethics complaint process against protections for those accused. Requiring non-sworn complaints to be filed in person with identification, and requiring sworn complaints to be notarized, may be viewed as making complaints more formal and potentially deterring frivolous filings, but also as creating barriers for complainants. Another likely issue is the bill’s anti-retaliation provision and civil remedy, which strengthens protections for complainants, versus the new attorney-fee penalty for knowingly false complaints, which may be seen as discouraging abuse but also as a risk for complainants who fear being penalized if their allegations are not sustained.