Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill is investigating alleged violations of the state open meetings law by the Louisiana Board of Ethics. (Wes Muller/Louisiana Illuminator)
Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill has launched an investigation into the state Board of Ethics for allegedly violating government transparency laws through private discussions about replacing its top staff member.
Murrill opened the inquiry in response to a letter from state Rep. Beau Beaullieu , R-New Iberia, who chairs the Louisiana House committee that oversees the ethics board.
The lawmaker sent a letter to Murrill in November outlining seven instances in September and October where he thought the ethics board may have violated the state’s open government meetings statute.
“We’re treating the letter from the legislator as an open meetings complaint and we are investigating accordingly,” Lester Duhé, Murrill’s spokesman, said in a written statement this week.
The board’s ethics administrator, Kathleen Allen, maintains that the board did not violate the open meetings law in September and October. She chalked up much of the dispute to missing board meeting minutes not posted on the ethics board’s website for the public to view.