District Attorney Hillar Moore III says his office will review a newly released Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s Office report that finds the East Baton Rouge Council on Aging used public funds to campaign for a dedicated 2.25-mill tax in 2016 in an apparent violation of state and federal campaign finance laws.
But Moore’s review will be “limited to any potential criminal charges and not to any potential non-criminal campaign or ethics related charges,” he says, adding that his office is in communication with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, state Inspector General’s Office and Louisiana Attorney General’s Office.
“We will discuss this matter with each of these offices as well,” he says.
The audit, released earlier this morning, does not suggest any criminal laws were broken. It does point to multiple instances where the COA appeared to have violated campaign finance laws—threatening its nonprofit, tax-exempt status in the process—by using public funds and resources to campaign for the tax, which narrowly passed last fall and will generate an estimated $80 million for the agency over the next decade.
In a written response to the audit, the COA’s attorney says the agency was new to political campaigns and didn’t realize it might have been violating campaign finance laws.
“Given this was the COA’s first and only foray into the political arena … the leadership of the agency should have been better informed and advised on the nuances of campaign finance law,” attorney Murphy J. Foster III says in his response to the audit.
According to the audit, however, Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry’s office advised state Sen. Regina Barrow, D-Baton Rouge, in April 2016 about the strict legal guidelines prohibiting organizations that receive public funds, such as the COA, from engaging in political activity.
The opinion was issued in response to a request from Barrow, who specifically asked the AG whether COA Executive Director Tasha Clark-Amar could publicly campaign for the millage.
“Because Councils on Aging receive public funding from the state, they must comply with public finance laws,” Assistant Attorney General Shannon Dirmann wrote in an April 2016 letter to Barrow. “EBRCOA may not use public resources for printing material to lobby for or against the proposed tax measure, nor may it use state payroll time to campaign for or against the proposed tax measure.”
It is unclear whether Barrow communicated the AG’s opinion to Clark-Amar or others in COA management. Barrow did not return calls this morning seeking comment. The COA is holding a press conference at 11:30 a.m. to respond to the audit.
Though many of the violations cited in the audit have been previously alleged and reported in the media, the LLA report is the first official confirmation from an investigative agency that the COA engaged in apparent wrongdoing, whether intentional or not.
State Rep. Steve Carter, R-Baton Rouge, who has filed a bill in the Legislature that would restructure the COA board and give greater oversight of the agency to outside organizations, says the audit demonstrates why his legislation is needed.
“The COA is an important agency that helps many of our senior citizens,” he says. “Unfortunately, the board has had a troubled past and needs restructuring to ensure that our senior citizens are served by an organization that demonstrates dignity and accountability.”
The audit’s findings also points to the need for the city-parish to impose greater oversight of the COA before levying the 2.25-mill tax, according to Metro Councilman Buddy Amoroso, who has called for Clark-Amar’s resignation.
The Metro Council has to sign a cooperative endeavor agreement with the COA before the tax can go into effect.
“I hope we can put enough controls into the CEA so the public is protected,” he says.
—Stephanie Riegel
