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March 2008
Annual Report by the Ethics Review Board to:
The Citizens of New Orleans
The Honorable C. Ray Nagin, Mayor
Members of the New Orleans City Council
This Report is written in accordance with Section 9-1120, Chapter 2 of the Code of the City of New Orleans to add Article XIII. It is an overview of the work of the Ethics Review Board (ERB) in its first year of operation.
In our first year we have spent a lot of time organizing our operations and procedures since there were none established when we began our work in January 2007. We focused on the organization of the board and its functions, and rules and procedures to promote efficiency and effectiveness of the Board in handling matters that will come to the board for review.
Our most important work in the past year was the hiring of the first Inspector General for the City of New Orleans and initial start up of Office of the Inspector General (OIG).
We conducted a national search for an Inspector General. We then worked with the new IG, the Mayor, and City Council to establish the budget for the IG and ERB. We set up offices for operations. We worked with the Governor and Legislature during the Special Session on Ethics.
I. History
The ERB was established under the Home Rule Charter jurisdiction and the ERB finds its origins in Article IX, Chapter 4 of the Chart, entitled “Office of Inspector General; Ethics.” Section 9-402 directed the City Council to establish the Ethics Review Board by ordinance. Under that ordinance the ERB is empowered to issue advisory opinions, promulgate rules regarding interpretation and enforcement of the Code of Ethics, retain counsel and impose fines. Other relevant Charter provisions can be found in Article IX, Chapter 1 (“Board and Commissions in General”), as well as other provisions of the Home Rule Charter as it may relate to the context of the work of the ERB.
II. Selection of Board Members
Under the above Home Rule Charter, the presidents of Dillard University, Loyola University New Orleans, Tulane University, Southern University New Orleans, Xavier University and the University of New Orleans submitted names to the Honorable C. Ray Nagin, mayor of the City of New Orleans in nomination to the ERB. At that time, the mayor selected a nominee from each university and also named one member to the ERB. The present members of the ERB are: Mrs. Leah Chase nominee of Dillard University; Dr. Kathryn Venturatos Lorio nominee of Loyola University New Orleans; Mrs. Elizabeth S. Nalty nominee of Tulane University; Dr. Beverly C. Favre nominee of Southern University New Orleans; Mr. Winston Brown nominee of Xavier University; Rev. Kevin Wm. Wildes, S.J., nominee of the University of New Orleans; and Rev. Cornelius Tilton nominee of Mayor Nagin.
III. Summary of ERB Work Performed
The first meeting of the newly established ERB was held on January 26, 2007 at Xavier University at which time the ERB elected Rev. Kevin Wm. Wildes, S.J., chair, Rev. Cornelius Tilton, vice chair, and Mrs. Elizabeth Nalty, secretary. The first order of business for the ERB was to proceed to educate itself on the pertinent laws and ordinances pertaining to the ERB and commence a search for the first Inspector General for the City of New Orleans. Rev. Wildes, chair, agreed to provide office space and support staff for the ERB and OIG at Loyola University New Orleans until such time as an official office, budget and hiring of staff can be confected. Xavier University agreed to provide public meeting space for the ERB meetings. The ERB started the process of developing its By-Laws.
February 2007
The search process, approval of position description for the Inspector General and timeline were established by the ERB (See Attachment 1). The ERB also began the development of rules and procedures for ERB.
March 2007
David Marcello of the Tulane Public Law Center, as well as Evelyn Pugh and Dawn Segura from the City Attorney’s Office, provided in-service training on topics of Home Rule Charter Provisions, City Code Provisions, State Ethics Laws and the State “Sunshine” Law. The ERB began a national search for Inspector General candidates and approved advertisements and announcements for the position.
April 2007
The request for position of Inspector General received final approval by the Civil Service Commission. Inquires to other cities and municipalities were made by the ERB to determine further information on the office of the inspector general. Candidate requirements and best practices were established. The ERB adopted By-Laws (See Attachment 2). The Chair shared a memo to him, by the City Attorney, in response to questions about the indemnification of Board members. The memo stated that members of the ERB are considered “officers of the City of New Orleans while fulfilling the responsibilities and duties of the position. As such, members are clearly protected in the performance of such duties.”
May 2007
There was a review by the ERB of the character and competency of 20 candidates for the position of inspector general. Under a system of rating and scoring of candidates, five finalists were notified of interviews by the ERB.
June 2007
Interviews of the final candidates were conducted on June 7 and 8, 2007. Candidates were vetted by appropriate agencies and ERB members performed in-depth personal reference checks. Additionally, education transcripts were reviewed and examined for authenticity. Inspector General candidate Robert A. Cerasoli was hired by the ERB with a start date of September 2007 (See Attachment 3).
July 2007
ERB work continued with no formal meeting held.
August 2007
Formal discussions were held regarding the relationship of the ERB and OIG as well as commonalities of the State Ethics Board and ERB. There was further discussion on rules and procedures of the ERB. ERB member, Kathryn Lorio, and David Marcello of the Tulane Public Law Center began a working draft of the rules and procedures.
September 2007
Budget information for the ERB and OIG was prepared to be submitted to the City of New Orleans. Discussion of legal representation and possible conflict with the city attorney was also discussed. A work plan will be developed by the Inspector General.
October 2007
Budgets for the ERB and OIG were submitted in a timely fashion to the mayor’s budget office. There was an initial round of discussion on the draft of the rules for the ERB. There was continued discussion on legal representation and other issues regarding amendments to the Ordinance. The ERB and Inspector General worked with City Council members on an amended ordinance.
November 2007
The Inspector General and chair of the ERB appeared before the City Council for budget hearings. The Inspector General and the ERB worked with the Council, particularly with Cynthia Hedge Morrell, chair of the budget committee, and the OIG budget was approved.
December 2007
Work continued on ERB rules.
January 2008
A preliminary draft of the ERB rules was reviewed and a final review subcommittee formed. Office space was secured for the OIG in the Federal Reserve Bank Building.
February 2008
A final draft of the ERB rules was adopted (See Attachment 4). Rules are to be submitted to the City Council for promulgation process. Legislative submissions were made to the Louisiana Legislature at its special session on ethics. Representative J.P. Morrell submitted House Bill 80. Under HB 80 the ERB/IG is authorized the following:
Designation of ERB as a law enforcement agency (LEA), who upon application by the OIG can confer LEA status upon IG along with all powers associated with LEA status;
Grants ERB/IG subpoena power in state courts;
Authorizes ERB/IG ability to employ its own legal counsel;
Allows for confidentially of records until an investigation/audit/exam or other procedure is completed and a final report issued.
IV. Staffing and Offices of OIG
As of this writing, the staff members of the OIG are: Robert A. Cerasoli, Inspector General, Francis Marvin Doyal, CPA, CIG, CFE, first assistant Inspector General for Audit and Review, and Leonard C. Odom, Assistant Inspector for Investigations. (See Attachment 5 for a copy of the organizational chart of the office structure of the OIG. Attachment 6 has biographical information on Messrs. Doyle and Odom.) The office of the OIG is housed in the Federal Reserve Bank Building in the central business district of New Orleans.
V. Staffing of ERB
As of this writing, the ERB is staffed by Loyola University. A staffing subcommittee was formed at the January 2008 ERB meeting to review applicants for the positions of legal counsel and executive director.
Future Work
In the year ahead the ERB will support the OIG to complete the hiring of staff. We will also review the OIG work plan for the new year. Also, it is our priority to begin, with the OIG, to conduct education classes for city employees on ethics rules and regulations.
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