• Why is this important?
• Can we really regulate ethics?
• Doesn't Louisiana already have the best Ethics Code in the country?
• Where will we rank if all of these reforms are adopted?
• What does a better ranking mean for Louisiana?
• What can I do to help? How do I get involved?
• How is LA Ethics 1 different from Blueprint Louisiana?
• What if I have additional questions?

The quality of Louisiana's ethics laws are important because they affect us all. As a state, we share a long and colorful history of government corruption which has hampered our ability to attract new business prospects. This difficulty affects the availability of new jobs in communities across the state and has a negative impact on the state's economy in general.

Transparency and accountability are key to ethical behavior in government. By pursuing ethics laws and enforcement activities that make government more transparent and public officials more personally accountable for their behavior, Louisiana can better regulate ethics.

Louisiana boasts one of the oldest Codes of Governmental Ethics and was once at the national forefront for this area of law. Over the last 40 years, however, other states passed ethics reforms that were not matched in Louisiana - the Better Government Association (BGA) recently ranked Louisiana 46th in the nation with regard to the strength of its ethics laws. While our state has a strong basic framework for ethics laws, targeted reforms must be passed in order for Louisiana to become one of the leading states in America for governmental ethics laws and enforcement.

The Better Government Association (BGA) ranks states every 5 years with regard to the strength of their governmental ethics laws. The next BGA ranking is due to come out this fall, likely after the 2007 legislative session. While it is difficult to know precisely where Louisiana would rank (as other states have passed, and continue to pass, reforms), we believe that Louisiana would rank in the top five if not number one among the 50 states. Passing the personal financial disclosure portion of the package alone would most likely move Louisiana into the top ten.

A higher ranking would improve the national image of Louisiana. The new, more favorable position would allow us to counter negative historical assumptions held by some business prospects and attract new business development across the state.

Contact your local legislators and urge them to support the ethics reforms detailed on this website. Click here to learn more about getting involved.

Blueprint Louisiana is a statewide reform effort that seeks to encourage the election of reform-minded state officials this fall. Blueprint Louisiana and LA Ethics 1 have worked closely together on issues related to ethics reform: the two efforts are coordinated and complimentary. Blueprint Louisiana's agenda, due to be released on June 1, will likely include ethics reform as a major priority.

If you have questions not addressed on these pages, feel free to contact us at lori@laethics1.com. We will respond to your inquiry as soon as possible. For additional contact information, click here.