Provides relative to exceptions for the employment of a former school board member

House Bill 238 amends the Louisiana Code of Ethics by repealing the population limitation restriction found in R.S. 42:1123(31)(c). Specifically, the bill removes the requirement that former school board members seeking employment with their former boards as classroom teachers or certified school psychologists must reside in parishes with populations not exceeding 36,000 people as determined by the latest federal decennial census. The bill retains the two existing ethics exceptions that allow such former board members to be employed by their former school boards, but makes these exceptions available statewide rather than limiting them to smaller parishes. The mechanism is straightforward: the repeal of the population limitation in subsection (31)(c) operates to expand the geographic scope of two preexisting employment exceptions without modifying the substantive requirements that the former board member must hold either a valid Louisiana teaching certificate or a valid ancillary certificate in school psychology.

The practical effect of this legislation is to expand employment opportunities for former school board members who hold appropriate teaching or school psychology credentials. Previously, individuals who served on school boards in larger parishes were prohibited by the Code of Ethics from being employed by their former boards in teaching or school psychology positions, even if they possessed the necessary professional certifications. Under the proposed law, former school board members in all Louisiana parishes, regardless of population size, may now seek employment with their former boards in these specific positions, provided they meet the credential requirements. This change particularly benefits school districts in larger population centers that previously could not hire former board members with relevant professional qualifications due to the ethics restriction.

The bill operates within the framework established by R.S. 42:1121, which contains the general two-year prohibition against former board members contracting with, being employed by, or being appointed to positions by their former boards or commissions. The specific exceptions in R.S. 42:1123(31) carve out narrow circumstances where this general prohibition does not apply. By removing the population-based limitation, the bill treats all school boards uniformly under the Code of Ethics while maintaining the underlying requirement that former board members must possess the requisite professional certifications to qualify for these employment exceptions. The legislative design preserves the policy judgment that classroom teachers and school psychologists represent positions where professional credentials are the controlling factor, rather than ethical concerns about post-service employment relationships.