NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A national government watchdog group ranks Louisiana fifth in the nation when it comes to government transparency and accountability, and the state stands to improve when new laws are figured into future rankings.
The Chicago-based Better Government Association released the rankings Monday. Ahead of Louisiana are New Jersey, Rhode Island, Hawaii and Washington. However, in its news release, the BGA notes that new laws passed this year that affect conflicts of interest would raise the state’s ranking to No. 1.
BGA’s praise for the top states was measured. Even the top state had only a 65 percent overall score. Louisiana scored 61 percent. The rankings are based on state laws governing open records, open meetings, campaign finance, whistleblower protection and conflicts of interest.
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