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System fails to catch contractor’s family tie with county
Forms were filled out, but illegal contract got through
Saturday, Nov. 21, 2009 | 2 a.m.
Steve Sisolak
Over the past several years, a Clark County employee’s architectural firm has gotten hundreds of thousands of dollars in county architectural contracts in violation of state law.
County Commissioner Steve Sisolak discovered the problem relatively easily and is questioning how and why county staff hadn’t. As a result, the county is investigating and planning changes to try to prevent similar violations in the future.
The case that brought it all to light involves a Las Vegas architect, Marc Lemoine, whose wife is a Clark County civil engineer. She works on traffic plans, some involving development or construction. Marc Lemoine Architecture has won seven county contracts worth $316,571 since 2001.
The firm would have won another worth almost $200,000 on Tuesday if Sisolak hadn’t noticed that the firm names Denise Lemoine as a “member.” Marc Lemoine said his wife was listed as a member of his limited liability company since before she started working for the county.
Denise Lemoine has been a county employee since late December 1999. She works in the Development Services Department and has an annual salary of $110,157.
After Sisolak pointed out his discovery during a County Commission meeting Tuesday, Mary Ann Miller, the county lawyer who advises commissioners on legal matters, said awarding a contract to Lemoine Architecture would be a violation of state law. Nevada statutes, she said, “prohibit a public employee from entering into an agreement with a government ... she works with unless it is competitively bid.”
Willful violations of the ethics in government law are punishable by a fine of up to $5,000.
Lemoine’s architectural jobs with the county were not competitively bid. The county has Lemoine and numerous other architectural firms listed in a “rotation,” said Randy Tarr, director of the county’s real property management department. That department handles design and construction of county buildings and evaluates the architects who are put on the rotation list.
Tarr said that when a project requires architectural services, county staff simply give the work to the next firm in line on the list. Architects are listed in categories depending upon the size of contracts they will take. Lemoine was in the “small” category with 18 other firms that handle contracts for less than $2 million. In the “medium” category, 37 firms are listed; and the “large” category lists 17.
Tarr said Denise Lemoine never attempted to give her husband’s firm an unfair advantage. The rotation system inherently avoids that and, he added, “we didn’t even know who Denise was” until Sisolak mentioned her.
Also, Denise Lemoine had noted her husband’s firm in a “notice of additional employment,” which is required for employees who work outside county government and is filed with her department.
Her husband, meanwhile, listed Denise Lemoine as a member, so the couple don’t appear to have been trying to hide her role with the firm.
The county, however, never made the connection because Lemoine works for development services, but the contract went through the county’s purchasing and contracts division, Miller said.
All of which brings up a question Sisolak asked Friday: What good does it do to disclose if no one pays attention? “I’ve been told nobody checks,” he added.
Companies that do business with the county disclose the names of people holding more than a 5 percent ownership or financial interest in the business. That’s how Denise Lemoine’s name is listed.
But there’s no box or place on the form to note if a corporate officer or member has a family connection to county government. That has to change, Sisolak said.
“We have to do something on the employee side and on the bidder side,” he said. “Somewhere on that form, or when you’re put on the list, there should be a question, ‘Do you have a relationship with a county employee?’ ”
Sisolak, a former member of the Nevada Board of Regents, said conflicts of interest born of family relationships were “a huge problem” in the Nevada university system.
“It turned out faculty were dating or married to people doing business with the university system. It was everywhere, and the system wound up having to go through extreme efforts to get that all disclosed,” he said.
At the county level, similar connections are a big concern “because we have millions of dollars we give out in contracts and we have a lot of people who have spouses who do business with the county,” he said.
Marc Lemoine said his wife was listed as a firm member only because “when you’re an LLC you need a couple of members ... but she makes no decisions about how my company is run. I never realized it could be a problem.”
Informed last week that his family business would not be getting a contract to complete the design of two fire stations, he said it was “total shock.”
“This is a small city,” he added. “It’s hard to imagine that my situation is unique.”
Sisolak is thinking the same thing.
“It’s clear to me this happened multiple times and I have a hard time believing this is the only instance,” he said.
Discussion: 27 comments so far…
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Did they ever prosecute the former head of UMC? The guy with the Chicago connection, who gave money to friends that performed no services for UMC? Clark County has no history of providing proper oversight.
For once it seems like an honest oversight and nothing sinister.
FOLLOW THE MONEY. EVERY politician should be labelled as suspect for corruption within Clark County! The criminals have all the rights..the victims none! Bring back the real Family to clean out these crooks. The Law systems just move the few cases that surface... underground. The "retired" politicians are treated very well. That's it!
I've been ranting & raving FOR YEARS over this nepotism!
since when is a population of 2 million considered a small city
Why ,in the first place would they need a new design for two more fire sations?From my view,all the stations I have seen look the same. If the majority of the stations are the same and function well, Why change them ? Just use the designs that were created already? Must be nice to get paid thousands of dollars for a design that to create ,all that has to be done is use a copy machine!
SYSTEM???...oh my allah, Mr. Sun...you still refuse to believe that real people make real decisions...more to the point, when they are incompetent bordering on malfeasance, they make wrong ones...try to connect at least two dots please, Mr. Sun...
County Slogan no-one knows where the nose goes when the doors closed !!!!!!
Word on the street is that this has been going on for years. Nepotism, contracts going to friends. There are millions of dollars in contracts awarded every month.
It looks like this could be an honest oversight. Then again, I heard that excuse during the G-sting cases years ago. Where are the county management and the commissioners on this? How could someone not have noticed this was going on.
Lets be honest, Lemoine isn't a common name like Smith. A lot of people either werent paying attention, or they were looking the other way.
it not who you blow it who u know
Lemoine is French name. The facts are though that nepotism has been and will be the muse of those who brag about the use and abuse of tax monies to pay for their kids soccer clothes.
the system failed? yeah, blame "the system". what a joke.
Sisolak for Chairman of County Commission...
"when you're an LLC you need a couple of members..."
Not true. Do a search of the LLC records and you'll find hundreds where only one person is listed in each of the capacities.
Update your LLC and go back to work.
I agree with Sisolak. All applications should include a question about county employed relatives. Why hasn't the county's lawyer ever caught this? (Because of a conflict of interest she didn't want exposed?)
"..."This is a small city," he added. "It's hard to imagine that my situation is unique."..."
THIS ENTIRE CLARK COUNTY GOVERNMENT WAS SET UP TO BE "MOBSTER LAND". ONLY SELECTED FEW GET THE GIGS IF THEY "PAY OR PLAY".
RICO RICO RICO RICO RICO RICO RICO RICO
AUDIT AUDIT AUDIT AUDIT AUDIT AUDIT
Oh, did I forget to mention, RICO? And AUDIT?
This "Headline" should read:
"System accidently -on purpose, fails to catch contractor's family tie with county!"
Come on! For Christ's sake, how long are city, county, state and federal governments going to continue to attempt to get away with this kind of BS? I would guess: as long as city, county, state and federal governments can keep voters stupid enough to continue to believe it!
The G-Sting investigation on CC commissioners would have NEVER occured, if the San Diego officials were not indicted first.
It took San Diego to open prosecution, to get NV law enforcement off their a$$e$.
However, the commissioners that went down were small time, with one [Garlardi] private kingpin.
Woodbury was un-touchable there, because he was not playing with Galardi, he was playing hardball by embezzeling 6,000 acres from the CRC, into Don Laughlin & Robert Bilbray's private corporations, to form Laughlin, & its government that Woodbury appointed there!
Commissioner Sisolak may be asked to testify upon the record, to prosecute Woodbury's Civil Rights & RICO violations, that are pending trial.
Nice catch Commissioner Sisolak. Clark County needs more people like you watching out for the citizens, THANK YOU.
This happens in both private and public sector. I'm not surprised nor shocked but I am very pleased that someone at the County caught it!!!
UMC is happening all over again at Water Reclamation. Instead of the Chicago connection you have the San Diego cartel-complete with under the table contracts, nepotism, and imposed fear on anyone who comes forward. Thankfully a few employees are mustering the courage to approach the FBI with insider info.
Hopefully a Grand Jury is around the corner.
Sorry nono,
I gave the chronological information to FBI, to prosecute Woodbury, several times over the last decade.
Everytime I was enterviewed by the FBI chief, she threatened to lock the doors and inprison me for false information that I swore to her!
The FBI; NV State; and, Clark County are ALL into racketeering together, against private citizen's business commerce!
I believe Commissioner Sisolak is instrumental onto justice, in placing ALL such corrupt officials into prison where they belong, and to sustain such commerce rights which ALL citizens are entitled to... under the State and Federal Constitution, as expressed within such State and Federal statutes.