KY Ex-State Workers Reprimanded For Ethics Violations

Kentucky’s Executive Branch Ethics Commission has handed down public reprimands and fines to three former employees in the state Department of Agriculture. The panel took the action yesterday against Bruce Harper of Harrodsburg, Chris Parsons of Mount Vernon and George Begley of London. Harper agreed to pay a $4,500 fine for soliciting donations from businesses his agency regulated and for attempting to interfere with enforcement actions in cases involving grain storage and disposal of dead animals. Parsons agreed to pay $5,000 for filing false timesheets and for using his state-assigned vehicle for personal purposes. Begley agreed to pay $6,500 in fines for filing false timesheets, for using his state vehicle on off days and for using that vehicle for his personal logging business.