Public relations firm conducted three events for propane dealers at convention
A Baton Rouge public relations firm overbilled the state for conducting propane-safety seminars and provided false information to state auditors when asked to justify its billings, according to an inspector general's report released Tuesday.
The report says Creative Communications, owned by Randy Hayden, was hired by the Liquefied Petroleum Gas Commission to conduct safety seminars for propane dealers during the annual convention of the Louisiana Propane Gas Association, a private trade group.
In addition to heading his own advertising firm, Hayden serves as executive director of the trade association.
According to the report, Hayden charged the commission $32,000 to conduct three safety seminars, each lasting two and a half hours.
When the Department of Public Safety asked the company to justify the invoices, Hayden submitted documents that "appear to contain false information, including time sheets for work performed by Creative Communications' employees who did not work on the safety seminar for the year in question, who were no longer employed by Mr. Hayden, and who were living outside the state of Louisiana during the year for which their services were billed," according to the report.
The report also says Hayden auctioned off a set of LSU football season tickets that he obtained through an advertising contract, which the commission paid for with public funds. The auction proceeds then were donated to the trade association's political action committee.
Among other things, the report recommends that the state consider barring Hayden and his company from having state contracts in the future.
Hayden did not return a call seeking comment. In a written response to the inspector general, he acknowledged making mistakes in the invoices, but denied that the mistakes were "knowingly false or fraudulently made."
Jan Moller can be reached at jmoller@timespicayune.com or 225.342.5207.
