Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett’s former chief of staff, Dan Parker, has joined American Structurepoint, an engineering firm that has received contracts worth up to $62 million from the city since Hogsett took office.

Concerns Over Conflict of Interest

Parker’s move to the company has raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest, as he signed many of the contracts with the city during his time as chief of staff. Ethics experts say that Parker’s experience in the public sector could give the company an unfair advantage in securing city contracts.

Jeff Hauser, founder of the Revolving Door Project, said that Parker’s move to Structurepoint is “definitely concerning” and that it raises questions about how he might have behaved while still in his government role. Hauser compared it to a situation where someone is planning to ask someone out on a date and how that might impact their behavior beforehand.

City’s Ethics Code

The city’s ethics code does not require employees to wait before taking a job with companies they oversaw or awarded contracts to while in their government role. However, the code does prevent former employees from working on “particular matters” such as public works projects, economic development deals, and other transactions in which they were “personally and substantially” involved.

It is unclear whether Parker is working on city-related matters for Structurepoint, as neither the company nor Parker responded to repeated requests for comment. Parker did say “no comment” when approached by a reporter at an event.

The city’s ethics code also allows for waivers to be granted to former employees, but it is unclear if Parker has received a waiver. The city’s spokesperson said that Parker has not received a waiver, but did not answer several questions about the situation, including when Parker informed the mayor he was applying for a job at Structurepoint.

Original reporting: Mirror Indy — read the source article.