Could a Louisiana parish accept residents' donations to pave a public gravel road?

Plain-English summary

Franklin Parish asked whether its police jury could accept donations from residents to blacktop a public gravel road. The Attorney General found no prohibition on accepting the money to offset the cost of work on a road within the parish road system. He pointed to earlier AG opinions allowing private contributions toward public road construction or parish expenses.

The source of the money did not change the rules for spending it. The AG said the police jury had to follow the substantive provisions of the Parish Transportation Fund Act, especially the mandatory road-system administration requirements of R.S. 48:755.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2001. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Could residents help pay to blacktop a parish road?
The AG said the police jury could accept private donations to offset the paving cost for a road in its parish road system.

Could the parish spend the donations outside its usual road rules?
No. The opinion said the Parish Transportation Fund Act's substantive requirements applied regardless of the funding source.

What road did the opinion address?
It addressed a public gravel road within Franklin Parish's road system, not a private road outside that system.

Background and statutory framework

The AG found no bar to the proposed donation and cited earlier opinions on private participation in public road work. He then applied R.S. 48:751, et seq., and singled out R.S. 48:755's mandatory requirements for administering the parish road system.

Citations and references

• R.S. 48:751, et seq.
• R.S. 48:755

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/01-0021

Original opinion text

March 14, 2001
OPINION NO. 01-21

90-POLICE JURIES – Powers & Functions
50-HIGHWAYS-Roads
David P. Doughty
R.S. 48:751 et seq.
Assistant District Attorney R.S. 48:755
Civil Division
Fifth Judicial District
Police Jury may accept private donations to be used to offset the
costs relating to the black-topping of a gravel road within the
P.O. Box 857
Parish Road System. The substantive provisions of the Parish
Rayville, LA 71269
Transportation Fund Act must be adhered to in expending these
private funds.
Dear Mr. Doughty:

You have requested an opinion of the Attorney General as to whether the Franklin Parish Police Jury (“Police Jury”) can accept private funds from individual constituents to be used to blacktop a public gravel road.

We can find no prohibition preventing the Police Jury from accepting a donation from constituents for the purpose of offsetting the costs incidental to black- topping a road which is within the Parish Road System. In Attorney General Opinion No. 77-1023, we held that a parish may participate in a joint venture with private individuals to build a public roadway, if the benefit to the public is not merely incidental.

In Opinion No. 81-765 we opined that a police jury may legally accept donations from a private individual or businesses in order to defray the expenses of the police jury.

It should be noted, that the substantive provisions of the Parish Transportation Fund Act (R.S. 48:751, et seq.) must be adhered to, regardless of the source of funding for use on road maintenance and/or construction. Your specific attention is directed to R.S. 48:755 which contains mandatory requirements comprising the system of administration of the Parish Road System. Care should are taken that these requirements be followed in the expenditure of these funds. In accord are Attorney General Opinion Nos. 89-229 and 229-A.

Page 2

OPINION NO. 01-21
Mr. David Doughty
Assistant District Attorney
Fifth Judicial District
Page No. 2

Trusting this adequately responds to your inquiry, I am

Very truly yours,

RICHARD P. IEYOUB
ATTORNEY GENERAL

By:
ROBERT E. HARROUN, III
Assistant Attorney General

RPI / Rob3 /tp

Page 3

OPINION NO. 01-21

90-POLICE JURIES – Powers & Functions
50-HIGHWAYS-Roads

R.S. 48:751 et seq.
R.S. 48:755

Police Jury may accept private donations to be used to offset the costs relating to the black-topping of a gravel road within the Parish Road System.
The substantive provisions of the Parish Transportation Fund Act must be adhered to in expending these private funds.

DATE REQUESTED: January 9, 2001

DATE RELEASED: March 14, 2001

REQUESTED BY: David P. Doughty
Assistant Attorney General
Fifth Judicial District
P.O. Box 857
Rayville, LA 71269

AUTHOR: ROBERT E. HARROUN, III
Assistant Attorney General
Public Finance and Contracts Section