Could one person serve on Clinton's planning commission and historic district commission?

Plain-English summary

Clinton asked whether one person could sit on both its planning and zoning commission and its historic district commission. In Opinion 03-0232, the AG answered no. The opinion quoted R.S. 33:103(C)(1): a parish or municipal planning commissioner "shall hold no other public office," except for service on a qualifying regional commission.

The AG applied that bar to the two Clinton commission positions and concluded they could not be held concurrently. The answer was specific to the other-public-office restriction in the planning commission statute.

Currency note

The full issue date is not legible in the available official extract. 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.

What the opinion meant at issuance

Planning commissioners

The AG said a member of Clinton's planning commission could not also serve on its historic district commission under the quoted prohibition on holding another public office.

Municipal appointing officials

The opinion identified a statutory exception for service on a duly constituted regional commission of which the municipality was part. It did not apply that exception to the historic district commission.

Common questions

Q: Could a Clinton planning commissioner also join the historic district commission?
A: No. The AG concluded that the two positions could not legally be held at the same time.

Q: Did unpaid planning commission service change the answer?
A: No. The statute quoted in the opinion provided that commissioners generally served without compensation and separately barred another public office.

Q: Was there an exception for another commission?
A: The quoted statute allowed a planning commissioner to serve on a qualifying regional commission. The AG did not treat Clinton's historic district commission as such a commission.

Background and statutory framework

R.S. 33:103(B) addressed municipal planning commission membership and appointment. Subsection C(1) imposed the other-public-office restriction on parish and municipal planning commissioners. The AG applied that text to the two local commission seats described in the request.

Citations and references

Statute quoted or cited: R.S. 33:103(B) and (C)(1).

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/03-0232

Original opinion text

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
One American Place
301 Main Street, Suite 600
CIVIl. DIVISION
P.O. Box 94005
BATON ROUGE
TEL.: (225) 342-7013
RICHARD P. IEYOUB
FAX: (225) 342-2090
ATTORNEY GENERAL

OPINION 03-0232

Ms. Carol M. Shirley
Clinton Historic District Commission
77 OFFICERS; LOCAL & MUNICIPAL
P. O. Box 8623
R.S. 33:103(B) and (C)(1)
Clinton, LA 70722
A member of the municipal planning commission may hold
no other public office.

Dear Ms. Shirley:

You ask this office whether a person may hold a position on the municipal planning and zoning commission while also holding a position on the municipal historic district commission. Our answer is in the negative to your question.

R.S. 33:103(B) and (C) (1) provide:

§103. Planning commission; membership; appointment

B. A municipal planning commission shall consist of not less than five or more than nine members, at the discretion of the local legislative body, all to be appointed by the chief executive of the municipality, who may remove any member of the commission, after public hearing, for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office.

C. (1) All members of a commission, whether a parish or a municipal planning commission, shall serve without compensation, except as otherwise provided by this Paragraph or as othenNise provided by law, and shall hold no other public office, except they may also serve as members of any duly constituted regional commission of which their parish or municipality forms a part.

State law prohibits one from holding membership with the board of a municipal planning commission and holding any other public office; thus, the positions may not be legally held concurrently.

Very truly yours,

RICHARD P. IEYOUB
ATTOR EY GENERA)

BY:
~KILPAT~
ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL
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