Could the Iberia Parish clerk of court give employees annual salary supplements when funds were available?

Plain-English summary

The Iberia Parish clerk of court asked whether employees could receive pay supplements that depended on the availability of money each year and might not become permanent raises. In Opinion 03-0330, the AG answered yes, if the supplement was an earned increase for future service. The Louisiana Constitution barred donations of public funds and unearned bonuses to public employees; it did not bar an increase in compensation for work yet to be performed.

The AG recommended placing the supplement in each employee's compensation package and expressly conditioning it on available funds. The opinion distinguished this prospective pay arrangement from extra compensation for work already completed.

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

Clerk of court and payroll staff

The AG allowed a funding-dependent supplement when it took the form of a salary increase for future services. It recommended that the compensation agreement state both the supplement and its dependence on available funds.

Clerk employees

The opinion drew the line at whether the additional pay was earned by future work. An unearned bonus for past services could not be paid from public funds under the constitutional rule the AG applied.

Common questions

Could a clerk offer a supplement that might change from year to year?

The AG said yes if it was an earned increase for future services. He recommended stating the funding condition in the employee's compensation agreement.

Could the clerk reward employees with an extra payment for work already done?

No. The opinion treated a gratuitous bonus or extra compensation for past services as prohibited.

Background and statutory framework

The AG applied Article 7, Section 14 of the Louisiana Constitution, which it described as barring a loan, pledge, or donation of public funds. It distinguished unearned compensation from salary increases for future services and cited an earlier AG opinion for the same rule.

Citations and references

• Article 7, Section 14(A): public-funds restriction discussed in the opinion.

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/03-0330

Original opinion text

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
One American Place
301 Main Street, Suite 600
c,v,L o,v,s,oN
P.O. Box 94005
BATON ROUGE
TEL.: (225) 342-7013
FAX: (225) 342-2090
RICHARD P. IEYOUB
70804-9005
ATTORNEY GENERAL

SEP P, 6 2003
Opinion Number 03-0330
90-A-2 Public Funds - Loan, Pledge or Grants Article 7, Section 14 (A) of the Louisiana Constitution Mr. Lynn A. DeRouen, Attorney at Law
Iberia Parish Clerk of Court
Clerk of Court employees may receive a salary
103 East Main Street
supplement if it is in the form of a salary increase for
future services.
New Iberia, LA 70560

Dear Mr. DeRouen:

You question if the Iberia Parish Clerk of Court may give salary supplements to his employees. The supplement, however, would not necessarily be a permanent pay raise. Rather, it would depend upon the availability of funds each year.

It is our opinion that the clerk may do so. Pursuant to Article 7, Section 14 of the Louisiana Constitution, the clerk cannot loan, pledge, or donate funds to anyone. Our office has consistently opined that the payment of a bonus or any other ,gratuitous, unearned payment to public employees is prohibited by the constitution." On the contrary, the constitution does not prohibit an earned increase in compensation. Thus, the payment of additional compensation to public employees must be in the form of a salary increase for future services. It may not be given as extra compensation for past services.

We recommend that the supplement be provided for in each employee’s compensation package. We also recommend that the compensation agreement specifically provide that the supplement is conditioned upon the availability of funds.

We trust that this adequately responds to your request. If you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to contact our office.

Yours very truly,

RICHARD P. IEYOUB
Attorney General

BY:
TINA VICARI GRANT
Assistant Attorney General

RPI/TVG/dam

Attorney General Opinion No. 00-125