Were Louisiana police chiefs' required training hours suspended during the 2005 spending freeze?

Plain-English summary

Louisiana's Law Enforcement Executive Management Institute provided continuing education required for municipal police chiefs. After an executive hiring and spending freeze, the law-enforcement commission asked whether those training requirements were suspended while the institute awaited an exemption needed for its funding. The Attorney General answered yes for September 19, 2005, through March 29, 2006, when the Division of Administration approved the exemption.

The opinion relied on two linked facts. La. R.S. 33:2345 imposed the training requirement only when sufficient legislative funds were appropriated for the institute. The commission reported no other funding sources, and the Division of Administration said an exemption was needed before funds could be appropriated. The AG addressed this particular freeze and exemption period.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2006. 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 this means for you

Municipal police chiefs

If you are checking training compliance for the 2005–06 freeze period, compare your records with the September 19, 2005, and March 29, 2006, dates. The AG treated the required LEEMI training as suspended during that interval. Check the current training rule separately before planning hours now.

Training and budget officials

Keep the Division of Administration's exemption approval with the institute's funding records when explaining why training was suspended for this period. The opinion turned on the commission's report that it had no other funding and on the advice that an exemption was necessary before funds could be appropriated.

Common questions

What training did the statute require?

As the AG described it, each municipal chief of police had to complete twenty-four hours of continuing education in each twenty-four-month period, subject to the statute's funding condition.

When did the AG say the requirement was suspended?

From September 19, 2005, until March 29, 2006. The latter was the date the Division of Administration approved an exemption from the spending freeze for the institute.

Why did the spending freeze affect training?

The commission said its budget came solely from legislative appropriations, and the executive order required express written approval before it could use that funding. The AG related that constraint to the statute's sufficient-funding condition.

Did an automatic exemption already cover the institute?

No. The opinion said the order's automatic exemption for certain supply spending did not apply to LEEMI's training expenditure.

Background and statutory framework

La. R.S. 33:2345 established municipal police-chief continuing education and conditioned the institute's requirements on sufficient legislative funding. Executive Order No. KBB 2005-38 imposed a hiring and spending freeze, subject to Division of Administration approval. The AG applied those provisions to the commission's reported funding and the approval granted on March 29, 2006.

Citations

• La. R.S. 33:2345 (continuing education and funding condition).
• Executive Order No. KBB 2005-38 (spending freeze discussed by the AG).

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/06-0190

Original opinion text

October 23, 2006
OPINION NUMBER 06-0190

61 – LAWS
Mr. Michael A. Ranatza, Executive Director
Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement Executive Order No. KBB 2005-38 suspended the required continuing education training as provided by the Law and Administration of Criminal Justice Enforcement Executive Management Institute until an
1885 Wooddale Blvd., Room 1230
exemption was approved by the Division of Administration.

Baton Rouge, LA 70806-1511

Dear Mr. Ranatza:

On behalf of the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement (LCLE) and Administration of Criminal Justice, you have requested an opinion of this office regarding Executive Order No. KBB 2005-38 and the statutory requirements of the Law Enforcement Executive Management Institute (LEEMI) set forth in La. R.S. 33:2341 through R.S. 33:2345. More specifically, you asked whether the issuance of the executive order constituted a suspension of continuing education training requirements stipulated by R.S. 33:2345 from September 19, 2005, until March 29, 2006.

LA.R.S. 33:2345 requires each municipal chief of police to complete twenty-four hours of continuing education within every twenty-four-month period. Section D states, however, that the provisions of this Subpart shall be effective and the requirements of this Section imposed only if and when sufficient funds are appropriated by the legislature to fund the institute.

Subsequent to your initial request, you advised this office that LCLE and LEEMI received no donations, contributions, or grants from any individuals, foundations, or governments and, consequently, their budgets were solely established by appropriation of funding by the Louisiana Legislature. As a result of the executive branch hiring and spending freeze proscribed by Executive Order No. KBB 2005-38, your funding would have been granted only by express written approval of the Division of Administration (Executive Order No. KBB 2005-38, Section 2(B)). Further, LEEMI did not receive an automatic exemption under Section 3(E)(1) of KBB 2005-38, as that section refers solely to expenditures for supplies that total no more than 75% of the appropriation for the department.

Page 2

Opinion No. 06-0190
Mr. Michael Ranatza, Executive Director
Louisiana Commission on Law
Enforcement & Administration of
Criminal Justice
Page: -2-

Additionally, after discussing the matter with you, documentation was provided showing that LCLE was advised by the Division of Administration’s Office of Planning and Budget that an exemption from Executive Order No. KBB 2005-38 was necessary before funds could be appropriated. Your application for exemption was finally approved by the Division of Administration on March 29, 2006. Therefore, it is the opinion of this office that the executive order did indeed justify a suspension of the required continuing education training for your organization from September 19, 2005 until March 29, 2006.

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

Very truly yours,

CHARLES C. FOTI, JR.
ATTORNEY GENERAL

BY:_____
CHARLES H. BRAUD JR.
Assistant Attorney General
CCF, Jr./CHB, Jr./sk

Page 3

SYLLABUS
OPINION NUMBER 06-0190

61 – LAWS

Executive Order No. KBB 2005-38 suspended the required continuing education training as provided by the Law Enforcement Executive Management Institute until an exemption was approved by the Division of Administration.

Mr. Michael A. Ranatza, Executive Director
Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Criminal Justice
1885 Wooddale Blvd., Room 1230
Baton Rouge, LA 70806-1511

DATE RECEIVED:

DATE RELEASED: October 23, 2006

Charles H. Braud, Jr.
Assistant Attorney General