Can a Shreveport city council member also become Caddo Parish administrator?

Plain-English summary

A Shreveport city council member asked whether he had to resign if appointed Caddo Parish administrator. The Attorney General said yes. R.S. 42:63(D) barred pairing a local elected office with a full-time appointive office in state or local government. The AG classified the administrator job as an appointed office because Caddo's charter created it and the parish commission filled it, and as full time under the statutory hours definition.

The opinion did not treat the different city and parish governments as a solution. This part of the cited statute barred the combination of a local elected office and a full-time appointive office in any political subdivision covered by it.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2006. Later changes to the dual-officeholding law, Caddo's charter, or court decisions may have changed the answer. Check current terms before accepting an appointment.

What this means for you

Council members considering an administrator appointment

Before accepting, verify how the parish charter establishes, appoints, and schedules the administrator. On the charter terms the AG reviewed, he instructed the council member to resign the elected seat immediately upon accepting the full-time appointment.

Parish hiring officials

Classify the administrator role under R.S. 42:62(2) and the full-time rule before appointing a sitting local elected official. The AG relied on the charter's commission appointment and the expected full-time schedule, not just the job title.

Common questions

Did the offices conflict even though one was city and the other parish?

Yes. The AG applied the portion of R.S. 42:63(D) that barred a local elected official from holding a full-time appointive office in state or local government; it was not limited to jobs in the same city.

Why was parish administrator an appointed office?

Caddo's charter specifically authorized the position and gave the parish commission appointment power. The AG matched those features to R.S. 42:62(2).

What counted as full time in the opinion?

R.S. 42:62(4), quoted by the AG, used at least seven hours per workday and thirty-five hours per week. The AG treated the administrator position as meeting that threshold.

Background and statutory framework

R.S. 42:63(D) restricted combinations of elective and full-time appointive office. R.S. 42:62(2) defined appointive office, while R.S. 42:62(4) defined full time. The AG applied those definitions to Caddo's charter and the Shreveport council seat and concluded the offices could not be held together.

Citations

• R.S. 42:63(D) (elective and appointive office restriction).
• R.S. 42:62(2) (appointive office definition).
• R.S. 42:62(4) (full-time definition).

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/06-0243

Original opinion text

September 15, 2006
OPINION 06-0243

Mr. Thomas G. Carmody, Jr.
78 DUAL OFFICEHOLDING
R.S. 42:63
City Councilman, District “C” City councilman may not legally hold full time appointive
180 Albany Avenue
office as parish administrator.
Shreveport, LA 71105

Dear Mr. Carmody:

You have asked this office to advise whether you must resign your elected office as Shreveport City Councilman should you be appointed parish administrator for the Parish of Caddo.

R.S. 42:63(D) of Louisiana’s Dual Officeholding and Dual Employment Laws, R.S. 42:61, et seq., governs our response. That statute pertinently provides:

D. No person holding an elective office in a political subdivision of this state shall at the same time hold another elective office or full- time appointive office in the government of this state or in the government of a political subdivision thereof. No such person shall hold at the same time employment in the government of this state, or in the same political subdivision in which he holds an elective office. In addition no sheriff, assessor, or clerk of court shall hold any office or employment under a parish governing authority or school board, nor shall any member of any parish governing authority or school board hold any office or employment with any sheriff, assessor, or clerk of court. (Emphasis added.)

In short, R. S. 42:63(D) prohibits one from holding local elective office and a full- time appointive office. The position of city councilman is a local elective office, while the position of parish administrator falls within the statutory definition of “appointive office” under R.S. 42:62(2) providing:

(2) “Appointive office” means any office in any branch of government or other position on any agency, board, or commission or any executive office of any agency, board, commission, or

Page 2

Mr. Thomas C. Carmody, Jr.
OPINION 06-0243
Page 2
department which is specifically established or specifically authorized by the constitution or laws of this state or by the charter or ordinances of any political subdivision thereof and which is filled by appointment or election by an elected or appointed public official or by a governmental body composed of such officials of this state or of a political subdivision thereof.

The position of parish administrator is “specifically authorized…by the charter” of Caddo Parish. Reference is made to Article IV, Section 4-01 of the Caddo Parish Home Rule Charter, which states in pertinent part:

A. The parish administrator shall be appointed by the commission and shall serve at its pleasure, unless otherwise removed from office by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the entire membership of the commission. The administrator shall automatically be suspended from office in accordance with the provisions of La. R.S. 42:1411.
The administrator shall be appointed solely on the basis of executive and administrative qualifications, training and experience to perform the duties assigned to him by this charter. No one shall be appointed or approved as the administrator who does not possess the requisite executive and administrative qualifications.
The administrator’s compensation shall be fixed by the commission.

Finally, the position of parish administrator is held on a “full-time” basis, defined by R.S. 42:62(4) as “the period of time in which a person normally works or is expected to work in an appointive office or employment and which is at least seven hours per day of work and at least thirty-five hours per week of work.”

It is the opinion of this office that you must immediately resign your position as city councilman should you accept the appointment as parish administrator since you cannot legally hold both positions concurrently.

Very truly yours,

CHARLES C. FOTI, JR.
ATTORNEY GENERAL

BY: ____
KERRY L. KILPATRICK
ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL
KLK:arg

Page 3

SYLLABUS

OPINION 06-0243

78 - DUAL OFFICEHOLDING

City councilman may not legally hold full time appointive office as parish administrator.

Mr. Thomas G. Carmody
City Councilman, District C
City of Shreveport
180 Albany Avenue
Shreveport, LA 71105

Date Received:

Date Released: September 15, 2006

Kerry L. Kilpatrick
Assistant Attorney General