Did filling an unfinished Slidell council term count against the charter's two-term limit?

Plain-English summary

Slidell's city attorney asked whether three council members who had filled other members' unexpired terms could run again after winning their first full terms. The 2013 opinion said yes. The home rule charter defined a term as four years and a term limit as no more than two consecutive terms; each council member had served a partial term followed by only one full four-year term.

The AG concluded that each could seek a second full four-year term without violating the charter's limit. The opinion addressed the particular Slidell charter and service histories presented, not term limits in other municipalities.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2013. 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.

Historical summary

Slidell council members and voters

The opinion treated the vacancy service as less than a full charter term. The three members described had not served two full consecutive four-year terms when they sought reelection.

Municipal election officials

The AG relied on the charter's own definitions of "term" and "term limit" in reaching the eligibility conclusion.

Common questions

Did a partial term filled after a vacancy count as a full four-year term?

No. Under the charter definition quoted by the AG, the vacancy periods described were shorter than a full four-year term.

Could the three council members run after their first full term?

Yes. The opinion found them eligible for a second full four-year term under the charter's two-consecutive-term definition.

Did the opinion set a statewide term-limit rule?

No. It interpreted Slidell's home rule charter for the three service histories supplied.

Background and statutory framework

Slidell operated under a home rule charter authorized by La. Const. art. VI, § 5 and La. R.S. 33:1395 et seq. The opinion quoted the charter's definition of a four-year term and two-consecutive-term limit, then applied those terms to each member's partial service and first full term.

Citations

• La. Const. art. VI, § 5: home rule authority.
• La. R.S. 33:1395: statutory home rule provision mentioned in the opinion.
• "Article II, Section 2-01 of the Charter": term definitions quoted in the opinion.

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/13-0044

Original opinion text

Best-effort transcription from a scanned PDF. Minor errors may remain — the linked PDF is authoritative.

~tate of Ifi ouisiana
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
P.O. BOX 94005
BATON ROUGE

JAMES D. "BUDDY" CALDWELL
70804-9005
ATIORNEY GENERAL

OCT 1 8 2013
OPINION 13-0044

27 ELECTIONS - Candidates, nomination & eligibility Mr. Bryan Haggerty
City Attorney
La. Const. art. VI, § 5
La. R.S. 33:1395
City of Slidell
P. O. Box 828
The Home Rule Charter of the City of Slidell defines a "term'" as
four years, and a "term limit" to be limited to not more than two
Slidell, LA 70459-0828
consecutive terms; therefore, a candidate whom is elected to fill a
vacancy and has not served a full four-year term is eligible to be elected for two full four-year consecutive terms without violating the
Dear Mr. Haggerty: "'term limit" definition.

You have requested that this office advise you as to whether a candidate whom is elected to fulfill the unfinished term of another council member and subsequently is reelected to serve his first full four-year term is eligible to run for reelection.

First, you note that the City of Slidell presently operates under a Home Rule Charter which was proposed and adopted, and promulgated in accordance with Article VI, Section 5 of the Louisiana Constitution of 1974, and La. R.S. 33:1381, et seq. (now La. R.S. 33:1395, et seq.). According to La. Const. art. VI § 5, the provisions in the Home Rule Charter for the City of Slidell ("Charter") shall prevail subject to, and to the extent they are not inconsistent with, this constitution.

Next, you note that Article II, Section 2-01 of the Charter defines tlie composition of the city council, the qualifications of the council members, and the terms for which council members are to be elected.

Specific to your question, the Charter defines a "term" to be "four (4) years, to run concurrent with that of the mayor and shall be eligible for reelection." Additionally, the Charter defines a "term limit" to be "limited to not more than two (2) consecutive terms."

You advise this office that one council member was elected to fill a vacancy and served the remainder of the unfilled term from January 22, 2008 through June 30, 2010. He was then elected for a full four-year term and will serve from July 1, 2010 until June 30,2014.

Page 2

Opinion 13-0044
Mr. Bryan Haggerty
Page - 2­

Additionally, you state that a Council Member-at-Large was elected to fill a vacancy and served from December 11, 2007 through June 30, 2010. He was then elected to a full four-year term and will serve from July 1, 2010 until June 30,2014.

Finally, you note that another Council Member-at-Large was elected to fill a vacancy and served from April 14, 2009 through June 30, 2010. She was then elected for a full four-year term and will serve from July 1, 2010 until June 30, 2014.

These three council members inquired as to whether they may run for reelection for a second full four-year term without violating the "term limit" definition as stated in Article II, Section 2-01 of the Charter.

As the Charter defines a "term limit" as not more than two consecutive terms, and a "term" as four years, to run concurrent with that of the mayor, these three council members have not served two full consecutive four-year terms. It is therefore the opinion of this office that these three council members are eligible for reelection for a second full four-year term.

We hope this satisfactorily answers your question. Please feel free to contact our office should you need any further information.

Yours very truly,

JAMES D. "BUDDY" CALDWELL
ATIORNEY GENERAL

By:
N, III
General

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