Could Coushatta’s appointed police chief also work full-time as a public school teacher?

Plain-English summary

Coushatta's appointed police chief asked whether he could also work full-time as a teacher for the Red River Parish School Board. The 2013 opinion concluded the dual officeholding law did not prohibit the combination. Ordinarily, its ban on two full-time government positions would apply, but a specific exception allowed a school teacher or other professional educator to hold an elective or appointive office at the same time.

The AG did not decide whether the person could actually perform both full-time jobs. It expressly reserved possible payroll-fraud, malfeasance, and ethics issues for the appropriate authorities.

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

Appointed police chiefs who teach

The AG classified the chief's role as full-time appointive office and the teaching role as full-time employment. It then applied the professional educator exception to that otherwise prohibited combination.

School boards and towns

The opinion answered only the dual officeholding question. It did not conclude that duties in both roles could be fulfilled simultaneously or that pay for overlapping or unperformed hours was lawful.

Common questions

Did the two-full-time-position rule bar this chief from teaching?

The AG said the teacher exception applied, so the dual officeholding law did not bar this specific combination.

Did the exception cover any second full-time government job?

The opinion applied the exception to a person teaching in a professional educational capacity. It did not announce an exception for unrelated jobs.

Did the AG approve pay for time when one job's services were not rendered?

No. It reserved possible public payroll-fraud issues and did not decide how two full-time schedules could be performed.

Background and statutory framework

The AG first applied La. R.S. 42:63(E)'s restriction on simultaneous full-time government positions. It then applied La. R.S. 42:66(B), which permitted teachers and other professional educators to hold an elective or appointive office. The opinion mentioned La. RS. 14:138 as a separate payroll-fraud statute without deciding a violation.

Citations

• La. R.S. 42:63(E): ordinary restriction on two full-time government roles.
• La. R.S. 42:66(B): professional educator exception applied by the AG.
• La. RS. 14:138: separate payroll-fraud issue reserved by the opinion.

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/13-0084

Original opinion text

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

~tate of 1fiouisiana
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
P.O. BOX 94005
BATON ROUGE
JAMES D. "BUDDY" CALDWELL
70804-9005
ATIORNEY GENERAL
August 19, 2013
OPINION 13-0084
Honorable Joey Miller
Chief of Police 78 DUAL OFFICEHOLDING
Town of Coushatta
La. R.S. 42:62: La. R.S. 42:63
166 Esperanza Road
Coushatta, Louisiana 71019
The Louisiana Dual Officeholding and Dual Employment Law, La. R.S. 42:61, et
seq., does not prohibit the Chief of Police of the Town of Coushatta, a full-lime appointive position, from simultaneously being employed as a full-time school
Dear Chief Miller: teacher with the Red River Parish School Board.

You have requested an opinion of the Attorney General as to whether you, as the appointed Chief of Police of the Town of Coushatta ("Coushatta"), may also simultaneously hold employment as a full-time school teacher with the Red River Parish School Board. Your request has been assigned to me for research and reply.

The provisions of the Dual Officeholding and Dual Employment Law, found at La. RS.
42:61 et seq., govern questions concerning the holding of two or more public offices and/or employments. Identifying the correct nature of the positions held is essential for purposes of applying the dual officeholding provisions.

For purposes of dual officeholding, the Chief of Police of Coushatta holds "appointive office" as defined by La. RS. 42:62(2). An individual holds an appointive office where the position is established by the constitution, statutes, home rule charter provisions or . ordinances of a municipality or parish, and the position is appointed by another elected or appointed official, or a body of officials. 1 Coushatta is governed by the provisions of a special legislative charter. A review of the special legislative charter indicates that the chief of police is appointed by the town council. 2

For your reference, note that a full-time position would require an appointed chief of police to work at least seven hours per day of work and at least thirty-five hours per week,3 while a part-time position would require an appointed chief of police to work less than the number of hours of work defined as full-time. 4 Based on information you have provided our office, it is our understanding that the appointed position of Chief of Police of Coushatta is a full-time position.

With respect to the second position, you hold full-time employment as a school teacher with the Red River Parish School Board. La. RS. 42:62(3) defines employment as "any job compensated on a salary or per diem basis, other than an elective or appointive

1
La. RS. 42:62(2).
2
Act 29 of the 1872 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature.
3
La. RS. 42:62(4).
4
La. RS. 42:62(5).

Page 2

OPINION 13-0084
Honorable Joey Miller
Page No.2

office, in which a person is an employee of the state government or of a political subdivision thereof." As defined by La. R.S. 42:62(9), the term "political subdivision" means and includes a school board for purposes of applying the dual officeholding and dual employment provisions.

La. R.S. 42:63(E) specifically prohibits a person from simultaneously holding any combination of two full-time appointive or full-time employment positions within the state or local government. La. R.S. 42:63(E) provides as follows:

No person holding a full-time appointive office or full-time employment in the government of this state or of a political subdivision thereof shall at the same time hold another full-time appointive office or full-time employment in the government of the state of Louisiana, in the government of a political subdivision thereof, or in a combination of these.

(Emphasis added).

Accordingly, La. R.S. 42:63(E) prohibits one from holding at the same time two positions of full-time employment and/or appointive office, but does not prohibit the concurrent holding if one position is held on a part-time basis. Application of La. R.S. 42:63(E) would initially prohibit a full-time appointed chief of police from simultaneously holding a full-time employment position as a school teacher with. a local school board. However, there is an exemption in the law permitting one who is employed in a professional educational capacity to also hold an appointive office. La. R.S. 42:66(B) provides:

Nothing in this Part shall be construed to prevent a school teacher or person employed in a professional educational capacity in a grade school, high school, other educational institution, parish or city school board from holding at the same time an elective or appointive office.

There is no statutory definition of the phrase professional educational capacity found within the dual officeholding provisions. However, this office has previously determined that if an individual is required to teach, such requirement automatically places him within the framework of a professional educator. 5

Based upon the foregoing, it is the opinion of this office that you are considered to be employed in a professional educational capacity with the Red River Parish School Board. For this reason, the exemption of La. R.S. 42:66(B) applicable to you, and it is the opinion of this office that the Louisiana Dual Officeholding. and Dual Employment Law do not prohibit you from holding the full-time appointive office of C~lief of Police of Coushatta while at the same time holding a full-time. employment position as a school teacher with the Red River Parish School Board.

5
See La. Atty. Gen. Op. Nos. 11-0160 and 97-131.

Page 3

\
OPINION 13-0084
Honorable Joey Miller
Page No.3

However, please be advised this opinion does not address the difficlJlty of performing two full-time jobs simultaneously, nor does it opinion address the potential for violating other state laws when holding two full-time positions. For example, the holding of two full-time positions could raise the application La. R.S. 14:138, which prohibits public payroll fraud. 6 We are rnindful as well that the failure of a public official to perform a duty lawfully required of him or the performance of such duty in an unlawful manner may be considered malfeasance in office, the provisions of which are contained in La. R.S. 14:134.7

Finally, note that our expressed opinion relative to state law is limited to an examination of the dual officeholding provisions. Any potential ethical questions concerning this matter arising under the Code of Governmental Ethics, La. R.S. 42:1111, et seq., must be addressed by advisory ruling of the Louisiana State Board of Ethics. The Board may be contacted at P.O. Box 4368, Baton Rouge, LA 70821 or by phone at 225-219-5600.

We hope that this opinion has adequately addressed the legal issues you have raised. If our office can be of any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.

With best regards,

JAMES D. "BUDDY" CALDWELL
ATTORNEY GENERAL
'-.~ -.
BY: YAm t!/~-H-f/)(
_
Erin C. Day U
Assistant Attorney General
JDC: ECD

6
La. RS. 14:138 provides, in pertinent part:
A. Public payroll fraud is committed when:
(1) Any person shall knowingly receive any payment or compensation, or knowingly permit his name to be carried on any employment list or payroll for any payment or compensation from the state, for services not actually rendered by himself, or for services grossly inadequate for the payment or compensation received or to be received according to such employment list or payroll; or (2) Any public officer or public employee shall carry, cause to be carried, or permit to be carried, directly or indirectly, upon the employment list or payroll of his office, the name of any person as employee, or shall pay any employee, with knowledge that such employee is receiving payment or compensation for services not actually rendered by said employee or for services grossly inadequate for such payment or compensation.
7
Whether a public official or employee may be subject to a criminal charge of malfeasance is a factual consideration that rests solely with the district attorney, who has broad discretion in both the institution and handling of such prosecutions. La. Atty. Gen. Op. Nos. 12-0074,03-0296 and 00-51.