Do Louisiana's municipal police pay and hour rules apply to French Settlement, and what if its overtime ordinance is more generous?

Plain-English summary

French Settlement's police chief asked whether Louisiana's municipal police pay and maximum-hours statutes applied to the village and whether a smaller municipality could wait until the federal overtime threshold discussed in the request. The official opinion says the state provisions in La. R.S. 33:2212 through 33:2216 did not apply to French Settlement because its population was approximately 1,100, below the 12,000-resident threshold in La. R.S. 33:2211.

On federal overtime, the AG said its office generally declines to give opinions on applying federal law. It cited a US Department of Labor fact sheet stating an 86-hour threshold for law enforcement over a 14-day work period. The AG then applied its prior view that a municipality with a local overtime ordinance must follow both that ordinance and federal guidelines. It concluded that if a town ordinance calls for police overtime in fewer hours than the federal guideline, "the ordinance must be followed."

The opinion therefore does not create an exemption from the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. Its state-law answer concerns the village's population and the statutes named in the request; its local-ordinance answer depends on what an actual town ordinance requires.

What this means for you

French Settlement officials. The AG said the named Louisiana police minimum-pay and hours provisions did not cover the village on the population figure supplied in the request.

Police and payroll staff. The opinion says a local ordinance requiring overtime earlier than the federal guideline described must be followed. It did not rule on the application of federal law to an actual pay period.

Common questions

Does La. R.S. 33:2212(B) govern French Settlement's police pay?
The AG said no, because the village's approximately 1,100 residents put it below the population range in La. R.S. 33:2211.

Does the state-law exemption let the village ignore an earlier overtime rule in its own ordinance?
No. The AG said a town ordinance requiring police overtime before the federal guideline threshold must be followed.

Did the AG issue a binding interpretation of the federal overtime rule?
No. The opinion expressly says the office declines to opine on federal-law application and cites a Department of Labor fact sheet for general information.

Background and statutory framework

La. R.S. 33:2211 sets the population range for the state municipal police provisions addressed in the opinion. French Settlement was reported to have approximately 1,100 residents. The AG separated that state-law coverage question from the federal overtime question and from any local ordinance requiring earlier overtime.

Citations and references

Statutes: La. R.S. 33:2211, 33:2212(B), and 33:2216, as cited in the opinion.

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/23-0122

Original opinion text

STATE OF LouIsIANA
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P.O. Box 94005
Bvrox Rouoi, LÀ
70804—9005

Liz ML1RiLL
ATTORNEy GExEiL

February 22, 2024
OPINION 23-0122

71-1-1 Municipal Fire & Police Civil Service Chief Cary Mosby
La. R.S. 33:2211
La. R.S. 33:2212-2216
Chief of Police
French Settlement Police Department
1 605 La Hwy 1 6
Due to its population size, the general statutes on minimum wages
French Settlement LA 70733
and maximum hours found n La. R.S. 33:2211, et seq., do not
apply to the Village of French Settlement.

Dear Chief Mosby,

Your request for an Attorney General’s Opinion has been assigned to me for research and reply. In your request, you have asked for the opinion of this office as to whether La.
R.S. 33:2212(B) is applicable to the Village of French Settlement.1 In addition, your request seeks clarification on whether municipalities with a population below twelve thousand are exempt from adhering to La. R.S. 33:2212 through La. R.S. 33:2216.
Furthermore, you specifically inquire whether such municipalities, if exempt, are not required to wait 86 hours to pay law enforcement overtime pursuant to the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

We now address the legal issues relevant to this matter. Louisiana Revised Statute 33:22 1 1(A) provides:

Except as provided in Paragraph (2) of this Subsection and as otherwise specified in R.S. 33:2212.1, povisions of this Subpart shall apply to municipalities having a population of not less than twelve thousand nor more than two hundred fifty thousand.

In addition, La. R.S. 33:2212(A) provides:

Except as otherwise provided by law, the governing body of each municipality having a population of not less than twelve thousand nor more than two hundred fifty thousand shall pay each employee of its police department a salary of not less than the minimum rate of pay established in accordance with the grades, ranks or classes of positions as provided in this Section.

1 The Village of French Settlement is a Lawrason Act Municipality (See La. R.S. 33:321-463), with a population of approximately 1,100.

Page 2

OPINION 23O122
Chief Cary Mosby
Page 2

In interpreting these statutes, this office has opined for many years that La. R.S. 33:2211 limits the applicability of La. R.S. 33:2211 et seq., encompassing R.S. 33:2212 through R.S. 33:22 16, to only those municipalities with populations exceeding twelve thousand but less than two hundred fifty thousand.2 Accordingly, this office opines that La. R.S. 33:2212(B), and La. R.S. 33:2212 through La. R.S. 33:2216 do not apply to the Village of French Settlement as it has a population of approximately 1,100.

As to whether an exempt municipality is not required to wait 86 hours to pay law enforcement overtime, we note that it is the policy of this office to decline to give opinions on the application of federal law. However, we note that the United States Department of Labor released a relevant fact sheet that provides general information concerning the application of the Fair Labor Standards Act to law enforcement and fire protection personnel of State and local governments.3 The fact sheet states that under Section 7(k) of the Fair Labor Standards Act, law enforcement personnel must receive overtime after 86 hours worked during a 14-day work period.

This office has opined that a municipality that possesses an ordinance governing law enforcement overtime is obliged to abide by both the ordinance and the guidelines provided in the Fair Labor Standards Act.4 According to the fact sheet released by the United States Department of Labor, a municipality must pay overtime to law enforcement after 86 hours worked during a 14-day work period to comply with the ELSA. However, if an ordinance requires overtime payment to law enforcement before the 86 hours worked in a 14-day period, the town ordinance must be followed as the municipality must adhere to its own ordinance. Consequently, it is the opinion of this office that, if a town ordinance requires law enforcement overtime to be paid in fewer hours worked than the FLSA overtime hour guideline, the ordinance must be followed.

We trust this adequately responds to your request. However, if our office can be of further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.

With best regards,

LIZ MURRILL
ATTORNEY GENERAL

BY:___
CHIMENE ST. AMANT
ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL

LM:CS

2 See La. Atty. Gen. Op. Nos. 13-0052; 12-0063; 80-449, 84-401, 96-69. See https://www.dol .gov/agencies/whd/fact-sheets/8-flsa-police-firefighters ‘ See La. Atty. Gen. Op. Nos 10-0154, 01-0280.