Did Louisiana's Attorney General approve the 2024 proposed amendment statements as submitted?

Plain-English summary

Louisiana Secretary of State Nancy Landry sought expedited Attorney General review of Statements of Proposed Constitutional Amendments. The office did not approve the wording exactly as submitted. It required revisions to questions 1 and 3 to better reflect Acts 405 and 407 of the 2024 regular session, and said the statements would be approved for printing and distribution after those changes.

The first revised question concerned adding malfeasance in office as grounds for judicial sanctions and several changes to the Judiciary Commission and Supreme Court's roles. The third concerned allowing the Legislature, by a two-thirds vote in each house, to extend a regular session in two day increments up to six days when needed to pass an appropriation bill. The opinion supplied the revised wording, rather than an analysis of whether voters should adopt either amendment.

What this means for you

Election administrators and ballot drafters

The opinion conditioned printing and distribution on replacing the submitted wording of questions 1 and 3 with the revisions it set out. It did not direct changes to other questions in the submitted set.

Voters researching the proposed amendments

The opinion identifies the subjects of two proposed questions and the wording the AG required for them. It is a form approval, not an endorsement of either proposal.

Common questions

Q: Were the proposed amendment statements approved without changes?
A: No. The AG required edits to questions 1 and 3 and said approval for printing and distribution followed once those edits were made.

Q: Which two amendment topics needed revised questions?
A: The opinion revised a question on judicial discipline and Judiciary Commission membership, and another on extending legislative sessions for an appropriation bill.

Q: Did the opinion say voters should support either amendment?
A: No. It reviewed the statements' form under the election statutes and did not take a position on the proposals' merits.

Background and statutory framework

The opinion cited La. R.S. 18:431 and 18:552 as requiring Attorney General approval of the statements. It compared the submitted questions with Acts 405 and 407 of 2024, then supplied replacement language to better reflect those acts. The approval was expressly conditional on making the identified changes.

Citations and references

• La. R.S. 18:431 and 18:552, the approval provisions cited in the opinion.
• Acts 405 and 407 of the 2024 Regular Session, the source of the proposed amendment questions.

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/24-0121

Original opinion text

STATE OF LOUISIANA
DEPARmIENT OF JUSTICE
OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENEiL
P.O. Box 94005
BATON R0LGE, LA
70804-9005

Liz MuRRILL
ATTORNEY GENEL

October 2, 2024
OPINION 24-0121

23 ELECTIONS
Honorable Nancy Landry
La. R.S. 18:431
Secretary of State
La. R.S. 18.552
State of Louisiana
P.O. Box 94125
After editing, the Statements of Proposed Constitutional
Amendments are compliant with Louisiana law and approved
Baton Rouge, LA 70804
for printing and distribution.

Dear Secretary Landry:
We received your request for expedited review and approval from our office of the Statements of Proposed Constitutional Amendments.
The Attorney General’s approval of this form is required by La R.S. 18:431 and 18:552.
We have reviewed the document, and it is the opinion of this office that the form requires the following revisions to questions number one & three to better reflect the language of Act 405 & Act 407 respectively from the 2024 regular session:
I Do you support an amendment to add malfeasance in office as grounds .

for sanctions against a judge and to further:
(1) allow the Supreme Court to sanction a judge upon an investigation by the judiciary commission;
(2) provide that the recommended sanction shall be instituted by the judiciary commission or by a majority of the Supreme Court;
(3) provide for the appointment of five additional members of the judiciary commission to consist of two by Louisiana House of Representatives, two of the president of the Louisiana Senate and one by the Governor; and
(4) allow the Supreme Court, after investigation (instituted on recommendation by the judiciary commission or by directive of majority of the supreme court) by the Judiciary commission to retire involuntarily a judge for disability that interferes with the performance of his duties? (Amends Article V, Section 25(C); adds Article V, Section 25(A)(4)).

Page 2

OPINION 24-0121
Honorable Nancy Landry
Page 2

3 Do you support an amendment to allow the legislature to extend a regular session in increments of two days up to a maximum of six days if necessary to pass a bill appropriating money, by a favorable record vote of two-thirds of each house? (Amends Article Ill, Sections 2(A)(3)(a) and (4)(a); Adds Article Ill, Section 2(A)(5)).
Once these changes are made, the Constitutional Amendments are approved for printing
and distribution.
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,

LIZ MURRILL
ATTORNEY GENERAL

BY:
Carey }Ziones
Assistant Attorney General

LM:CTJ