Could a Sunset police officer run for chief of police without resigning or taking leave?

Plain-English summary

Sunset's police chief asked whether one of the town's officers could qualify as a candidate for chief of police and keep the officer job while campaigning. The 1998 attorney general opinion said an officer who met the qualifications for chief could run without automatically resigning or taking leave.

The office explained that the dual-officeholding statutes addressed positions held after election or appointment, not the campaign period. It said an officer still had to fulfill assigned duties and prevent political activity from interfering with the job. It also quoted the constitutional prohibition on using public funds to urge votes for or against a candidate. Whether taking leave made sense depended on whether the candidate's campaign would impair the officer's performance.

The official extract includes two earlier opinions attached to the 1998 letter. Those attachments discuss similar leave questions and, in one case, separate issues of reappointment and the chief's next-term salary. The current opinion's answer was limited to the Sunset officer's candidacy and continued employment.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1998. 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.

Police officers at the time

The opinion allowed an otherwise eligible Sunset officer to run for chief while remaining employed. It made continued work performance and avoidance of on-duty campaign interference central to that answer.

Police chiefs at the time

The office told the requesting chief that candidacy alone did not require the officer's resignation or leave. It did not decide whether the officer would win or hold two positions after election.

Municipal election officials at the time

The opinion distinguished candidacy from dual-officeholding after election and assumed the candidate met the legal qualifications for chief. It did not determine a particular candidate's qualifications.

Common questions

Q: Did the Sunset officer have to resign to run for chief?
A: No. The opinion said an eligible officer could qualify and campaign without necessarily resigning or taking leave.

Q: Could the officer use work time or public funds to campaign?
A: The opinion required the officer to fulfill job duties and quoted the prohibition on public funds being used to urge votes for or against a candidate.

Q: When would leave become relevant?
A: The office said the decision depended on whether the candidate's political activity would impair or prevent proper performance of police duties.

Q: Did dual-officeholding law bar the officer from being a candidate?
A: The opinion said those statutes addressed office combinations after election or appointment and did not impose a preelection leave requirement.

Background and statutory framework

The opinion read the dual-officeholding statutes as concerning post-election service. It quoted Louisiana Constitution Article XI, Section 4's restriction on public funds in campaigns and said LSA-R.S. 18:1465 contained an identical provision. The PDF extract also reproduced Opinions 86-405 and 92-256, which the 1998 opinion attached for reference.

Citations and references

• LSA-R.S. 18:1465 (public-funds campaign restriction described in the opinion)
• Louisiana Constitution Article XI, Section 4 (public-funds campaign restriction quoted in the opinion)
• Attorney General Opinions 86-405 and 92-256 (attached to the original 1998 opinion)

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/98-0382

Original opinion text

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

One American Place
301 Mare Street, Suite 600
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
P.O. Box 94005
CIVIL DIVISION
TEL.: (5041 342-7013
BATON ROUGE
FAX" (504) 342-2090

RICHARD P. IEYOUB
70804-9005
AI-rOR~EY GE\ER&L

OC10BER 071~9!

OPINION NUMBER 98-382

36 - Elections
Mr. Joe Vidrine
77 - Officers - Local & Municipal; Selection, Qualification and Tenure;
Vacancies
Chief of Police
78 - Officers - Dual Officeholding
Sunset Police Department
LSA-R.S. 18:465
P.O. Box 6
LSA-R.S. 42:61, et seq.
Sunset, LA 70584
Article Xl, §4 (La. 1974)

An active police officer does not have to take a leave of absence when
Dear Chief Vidrine: qualifying and preparing for election for Chief of Police.

Your opinion request directed to our office has been referred to me for response. As Chief of Police of Sunset, Louisiana, you ask the following questions in your letter:

(1) Can a municipal police officer under the Lawrason Act qualify as a candidate for Chief of Police?

(2) Would that person be able to retain his position as police officer while running for Chief of Police, or would he have to resign?

LSA-R.S. 42:61, et seq., discusses the topic of dual officeholding. The statutes do not mention pre-election activities. They provide certain prohibitions for dual officeholding after one has been elected and/or appointed to an office. My research revealed no statutes dealing with pre-election activities and the requirement for a leave of absence.
Therefore, it is our opinion that a police officer would not be required to take a leave of absence to prepare for the election for such position of chief of police. Assuming that the candidate for chief of police meets the qualifications for office, he may in fact qualify as a candidate for chief of police. Please see Attorney General Opinions Nos. 92-256 and 86-405 (attached hereto).

It should be noted that the candidate for chief of police, as an active police officer, should take care to prevent any campaign activities from interfering with the fulfillment of his job or office responsibilities. Article Xl, §4 of the 1974 Louisiana Constitution provides:

No public funds shall be used to urge an elector to vote for or against any candidate or proposition, or to be appropriated to a candidate or political organization.

Page 2

Mr. Joe Vidrine
OPINION NUMBER 98-382
Page -2-

The above cited provision is identical to that contained in LSA-R.S. 18:1465. The police officer must fulfill the duties and responsibilities of his job during working hours. It is our opinion that a police officer may be a candidate for chief of police and need not necessarily resign or take a leave of absence in order to campaign for the office. The decision to take a leave of absence depends on whether the candidate’s political
.activities would impair or prevent him from properly performing his duties.

I trust this fully answers your concerns. If our office may be of further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Yours very truly,

RICHARD P. IEYOUB
ATTORNEY GENERAL

CHARLES H. BRAUD, JR.
Assistant Attorney General
RPI:CHB:glb

Page 3

O~’PARTM~T OF JU~T|C~

7oeo4o9oo5

June 20, 1987
.o.
78 - Officers _ Dual Office Holding
Officers _ Local & Municipal;
Selection, qualifications & tenure; vacancies.

La. E.S. 42:61, et

Active ~u~y office~s and/o~ city employees do no~ bare to ~ake leave of
Mr. Frank J. Call
absence when qualifying and P~epar~ng
5th Ward Justice
fo~ election fo~ Chief of Police.
St. Mary Parish
Post Office Box 279
Patterson, Louisiana 70392
Dear Mr. Call:
In your letter of June 12, 1986, you requested an opinion regarding the question of whether active duty officers and/or city employees planning to qualify for chief of police should take a leave of absence to seek the position.
La. R.S. 42:61 et seq. discusses the topic of Dual Office Holding. The statutes do not mention pre-election activities. They provide certain prohibitions for dual office holding after one has been elected or appointed to an office.
A general research of the law reveals no statutes dealing with pre-election activities and the requirement of a leave of absence. Therefore, neither the active duty officer, nor the city employee would be required to take a leave of absence to prepare for the election for such position.
Of course, the active duty officer and/or city employee should take care to prevent any campaign activities from interferring with the fulfillment of their job or office responsibilities.

Page 4

Mr. Frank J. Call
OPINION NO. 86-405
June 20, 1986
Page Two
Therefore, it is the opinion of this office that leave of absence is not required when an active duty officer and/or city employee seeks the position of chief of police.
Sincerely,
WILLIAM J. GUSTE, JR.
Attorney General

L. ADRIENNE DUPONT
Staff Attorney

LAD/JE/cnw

Page 5

DEPART~EN"I’ OF IUSTICE

P.O. Box 94005
70804.9005
TEL: (504) 3~2-7013
FAX: (504) 3=2-7335
JULY
OPINION NUMBER 92-256

"i’! - olr’Jc,.:l:,: L, ocal & ~u~liCil)a,l; ,~¢lcction.

Mr. Louis J. Berthelot
Chief of Police
Brusly Police Department
P.O. Drawer A
150 East St. Francis
Brusly, LA 70719
bUL OOL ~h~l~ %be ol’f~c;dl ~S il) oL’fJC~.~
Dear Chief Berthelot:
Your opinion request directed to our office has been referred to me for answer. As the elected police chief of the Town of Brusly, a "Lawrason Act" municipality, you ask the following questions:
If an employee of the police department runs for the office of Chief, does the employee have to take a leave of absence while running for the office? o If you are re-elected, do you have to reappoint this officer at the beginning of the next term?
° Can the Board of Alderman freeze your salary for the next term of office of the police chief? This would be a reduction from your present salary.
Your questions will be answered in the same order.
A non-civil service employee of the police department may run for chief of police without taking a leave of absence from his job or resigning as long as he fulfills his job duties and does not use official time for election activities.. He must campaign on off-duty hours. See prior opinions of this office No. 83-559 and 86-405. o This question asks, if you are re-elected do you have to re-appoint your opponent?

Page 6

MR. LOUIS J. BERTHELOT
OPINION N~BER 92-256
Page - 2 -

Under the "Lawrason Act’, the Board of Alderman has the authority to hire and fire police officers, See LSA R.S. 33:362A(3) which states as follows:
(3) Subject to law, including R.S. 33:423.2 and 423.3 and applicable civil service rules and regulations, the Board of Alderman shall, by ordinance, provide policies and procedures regulating the employment of municipal employees including the hiring and firing of such employees.
In accord with the above, the Chief of Police does not hdve the authority to discharge the officer. See Opinion Number 90-237.
o You next ask if the Board of Alderman may place the Chief’s salary at the Board’s level for the next term? This would amount to a reduction in your salary. La. Const.
Art. X Sec. 23 states:
The compensation of an elected public official shall not b4 reduced during the term for which he is elected.
There are no restrictions on reducing the compensation for the position for the upcoming term. Therefore it is the opinion of this office that the Board of Alderman may reduce the salary for the position of Chief of Police for a term subsequent to the present one. This does not reduce the salary of an elected public official during his term of office. Trusting the above answers your questions, we remain Yours very truly,

RICHARD P. IEYOUB
Attorney General

JA~XS M. ROSS
Assistant Attorney General