What election steps did a Louisiana town need for a Sunday alcohol-sales restriction?

Plain-English summary

Springfield asked about the procedure for a local-option election to prohibit Sunday alcohol sales within a municipality. The attorney general's January 1999 opinion pointed to the Sunday-closing statute, which allowed a parish or municipality to adopt certain Sunday business or sales restrictions if voters approved an election called under the specified Election Code chapter.

The governing authority calling the vote was responsible for writing the ballot proposition, which the opinion said could not exceed 400 words under the law then in force. The procedure depended on whether the proposition was voted on alongside an election for public office: Chapter 5 applied when it was, and Chapter 6-A applied when it was not. The opinion also quoted the written-notice requirement. The secretary of state had to receive notice at least 45 days before the election; the notice went to the secretary of state, commissioner of elections, and affected clerks of court and registrars of voters.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1999. 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.

Municipal officials at the time

The opinion placed responsibility for drafting the proposition on the governing authority or other entity calling the election. It described voter approval as part of the Sunday-closing statute's procedure.

Election administrators at the time

The office distinguished the rules for a proposition appearing with a public-official election from those for a separate proposition-only election. It also quoted the election-notice recipients and the then-applicable 45-day receipt deadline.

Alcohol retailers at the time

The opinion addressed how a municipality could submit a proposed Sunday sales prohibition to voters. It did not say the proposed Springfield measure had already passed or taken effect.

Common questions

Q: Who wrote the Sunday-sales ballot proposition?
A: The opinion said the governing authority or other entity calling the election was responsible for preparing its wording.

Q: Did the opinion identify a length limit?
A: Yes. It said the proposition could not exceed 400 words under the statute it quoted in 1999.

Q: Did different election procedures apply if the vote coincided with an election for public office?
A: Yes. The opinion pointed to Chapter 5 in that situation and Chapter 6-A when no public-official election occurred at the same time.

Q: When did the secretary of state need the election notice?
A: The opinion said the secretary had to receive written notice at least 45 days before the election under the law it discussed.

Background and statutory framework

The opinion quoted R.S. 51:191's voter-approval route for certain Sunday closing and sales ordinances, subject to R.S. 51:193. It then described R.S. 18:1299, R.S. 18:1299.1, and R.S. 18:1300 as the governing proposition and election procedures. Its numerical limits and deadline are historical statements from the 1999 opinion.

Citations and references

• R.S. 51:191 and R.S. 51:193 (Sunday-closing and sales provisions quoted in the opinion)
• R.S. 18:1299 and R.S. 18:1299.1 (proposition election and wording)
• R.S. 18:1300 (election procedure and notice)

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/98-0405

Original opinion text

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

DEPARTMENT OF ~USTICE

RICHARD P. IEYOUB
~o~ ~o~e
P.O. Box 94005
A’I-rOR N EY GENERAL
70804-9005
TEL: (504) 342-7013
FAX: (504) 342-7335

January 12, 1999
OPINION 98-405

Mr. Thomas Waterman 55 INTOXICATING LIQUORS - LOCAL OPTION
Town of Springfield
R.S. 51:191; R.S. 51:193; R.S. 18:1299; R.S. 18:1299.1; R.S.
195 East Pine Street
18:1300; R.S. 18:1299
Answers procedural inquiry regarding a proposed local option
P. O. Box 245
election prohibiting the sale of alcoholic beverages within a
Ponchatoula, LA 70454
municipality on Sunday.

Dear Mr. Waterman:

Concerning your recent procedural inquiry regarding a proposed local option election to prohibit the sale of alcoholic beverages on Sunday within a municipality, note first that R.S. 51:191 is applicable and provides:

§ 191. Sunday closing law; local ordinances; election

Except as provided in R.S. 51:193, the governing authority of any parish or municipality may adopt ordinances regulating or prohibiting the opening of certain businesses and/or the sale of certain stock or articles of merchandise on Sunday, if approved by the voters at an election called as provided in Chapter 6-B of title 18 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950.

Procedures governing the election are set forth in Chapter 6-B of Title 18 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes, specifically, R.S. 18:1299, R.S. 18:1299.1, and R.S. 18:1300. 18:1299 provides:

The provisions of this Chapter provide the procedures to be used in elections, except those provided for in chapter 6-A of this Code, at which a proposition or question, authorized by the state constitution, by a statute of this state, or by a home rule charter, shall be submitted to the voters.

LSA-R.S. 18:1299.1 provides:

The preparation of the statement of any question or proposition to be submitted to the voters at an election shall be the responsibility of the governing authority or other entity calling the election or submitting the question or proposition and shall not exceed four hundred words in length.

Page 2

Mr. Thomas Waterman
OPINION 98-405
Page 2

LSA-R.S. 18:1300 provides in pertinent part as follows:

A. (1) When an election at which a proposition or question is to be submitted to the voters is held at the same time as an election for any public official, the election shall be held solely in compliance with the applicable provisions of Chapter 5 of this Title.

B. When an election at which a proposition or question is to be submitted to the voters is not held at the same time as the election of any public official, the election shall be held solely in compliance with and shall be subject to the applicable provisions of Chapter 6-A of this Title.

C. When an election is called under the provisions of this Chapter, written notice of the election shall be transmitted to the secretary of state, the commissioner of elections, and each clerk of court and registrar of voters in the area affected by the election. Such notice shall be received by the secretary of state on or before the forty-fifth day prior to the election. The secretary of state shall not include any proposition on any ballot of any election if such notice is not timely received by the secretary of state. Any elector who is eligible to vote in the election may apply for injunctive relief to prohibit the placing of a proposition on the ballot if notice is not timely received by the secretary of state. Venue for such application shall be in any parish in which the election is called, and the secretary of state shall be a proper party defendant.

It is the responsibility of the local governing authority calling the election or submitting the proposition to prepare the proposition to be submitted to the voters at the election. The only restriction placed on the drafting of the proposition is that it not exceed four hundred words in length. If the election at which the proposition is to be submitted is held at the same time as an election for a public official, the election shall be held solely in compliance with the provisions of Chapter 5 of Title 18. If the election is not held at the same time as the election of any public official, the election shall be held solely in compliance with and subject to the provisions of Chapter 6-A of Title 18. When an election is called under 6-B Title 18, written notice of the election shall be transmitted to the secretary of state, commissioner of elections and each clerk of court and registrar of voters in the area affected by the election. This notice must be received by the Secretary of State at least 45 days before the election.

Page 3

Mr. Thomas Waterman
OPINION 98-405
Page 3

Should you have further inquiries, please contact this office.

Very truly yours,

RICHARD P. IEYOUB
ATTORNEY GENERAL

BY: K~. KILPA~’~I~K

AS~NT ATTORNEY GENERAL

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