Louisiana Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in Louisiana, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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Could Terrebonne Parish let each council member decide how to spend money in a district fund?
No, under the 2004 Louisiana AG opinion. The Budget Act gave the parish president, not council members, authority to incur liabilities and authorize spending from budgeted funds. The AG lacked…
Could a full-time Louisiana fire chief also direct another parish's homeland-security office?
If both posts were full time, no. The AG said Louisiana's dual-officeholding law barred a full-time fire chief from also holding a full-time appointive post as another parish's homeland-security…
Could a Haynesville council member work for the Louisiana Municipal Association and a town contractor?
The AG said dual-officeholding law did not bar a Louisiana Municipal Association employee from serving as a Haynesville councilman. It did not decide whether the person's job with a town garbage…
Could Louisiana State Plumbing Board members be reimbursed for official air travel?
Yes. The AG said board members had to be reimbursed for air travel connected with authorized board business, using the state employee travel methods and rates set by the Division of Administration.
Could Louisiana's labor department use federal grant money to join local chambers of commerce?
The AG concluded that the Louisiana Department of Labor's use of federal Wagner-Peyser funds for chamber memberships did not violate the state constitutional ban on donating public funds, provided…
Could Homer deposit dedicated sales taxes with general town funds and use them to cover other deficits?
The AG advised Homer to follow its ordinance requiring sales-tax revenues in a separate account and state law restricting those revenues to voter-approved purposes. It cautioned that officials who…
Could Louisiana's Public Service Commission withhold letters exchanged with the Legislative Auditor during an audit?
Generally no. The AG said the Auditor's custody-based records exemption did not automatically shield the Commission's own copies of audit correspondence. He treated the draft audit report and the…
Could a Louisiana community development district use bonds to buy roads that would be gated against the general public?
The AG concluded that the district could not use its bonds to acquire roads as public infrastructure if the public entity would control access to those public roads. Public roads had to remain…
Could Kenner apply Louisiana's homestead exemption to its municipal property tax?
No. The AG concluded that the Louisiana Constitution barred the exemption for municipal property taxes and that the Legislative Auditor should not certify Kenner's taxes with the exemption applied.
Did Louisiana's sex offender registration law apply to people convicted before it was enacted?
Yes. The AG concluded that the registration requirements in effect in January 2004 applied to sex offenders convicted before the law was enacted. It relied on the Louisiana Supreme Court's ruling…
Who had final say over what appeared on the Town of Iowa council meeting agenda?
The AG said the mayor had final authority to review and change the council meeting agenda, including deciding which items appeared on it. The opinion relied on the mayor's statutory administrative powers.
Could a hospital district commissioner collect meeting per diem for work done during a month without attending the meeting?
No. The AG read Louisiana's hospital district statute as allowing per diem for attendance at commission meetings, not for district work outside a meeting. A commissioner who missed the monthly…
Who was responsible for fire protection after part of Acadia Parish Fire District No. 7 was annexed into Duson?
The AG concluded that the Town of Duson, rather than Fire District No. 7, was responsible for the annexed area because Duson had not agreed to include its municipal territory in the district.
Could a Thibodaux council member also serve as full-time Lafourche Parish administrator?
No. The AG concluded that an elected Thibodaux council member could not also hold the full-time appointive office of Lafourche Parish administrator and would have to decline one position.
Could a federal postal employee serve on Natchitoches' city council?
No. The AG concluded that a federal postal employee could not serve on the Natchitoches council under the dual-officeholding law. An exception for postal employees elected in villages or towns with…
Could West Feliciana Parish use its health and social services tax for garbage collection?
No. The AG concluded that the voter-approved tax for public health facilities and other social services did not cover solid-waste collection or disposal. The parish could ask voters to rededicate…
Which election call should Louisiana's Secretary of State process when Kenner officials sent conflicting proclamations?
The AG said the Secretary of State should process the first election-call document received unless it was invalid on its face. For Kenner's mayoral vacancy, it treated the December 22, 2003…
Could a full-time Catahoula Parish school employee also work as Sicily Island's juvenile officer?
Yes, on the AG's assumption that the juvenile-officer job was part time. The cited dual-employment rule barred two full-time public positions, while the combination described had only one.
Could a Louisiana sheriff seek bids for jail prescription drugs priced at each vendor's acquisition cost plus a margin?
No. The AG said the advertised acquisition-cost method was prohibited cost-plus bidding and should be canceled and rebid. It approved bids using a recognized drug price index, with competition on…
Could Louisiana's unclaimed-property administrator hire an attorney for a share of recovered property?
Yes. The AG said the unclaimed-property statute expressly allowed a percentage-based attorney fee for enforcement actions, subject to the approvals described in the opinion; the fee could not reduce…
Did East Baton Rouge fire districts have to reapprove and report their service fees every year like property-tax millages?
No. The AG said the fire-district charges were specific taxes rather than ad valorem taxes, so the annual ordinance and Legislative Auditor reporting rules in the cited property-tax statute did not apply.
Could Louisiana's insurance department destroy premium-tax and assessment records after five years?
The AG did not set a five-year rule. The department and Secretary of State had to establish an approved retention schedule identifying which records were permanent and when others could be destroyed.
Could a Terrebonne water district pay to build a waterline serving private commercial lots as an economic-development project?
The AG said no on the proposed facts. It found no legal authority or obligation for the water district to spend its system funds on economic development, and sharing costs with the parish did not…
Could Slidell City Court hear and settle a minor child's tort claim brought by the child's father?
The AG said yes if the amount in dispute did not exceed the court's then-$20,000 limit and no tutor was required. The same conditions applied to the court's authority to approve or reject a…
Who decided which inmates could become trusties in Oakdale's city jail?
The AG said the person designated to manage the jail made its rules, including trusty status. If the town charter did not name a manager, the city council had to designate the jail's keeper or…
Did Slaughter, Louisiana qualify to change from a village to a town after the 2000 census?
Yes. The AG found Slaughter's submitted resolution and census certification satisfied the reclassification requirements; its reported population of 1,011 put it in the statutory town category.
How could a Louisiana marina remove a boat from a rented slip after a tenant failed to leave?
The AG said the marina owner had to use the eviction process. After required notice and a court eviction order, the constable could execute a warrant by removing the boat from the slip.
Did Lafayette's school board have to approve misconduct charges before a permanent bus driver received notice?
The AG said state law did not require advance board approval for written misconduct charges against a permanent bus driver. Lafayette's own superintendent job description did require that approval…
Could a Louisiana police jury advance travel money to members and employees before a work trip?
Yes, if unused or ineligible amounts had to be returned immediately and prompt repayment was reasonably expected. The AG said an advance without that expectation could violate Louisiana's…
Could Sulphur City Court charge its judicial building fund fee when someone files a small-claims case?
Yes. The AG said small claims were within the city court's jurisdiction, and La. R.S. 13:1910 allowed a judicial building fund service charge of up to $10 per filing in cases within that jurisdiction.
How long could a holdover school board's new superintendent contract run after the board's elected term expired?
The AG said Concordia's board could not extend a new superintendent's contract beyond December 31, 2004, two years after the board members' official term expired, even though they remained in office…
Could a Louisiana hospital district pay to demolish a leased building for a private medical-office project?
The AG said no under the lease and facts presented. The district had no identified legal obligation to pay for demolition so a private developer could build on the leased site, and labeling the…
Could a Louisiana election board commission poll watchers when a timely filed list omitted their mailing addresses?
Possibly. The AG said the parish board had to decide whether the list substantially complied with the Election Code; if it did, the board should issue commissions, and if it did not, it should refuse them.
Could the Iberia Parish Airport Authority lease a grant-funded storage facility to a private manufacturer for nominal rent?
The AG said it could, if the authority determined that the company's location in its industrial park would bring sufficient public and authority benefits to justify the inducement.
Could a full-time Delgado instructor also teach part time at the University of New Orleans?
Yes. The AG said Louisiana's dual-officeholding law barred two full-time public positions, but did not bar this full-time Delgado job combined with a part-time UNO teaching position.
Could a Louisiana firefighter work 53 hours a week for one fire district and 48 hours for another as a part-time job?
The AG said the proposed 48-hour second job was not part-time under the dual-employment law, which barred two full-time public jobs. It advised reducing the second job below 35 hours per week and…
Could the New Orleans convention center waive a bidder's missing builder's risk insurance proof?
No. The AG said this project's bid form and instructions made proof of every required insurance coverage mandatory, including builder's risk; omitting it was a substantive bid deviation the owner…
Was a privately leased New Orleans industrial development board project exempt from property tax while the board owned it?
Yes. The AG concluded that the project was exempt from ad valorem tax while the industrial development board held title, even though private companies would lease and use it.
Could a Louisiana clerk of court use public funds for election ads, and could staff work the polls when the clerk was a candidate?
The AG said public money could pay for purely factual information, but not advocacy for or against a candidate or ballot proposition. It found no law barring a clerk's employee from serving as a…
Did a Port Allen police officer have to resign or take leave to run for city marshal?
No. The AG told the Port Allen police officer he need not resign or take mandatory leave to run for city marshal. It stated the general rule for unclassified employees and said campaigning could not…
In what order should a Louisiana city council vote on nominees for a local civil service board?
The AG said the governing authority should vote on nominees in the order they were nominated, using Robert's Rules. R.S. 42:5 required public-body votes to be taken openly and recorded.
Which public education employees received payment for unused sick leave at retirement or death, and could they choose retirement credit instead?
The AG said the sick-leave payment statute covered teachers and other employees of the named public education boards regardless of retirement-system membership, except classified civil-service…
Did Louisiana's sheriff payroll-padding statute bar costs from opening an 80-bed work-release facility?
The AG said the statutory exception for completing a new prison facility or expanding an existing one covered the described work-release project. It concluded that the project's construction…
Who could perform DeQuincy's mayoral duties while its mayor was absent or unable to serve?
The AG said the mayor's designee could act during a temporary absence. Once the mayor was back in the city but remained unable to serve, DeQuincy's disability procedure applied; temporary service by…
Could a Louisiana police officer work full-time for one city and part-time for another?
Yes, under the dual-employment rule described by the AG, because the second police job was part-time. The answer assumed that civil service law and each employer's policies allowed the arrangement.
Could an assistant district attorney sit on Lafayette's fire and police civil service board, and could the city limit members' terms?
The AG said the assistant district attorney's public employment barred simultaneous board membership. It also said Lafayette could not add term limits by ordinance when the governing statute set…
Did Minden employees transferring from other city departments immediately qualify for fire department longevity pay?
No. The AG said a firefighter first needed three years of continuous service with the Minden Fire Department to qualify for longevity pay under the cited statute; work in another city department did…
Could a Louisiana court reporter charge more than the statutory $1.50 per-page transcription fee without a new law?
No. The AG said the reporter could not charge above the amount provided by statute without another legislative authorization. The letter did not separately resolve the request's question about pay…
Can a parish hospital district's nominating committee members be personally liable for their nomination work?
The AG explained that the cited statute protects qualifying board, commission, or authority members from individual liability for good-faith policy judgments within their official duties, absent…
Could Zachary's city council remove the city attorney whom the mayor had appointed?
No under the charter provision the AG examined. The city attorney served at the mayor's pleasure, and the AG concluded that the mayor alone, as appointing authority, could remove the attorney.
Could Richwood's fiscal officer work part time in a summer lunch program and receive a grant-funded salary supplement?
The AG said the dual roles were allowed where the fiscal officer was an appointed official and at least one role was part time. A grant-funded supplement was probably allowed if the grant's terms…
Could a Louisiana police juror also work full-time as a district attorney's child-support director?
Yes on the facts presented. The AG treated the district attorney's office and the police jury as separate political subdivisions and found the funding-incompatibility rule inapplicable because the…
Could Ville Platte use city money for a youth apprenticeship and mentoring program?
Yes. The AG concluded that Louisiana law authorized Ville Platte to fund the described apprenticeship and internship program for at-risk youth. It suggested objective screening to ensure…
If Abita Springs' elected police chief resigned before voters decided whether to appoint future chiefs, did the town still have to call an election?
Yes. The AG said the town had to call a special election to fill the elected chief's vacancy under the law then in force. If voters later approved an appointed-chief system while an interim…
Could a person with a disability ride a battery-powered mobility scooter on a Louisiana public road?
In this 2003 opinion, the AG said no. It classified the scooter as a motor vehicle but found no available way to register or inspect it for legal road use. The opinion found no prohibition on…
Who paid to repair a Vivian customer's sewer pipe after it crossed the property line under a state highway?
On the town's description of its ordinances and customer arrangements, the AG said the customer had to repair the building sewer all the way to the main, even under the highway. The opinion…
Could Zachary buy back employees' banked annual leave before they left city jobs?
Yes, if the city first adopted a formal policy and appropriate rules for the payment, and the affected employees agreed. The AG said employees could refuse a buyback and retain leave already earned…
Could St. Martinville amend its special charter to increase the mayor's pay?
The AG found the proposed pay amendment consistent with state and federal law and recommended gubernatorial approval if no timely elector protest was filed. The proposal set different amounts for…
Could the New Orleans district attorney contract for a website and sell ads on it?
The AG said a website contract could fall within the district attorney's inherent authority if needed for constitutional duties, and found no law barring website advertising. It warned that…
Did Lafayette Parish have to transport students to academy classes outside their attendance zones or to an alternative school?
The AG said ordinary transportation law did not require rides to an academy outside a student's assigned zone, subject to any requirements in Lafayette Parish's desegregation order. For a…
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Attorney general opinions in Louisiana are written by the Louisiana Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.