Voters throughout Louisiana will join together to decide the fate of five constitutional amendments during the May 16 Party Primary Election.
Each of the five are uniquely different and at least one, Amendment 3, has garnered attention throughout the state for various reasons.
Each election season, the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana (PAR) releases its interpretation of amendments to help guide voters in making the most informed decisions possible.
The following is information about each of the May 16 amendments after careful and exhaustive research by PAR officials.
(It should be noted that PAR is an independent, unbiased source of information on state and local government issues. Its only business is research and does not take a position for or against propositions or amendments. Following many years of service, they have gained a reputation for accuracy, objectivity and independence.)
Amendment 1
“Do you support an amendment to allow the legislature to remove or add officers, positions, and employees to the unclassified state civil service?”
A vote YES would: Allow lawmakers to remove state government jobs from the civil service system and its protections without needing approval from the Civil Service Commission.
A vote NO would: Retain the current provisions requiring Civil Service Commission approval to exempt state jobs from the civil service system and its protections.
ARGUMENT FOR
The current civil service system is too rigid, with too many rules and too much bureaucracy that make it difficult to find ways to improve government operations and efficiency. The system sometimes prioritizes longevity over job performance and requires navigating a complex series of burdensome regulations to discipline someone for poor work. Louisiana state agencies should have more flexibility to manage their workers, respond to performance issues and operate like the private sector.
ARGUMENT AGAINST
Louisiana has a history of political corruption and patronage in government that drove the need for a civil service system. Government offices are not the same as private sector workplaces. Removing jobs from civil service protections could inject more political meddling into state agencies, expose employees to improper political pressure at the risk of their jobs and potentially lose some guardrails on employee salaries. Lawmakers should look at broader reform, not just making individual decisions about job classifications.
Amendment 2
“Do you support an amendment to grant the St. George community school system in East Baton Rouge Parish the same authority granted parishes for purposes of Article VIII, Section 13 of the Constitution of Louisiana, including purposes related to the minimum foundation program, funding for certain school books and instructional materials, and the raising of certain local revenues for the support of elementary and secondary schools?”
A vote YES would: Authorize the creation of the St. George Community School System in East Baton Rouge Parish.
A vote NO would: Keep the schools in the City of St. George in the East Baton Rouge Parish School System.
ARGUMENT FOR
The East Baton Rouge Parish school system has fallen short for years, offering a poor education for students at many of its facilities and not responding to concerns from the parents who live in the St. George area. People voted to create the City of St. George as a step toward creating their own school system and having more oversight of the direction of public schools in their area. By creating a smaller school district, residents will have a greater sense of ownership of their public schools and more input into their management.
ARGUMENT AGAINST
Creating another new breakaway school system in East Baton Rouge Parish will lead to more segregation in public schools, with the St. George Community School System a largely White district and the parish school system a largely Black district. The fragmentation will duplicate administrative costs and bureaucracy and provide uneven educational opportunities for children in the parish by draining resources from the parish school system and its children. The parish school system will continue to carry some obligations related to workers and facilities in the new St. George system.
Amendment 3
“Do you support an amendment to fund a $2,250 teacher pay raise and $1,125 support staff pay raise by utilizing the remaining savings from paying down the debt of the Teachers’ Retirement System of Louisiana with monies from certain constitutional funds?”
A vote YES would: Dissolve three education trust funds and use the money to pay down retirement debt and give public school teachers and support workers a permanent raise.
A vote NO would: Maintain the education trust funds and continue to distribute their investment earnings for early childhood education, K-12 schools and college programs.
ARGUMENT FOR
Dissolving the trust funds and paying down a hefty state debt is a better use of the money. The maneuver will save Louisiana an estimated $1 billion over time, money that could fund other critical priorities, including education needs. The maneuver will make the Teachers’ Retirement System of Louisiana more financially stable, and the state will save more on retirement debt interest payments for years than it was receiving in annual interest and investment earnings from the trust fund money. Requiring public school systems to use their savings for a permanent teacher and support worker raise ends the annual financial uncertainty educators have faced with one-time stipends uncertain to reappear each year.
ARGUMENT AGAINST
The education trust funds were created to ensure that public school systems and colleges have a protected stream of money to finance priority programs and important initiatives for the long-term. Just because this governor and lawmakers have agreed to continue to pay for those programs without the trust fund revenue doesn’t mean future officials will agree to the same terms. If the governor and Legislature want to prioritize a permanent teacher pay raise, they should find the state money to cover those costs without raiding trust funds and ending an annual stream of investment and interest earnings that is available in perpetuity. The state already has a plan in place to pay down the retirement debt.
Amendment 4
“Do you support an amendment to allow a parish to reduce or exempt property tax on property held as business inventory and to provide for the classification of Public Service Property?”
A vote YES would: Allow local governments to lessen or eliminate property taxes on business inventory and receive a one-time payment if they stop charging the tax.
A vote NO would: Continue the current system for local governments to charge property taxes on business inventory.
ARGUMENT FOR
Property taxes on business inventory are not charged by most states and make Louisiana uncompetitive for economic development. The taxes also are often passed on to consumers through higher prices. While the state’s tax credit helps offset the cost, its availability is disappearing for some businesses, and it makes tax filing unnecessarily complex for those who can continue to access the credit. Local government should have flexibility to determine whether and how to charge the inventory tax. Parishes could use its removal to attract business, grow other revenue sources and cover the lost tax money.
ARGUMENT AGAINST
The property taxes that local governments charge on business inventory, in some cases, raise large sums of money essential to government services, such as schools, law enforcement and infrastructure. Eliminating or reducing the tax could shift the burden of paying for government programs to other taxpayers and could create financial gaps for local governments. An inventory tax decision shouldn’t be irrevocable, as a parish’s financial situation and income sources may change over time.
Future local officials should have the ability to reinstate the tax if economic conditions or financial needs change.
Amendment 5
“Do you support an amendment to change the mandatory retirement age for judges from seventy to seventy-five, provided that a judge may continue to serve to complete a term of office?”
A vote YES would: Raise the mandatory retirement age for judges to 75 years old.
A vote NO would: Keep the mandatory retirement age for judges at 70 years old.
ARGUMENT FOR
Judgeships are the only elected position in Louisiana with a mandatory retirement age. The restriction is arbitrary and discriminatory against people who are still capable of performing the job. Forcing out older judges with years of institutional knowledge removes people from the bench who have useful legal experience and life knowledge to help guide their decisions on cases. Raising the retirement age accounts for increasing life expectancy estimates. Voters can decide whether they believe a judge is capable, and a system exists to remove judges who are no longer able to handle the office’s duties.
ARGUMENT AGAINST
Judges play a vital role in deciding people’s fortunes and should be fully alert and capable of performing their work in a manner that instills public confidence. An age limit helps ensure this standard. Although no other elected offices in Louisiana have age limits, many of those offices have term limits. Eliminating the mandatory retirement age would effectively remove term limits for elected judges, making it harder to bring new people and perspectives into office. Voters already have spoken on this issue, twice rejecting efforts to adjust this provision in the constitution and indicating they have no interest in changing it.
For more information, visit parlouisiana.org.
