Jeremy Alford and David Jacobs: More than 50 local propositions await voters

Louisiana voters will wade through more than 50 municipal and parish propositions on the November ballot, including a handful that could substantively reshape how local governments and administrations function.
Term limits, hiring practices, workers’ rights and even salary changes will all be on the ballot, depending on where you live and vote. These issues will be closely watched by local officials, especially as several parishes are considering future home rule changes.
But political eyes will also be fixed on this year’s tax elections, which account for the lion’s share of the November props.
Those interviewed for this story anticipate an anti-tax sentiment to emerge from this cycle. Such a scenario would be less-than-welcoming for the state-level players who are preparing for a regular tax session in the spring and maybe a tax-related special session in the coming months.
In some respects, the landscape for November’s local props is still taking shape. That’s because a parish, municipality or board can withdraw propositions right up until 8 p.m. on election night. The deadline to keep them off the ballot entirely is Aug. 23.
According to Joel Watson with the Secretary of State’s Office, St. Tammany Parish is so far the only entity to yank a prop from the November ballot.
Funding appeals for criminal justice needs in St. Tammany Parish have appeared on five different ballots in recent cycles. And in each instance, those propositions failed. 
This time was supposed to be different. But local officials changed their minds when they realized, in addition to the complicated nature of this particular funding situation, advocates would have had to battle for ballot attention against names like Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.
“It’s going to be really hard to properly educate when people are so worried about the presidential stuff,” said parish spokesperson Michael Vinsanau. 
Vinsanau said a rising anti-tax sentiment was a factor as well.
“People are really looking at taxes and saying, ‘Do we need this?’” Vinsanau said. “Even taxes for the schools, which used to pass 80-20, are now 55-45.” 
Most of the 50 or so propositions on the November ballot involve taxes, with many serving as renewals of existing revenue streams. These propositions go largely unnoticed by voters, and can be relatively easy to pass under certain conditions.
At least that’s how it used to be, said Guy Cormier, who directs the Police Jury Association of Louisiana. Nowadays, renewals that were once routine are coming down to the wire on Election Day, if they pass at all.
This places the onus on local leaders to explain why they think certain taxing streams are needed. 
“We are letting our members know that they have to educate their taxpayers,” said Cormier, adding local leaders are learning proposition campaigns should be run with the same intensity of candidate campaigns.
That trend is surely on the minds of legislators and state officials as they concoct an approach to rewriting the finance and taxation article of the Louisiana Constitution. Whether the end product is a package of amendments or a new constitution, voters will get the final say.
Here’s a sampling of the other November ballot propositions, based on a master list supplied by the Secretary of State’s Office…
— Among other changes, a proposal in East Baton Rouge parish creates an executive counsel that reports directly to the mayor-president, while the parish attorney would fall under the legislative branch. It further split the duties of the top parish administrator, so that one person handles day-to-day management while a new chief of staff would manage the mayor’s policy agenda. Plus, the current $1,000 monthly salary for Council members would also be removed from the parish charter, allowing the Council to adjust it by a vote.
 — Voters in Orleans Parish will consider separate measures to add a “Workers’ Bill of Rights” to the home rule charter and require at least 2 percent of the general fund to be appropriated to the Housing Trust Fund. 
— In Hammond, voters will weigh home rule charter amendments to allow the City Council to vote out the police chief and to require a feasibility study before incurring bonded debt. 
— Iberville Parish voters may amend their charter to impose term limits for the parish president and council. Council members and presidents would be allowed to serve no more than three terms after Jan. 1, 2028.
— Jefferson Parish’s charter could be changed to “include within the unclassified service any at-will employee hired to work directly in the office of the Parish President or a Parish Council member.”
— A 6 mill, 10-year property tax in the city of Baton Rouge would provide raises for firefighters. 
— East Baton Rouge voters will consider two property tax renewals to fund the parish parks system. 
— Evangeline Parish will consider a new 1-mill tax to fund an animal control facility.
— A 6.75% hotel occupancy tax in Denham Springs could be imposed, with half going to fire department employees and half to police. 
— Livingston Parish voters may rededicate up to one fourth of a 1 percent sales tax that currently goes to general infrastructure to pay for a parish jail. 
— Seven property tax renewals, and one extension and rededication, in St. Martin Parish.
While several tax propositions and a charter amendment are already teed up for December, the list is not final. Localities have until 54 days before the general election to submit. 
Election Day is Nov. 5, with early voting Oct. 18-29, excluding Sundays. Voters can find sample ballots here.
For more Louisiana political news, visit www. LaPolitics.com or follow Alford on Twitter @ LaPoliticsNow.