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Louisiana Amendment 2, Authorize State Legislature to Provide for Special Districts by Statute Amendment (February 1972)
| Louisiana Amendment 2 | |
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| Election date |
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| Topic Constitutional wording changes and County and municipal governance |
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| Status |
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| Type Legislatively referred constitutional amendment |
Origin |
Louisiana Amendment 2 was on the ballot as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment in Louisiana on February 1, 1972. It was defeated.
A "yes" vote supported this constitutional amendment to grant the state legislature authority to provide for special districts, boards, and commissions through statutes, rather than constitutional amendments, and repeal obsolete language from Article XIV. |
A "no" vote opposed this constitutional amendment to grant the state legislature authority to provide for special districts, boards, and commissions through statutes, rather than constitutional amendments, and repeal obsolete language from Article XIV. |
Election results
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Louisiana Amendment 2 |
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| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
| Yes | 239,175 | 45.40% | ||
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287,686 | 54.60% | ||
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title for Amendment 2 was as follows:
| “ | The proposed amendment revising portions of Article XIV of the Louisiana Constitution by amending Sections 14, 22, 23, 24, 46, and 48, and by adding Sections 14.1 through 14.10 and Sections 49, 50, and 51, and by repealing Sections 3 (d) (1st) providing for acquisition and financing of sewerage improvements for East Baton Rouge Parish, 3 (e), 3 (f), 6, 13, 15, 15.1, 18, 23.1, 23.3 through 23.41, 23.43, 24.2 through 24.22, 30.3, 30.4, 30.5, 31.1, 31.2, 31.3, 31.4, 31.7, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37.1, 38 (1st), 38 (2nd), 38.1, 39, 39.1, 43, 44, 44.1, and 45 thereof, to confirm the general authority of the legislature to create or authorize creation of special districts, boards, commissions, and like agencies, to provide generally with respect to the powers which may be granted thereto, to grant authority to the legislature to provide for the incurring of debt and issuance of bonds or certificates of indebtedness and the levying of public improvement assessments by political subdivisions; to grant authority to the legislature to authorize assumption of indebtedness of any political subdivision by another upon elector approval, to authorize political corporations to insure bonds for public utility and industrial inducement purposes, to authorize cooperative administration of functions between political subdivisions or between political subdivisions and the state or an agency thereof and to grant the legislature power to authorize such agreements between a political subdivision and the United States or another state or agency thereof; to delete obsolete provisions, provisions for which statutory enactment is sufficient either presently or upon adoption of the proposed revision, and provisions which are otherwise restated, though perhaps in more general language, within the proposed revision; to delete provisions relating to creation of, the powers of, or authorization for the creation of special districts, authorities, and like agencies for which statutory provision may be made under the more general authority contained in said proposed revision; to delete from Article XIV provisions relating to state and municipal and also municipal fire and police civil service, subject to ratification of an amendment placing these same provisions in a new and separate article of the constitution; to ratify the act of 1899 constituting the Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans; to restate generally the powers and authorities of the Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans with respect to the drainage lien law, taxation, incurring debt, issuing bonds, fixing water and sewerage service rates, and to delete detailed provisions with respect thereto; to retain the constitutional status of the Board of Liquidation, City Debt, of New Orleans; to ratify outstanding bonds and indebtedness, to ratify all authority to incur debt or issue bonds granted by or under or ratified by any provision of Article XIV as it existed prior to the effective date of this revision; to provide with respect to legislative consideration of implementing legislation, and to be effective contingent upon placement in the statutes of the state provisions being here deleted other than those which are obsolete or are covered by the revision or which have heretofore been enacted into law. | ” |
Background
In 1958, voters passed Amendment 27, which authorized parishes to create mosquito abatement districts (MADs). State Rep. Alvin Dyson (D) introduced the amendment into the Louisiana State Legislature as House Bill 497 in 1958.[1] In the state Senate, the amendment was approved 32-1, with six members absent. In the state House, the amendment was approved 78-1, with 21 members absent and one vacant seat.[2] The Daily Advertiser reported, “Proponents contend this measure will provide the legal framework necessary to place a full scale mosquito abatement program into effect."[3] John R. Thistlethwaite, editor of the Daily World, said, "This would create another government setup, to be financed by taxes – with taxpayer approval – and we aren't convinced of the necessity."[4] On Nov. 4, 53.2% of electors voted to approve the amendment.
Voters were asked to repeal the constitutional amendment on February 1, 1972. Based on a recommendation from a Constitutional Revision Commission, the legislature referred Amendment 5 to the ballot, which sought to repeal the constitutional provision authorizing MADs, contingent on the approval of Amendment 2. Amendment 2 was designed to authorize the state legislature to provide for special districts through statutes rather than constitutional amendments. However, voters rejected both Amendment 2 and Amendment 5.
MADs were removed from the constitution two years later, in 1974, when voters approved a new state constitution. The revised constitution incorporated changes similar to those proposed in 1972's Amendments 2 and 5. With the Louisiana Constitution of 1974, Article VI, Section 19 empowered the legislature to provide for special districts in statute. MADs were codified in the Louisiana Revised Statutes.
Path to the ballot
- See also: Amending the Louisiana Constitution
A two-thirds (66.67%) vote is required during one session of the Louisiana State Legislature to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot.
See also
Footnotes
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State of Louisiana Baton Rouge (capital) |
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