Louisiana Amendment 3, Senate Confirmation for Appointees to State Police Commission Measure (December 2022)

Louisiana Amendment 3
Election date December 10, 2022
Topic Civil service
Status a Approved
Type Constitutional amendment	Origin State legislature

Louisiana Amendment 3, the Senate Confirmation for Appointees to State Police Commission Measure, was on the ballot in Louisiana as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on December 10, 2022. The amendment was approved.

A "yes" vote supported requiring Senate confirmation of State Police Commission appointees after they are appointed by the governor.

A "no" vote opposed requiring Senate confirmation of gubernatorial appointees to the State Police Commission, thereby retaining current law in which members of the State Police Commission are appointed by the governor without senate confirmation.

Election results

Louisiana Amendment 3
Result		Votes	Percentage
Yes		305,007	72.01%
No		118,538	27.99%

Results are officially certified.

Source

Overview

What did this measure change about appointments to the State Police Commission?

See also: Text of measure

The amendment required senate confirmation of gubernatorial appointees to the State Police Commission. The seven-member State Police Commission is responsible for administrating and regulating the state police service. The commission's stated mission is, "to provide an independent, merit-based, system to empower the State of Louisiana to recruit, develop, and retain a state police force with the highest level of professionalism and proactive engagement in providing service to and protection of Louisiana’s citizens and visitors."

Going into the election, six members of the Louisiana State Police Commission were appointed by the governor. The presidents of Centenary College, Dillard University, Loyola University, Tulane University, Xavier University, and Louisiana College each nominated three individuals. The governor selected one member from each of the presidents' nominations. The members needed to each be from one of the state's six congressional districts. The seventh member was an employee representative elected by members of the State Police Service. Going into the election, the appointments were not subject to confirmation by the Louisiana State Senate.

Was there a related amendment on the December 2022 ballot in Louisiana?

A constitutional amendment to require Senate confirmation of gubernatorial appointees to the State Civil Service Commission was also on the December ballot in Louisiana.

The Louisiana State Police Commission was created through a constitutional amendment in 1990 that removed the state police from the state civil service system and created a separate state police service. Going into the election, appointments to the Civil Service Commission and State Police Commission were similar.

Text of measure

Ballot question

The ballot question for the amendment was as follows:

“

Do you support an amendment to make appointed members of the State Police Commission subject to confirmation by the Louisiana Senate? (Amends Article X, Section 43(C)) [ ]Yes [ ] No

”

Constitutional changes

See also: Article X, Louisiana Constitution

The measure amended Section 43 of Article X of the state constitution. The following struck-through text was deleted and underlined text was added. Note: Hover over the text and scroll to see the full text.

State Police Commission

(A) Composition. The State Police Commission is established and shall be domiciled in the state capital. It shall be composed of seven members who are electors of this state, four of whom shall constitute a quorum. At least one appointed member shall be from each congressional district. No appointed member shall concurrently serve on another board or commission whose purpose is similar to that of the State Police Commission. In order to implement this requirement, every ten years beginning on the day the members of congress from newly reapportioned congressional districts take office, any vacancy that occurs on the commission shall be filled from a congressional district from which there is no commission member. Only when the membership includes a member from each congressional district may a vacancy be filled by an appointment from the state at large.

(B)(1) Appointment. The members shall be selected, as hereinafter provided, for terms of six years, after initial terms of one year, two years, three years, four years, five years, and six years for the appointed members, as designated by the governor, and six years for the elected member.

(2) No person who has served as a member of the commission for more than two and one-half terms in three consecutive terms shall be appointed or elected to the commission for the succeeding term. This Subparagraph shall not apply to any person appointed or elected to the commission prior to the effective date of this Subparagraph, except that it shall apply to any term of service of any such person that begins after such date.

(C) Nominations. The presidents of Centenary College at Shreveport, Dillard University at New Orleans, Louisiana College at Pineville, Loyola University at New Orleans, Tulane University of Louisiana at New Orleans, and Xavier University at New Orleans, after giving consideration to representation of all groups, each shall nominate three persons. The governor shall appoint, with consent of the Senate, one member of the commission from the three persons nominated by each president. One member of the commission shall be elected by the classified state police officers of the state from their number as provided by law. A vacancy for any cause shall be filled by appointment or election in accordance with the procedure or law governing the original appointment or election, and from the same source. Within thirty days after a vacancy occurs, the president concerned shall submit the required nominations. Within thirty days thereafter, the governor shall make his appointment, with consent of the Senate. If the governor fails to appoint within thirty days, the nominee whose name is first on the list of nominees automatically shall become a member of the commission. If any nominating authority fails to submit nominees in the time required, or if one of the named institutions ceases to exist, the governor shall make the appointment to the commission, with consent of the Senate.

(D) Removal. An appointed member of the commission may be removed by the governor for cause after being served with written specifications of the charges against him and being afforded an opportunity for a public hearing thereon by the governor.

Readability score

See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2022

Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL) and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The state legislature wrote the ballot language for this measure.

The FKGL for the ballot title is grade level 10, and the FRE is 41. The word count for the ballot title is 26.

Support

Supporters

Officials

• State Sen. Cleo Fields (D)

Arguments

• State Sen. Cleo Fields (D): "I could not come up with one single reason why we did not put confirmation in the constitution when we created it. I just don’t know. There’s just really no good reason why we did not put the confirmation of these members.” Fields also said Louisiana is the only state with a separate oversight commission for state police and that all other boards and commissions in the state constitution require Senate confirmation of gubernatorial appointments.
• State Rep. Barry Ivey (R): "Commission appointments should be subject to legislative oversight (Senate confirmation) because it would give the public some say in the appointments."

Opposition

Opponents

Organizations

• Louisiana Fraternal Order of Police

Arguments

• Rep. Polly Thomas (R): According to the LA Illuminator, Thomas "was reluctant to support the [bills], saying she disapproved of the tradition that allows a single senator to 'blackball' a nominee if the nominee lives in that senator’s district."

Media editorials

See also: 2022 ballot measure media endorsements

Ballotpedia lists the positions of media editorial boards that support or oppose ballot measures. This does not include opinion pieces from individuals or groups that do not represent the official position of a newspaper or media outlet. Ballotpedia includes editorials from newspapers and outlets based on circulation and readership, political coverage within a state, and length of publication. You can share media editorial board endorsements with us at editor@ballotpedia.org.

Support

• The New Orleans Advocate Editorial Board: "Because this body weighs disputed disciplinary cases involving state troopers, this is a bit more high-profile lately. However, the process of appointment is unlikely to be meaningfully harmed by this proposal. ... Let us hope that passage of these amendments will underscore the need for responsible vetting of appointments, and not political dealing with them."

Opposition

Ballotpedia did not locate a campaign in opposition to the ballot measure.

Campaign finance

See also: Campaign finance requirements for Louisiana ballot measures

	Cash Contributions	In-Kind Contributions	Total Contributions	Cash Expenditures	Total Expenditures
Support	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00
Oppose	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00
Total	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00

Ballotpedia has not identified political action committees registered to support or oppose this measure. If you are aware of one, please email editor@ballotpedia.org.

Background

Louisiana State Police Commission

The Louisiana State Police Commission was created through a constitutional amendment in 1990 that removed the state police from the state civil service system and created a separate state police service. The State Police Commission a seven-member commission responsible for administrating and regulating the state police service. The commission is responsible for:

• investigating violations of the rules governing the state police, hearing cases, and deciding disciplinary actions;
• adopting rules for regulating employment;
• promotion, demotion, suspension, reduction in pay, removal, certification, qualifications, political activities, employment conditions, compensation, and other personnel matters;
• adopting a pay and classification plan;
• establishing an employee training and safety program; and
• "generally accomplishing the objectives and purposes of the merit system" of the state police service.

The commission's mission statement is "to provide an independent, merit-based, system to empower the State of Louisiana to recruit, develop, and retain a state police force with the highest level of professionalism and proactive engagement in providing service to and protection of Louisiana’s citizens and visitors."

Appointment process

Going into the election, six members of the Louisiana State Police Commission were appointed by the governor. The presidents of six state colleges and universities (Centenary College, Dillard University, Loyola University, Tulane University, Xavier University, and Louisiana College) each nominated three individuals. The governor selected one member from each of the presidents' nominations. The members needed to each be from one of the state's six congressional districts.

Louisiana State Police Commissioners

As of 2022, the commissioners serving on the Louisiana State Police Commission were as follows:

Name	District	Nominating entity	Date appointed/elected	Term expires
Mr. Eulis Simien, Jr., Chairman	6th Congressional District	Xavier University	12/06/2016	12/05/2022
Mr. Brian A. Crawford, Vice-Chairman	4th Congressional District	Centenary College	12/06/2020	12/05/2026
Sergeant Monty C. Montelongo, Member	Classified Employee Representative	Elected	5/11/2022	12/31/2026
Mr. Leonard K. Knapp, Jr., Member	3rd Congressional District	Tulane University	12/06/2021	12/05/2027
Capt. Sabrina E. Richardson, Member	2nd Congressional District	Louisiana College	11/13/2020	12/05/2023
Mr. Jared J. Caruso-Riecke, Member	1st Congressional District	Dillard University	1/8/2019	12/05/2024
Chief Harold Pierite, Sr., Member	5th Congressional district	Loyola University	1/16/2020	12/05/2025

Related amendments on the 2022 ballot in Louisiana

November 8

An amendment to allow classified service/civil service employees to publicly support the election campaigns of individuals in their immediate family when off duty was on the November ballot in Louisiana.

December 10

A constitutional amendment to require Senate confirmation of State Civil Service Commission appointees after they are appointed by the governor was also on the December ballot in Louisiana.

Constitutional amendments on the ballot, 2000-2020

See also: List of Louisiana ballot measures

The following statistics are based on legislatively referred constitutional amendments on the even-year ballot in Louisiana between 2000 and 2020:

• During the 20-year period between 2000 and 2020, the statewide ballot in Louisiana featured 104 constitutional amendments.
• An average of 10 amendments appeared on the ballot.
• The number of amendments on the ballot ranged from four to 21.
• Voters approved 71.15% (74 of 104) and rejected 28.85% percent (30 of 104) of the constitutional amendments.

Legislatively-referred constitutional amendments in even-years, 2000-2020
Total number	Approved	Percent approved	Defeated	Percent defeated	Even-year average	Even-year median	Even-year minimum	Even-year maximum
104	74	71.15%	30	28.85%	9.45	8.0	4	21

Path to the ballot

See also: Amending the Louisiana Constitution

In Louisiana, a two-thirds vote is needed in each chamber of the Louisiana State Legislature to refer a legislatively referred constitutional amendment to the ballot for voter consideration.

This amendment was introduced as Senate Bill 75 on February 25, 2022. On April 18, 2022, the state Senate passed SB 75 in a vote of 36-0 with two members absent. The House passed the bill with amendments on June 3, 2022, by a vote of 88-3 with 14 member absent. The Senate concurred with the House's amendments by a vote of 32-0 with six members absent on June 5, 2022.

Vote in the Louisiana House of Representatives June 3, 2022
Requirement: Two-thirds (66.67 percent) vote of all members in each chamber
Number of yes votes required: 70  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	88	3	14
Total percent	83.81%	2.86%	13.33%
Democrat	29	0	5
Republican	56	3	9
Independent	3	0	0

Vote in the Louisiana State Senate June 5, 2022
Requirement: Two-thirds (66.67 percent) vote of all members in each chamber
Number of yes votes required: 26  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	32	0	6
Total percent	84.21%	0.00%	15.79%
Democrat	7	0	4
Republican	25	0	2

How to cast a vote

See also: Voting in Louisiana

Click "Show" to learn more about voter registration, identification requirements, and poll times in Louisiana.

How to cast a vote in Louisiana

Poll times In Louisiana, polls are open from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Central time for Tuesday elections. For Saturday elections, polls open at 7:00 a.m. If the polls close while a voter is in line, he or she will still be permitted to vote. Registration requirements Check your voter registration status here. To vote in Louisiana, one must provide documentary proof of United States citizenship and be a resident of the state and parish in which they register. A voter must be at least 18 years old by Election Day. Registration completed via mail or in person must occur at least 30 days before Election Day. Registration completed online must occur at least 20 days before Election Day. Registrants must present a valid form of identification to register. Pre-registration is available beginning at age 16. Voters may register in person at any Registrar of Voters office or any of the following places: Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles Louisiana Department of Social Services WIC offices Food stamp offices Medicaid offices Offices and agencies serving people with disabilities Military recruitment offices Automatic registration Louisiana does not practice automatic voter registration. Online registration See also: Online voter registration Louisiana has implemented an online voter registration system. Residents can register to vote by visiting this website. Same-day registration Louisiana does not allow same-day voter registration. Residency requirements Louisiana law requires 20 days of residency in the state before a person may vote. Verification of citizenship See also: Laws permitting noncitizens to vote in the United States Louisiana state law requires a voter registration applicant to provide proof of citizenship to register to vote. As of June 2025, the state had not implemented the requirement. All 49 states with voter registration systems require applicants to declare that they are U.S. citizens in order to register to vote in state and federal elections, under penalty of perjury or other punishment. Seven states — Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, New Hampshire, and Wyoming — have laws requiring verification of citizenship at the time of voter registration, whether in effect or not. In three states — California, Maryland, and Vermont — at least one local jurisdiction allows noncitizens to vote in some local elections. Noncitizens registering to vote in those elections must complete a voter registration application provided by the local jurisdiction and are not eligible to register as state or federal voters. Verifying your registration The site Geaux Vote, run by the Louisiana Secretary of State office, allows residents to check their voter registration status online. Voter ID requirements Louisiana requires voters to present photo identification while voting. Voters can present the following forms of identification. This list was current as of August 14, 2024. Click here to ensure you have the most current information. Louisiana driver's license Louisiana special identification card LA Wallet digital driver's license Military ID or other generally recognized picture identification card that contains the name and signature of the voter Voters who do not have accepted ID may vote by completing a voter identification affidavit. By law, voters who sign an affidavit may be challenged. Registered voters can bring their voter information card to the Office of Motor Vehicles to receive a free Louisiana special identification card.

See also

2022 measures

• 2022 ballot measures
• Civil service on the ballot
• Law enforcement on the ballot

Louisiana

• Louisiana ballot measures
• Louisiana ballot measure laws

News and analysis

• Ballot measure lawsuits
• Ballot measure readability
• Ballot measure polls

External links

• Louisiana Senate Bill 75 information
• Louisiana Senate Bill 75 full text