Jones v. LIVINGSTON PARISH LAW ENFOR. DIST.

970 So. 2d 996, 2007 WL 2683736
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedSeptember 14, 2007
Docket2007 CA 0628, 2007 CA 0629, 2007 CA 0630
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 970 So. 2d 996 (Jones v. LIVINGSTON PARISH LAW ENFOR. DIST.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jones v. LIVINGSTON PARISH LAW ENFOR. DIST., 970 So. 2d 996, 2007 WL 2683736 (La. Ct. App. 2007).

Opinion

970 So.2d 996 (2007)

A. Ponder JONES,
v.
LIVINGSTON PARISH LAW ENFORCEMENT DISTRICT
A. Ponder Jones,
v.
Livingston Parish School Board
Beverly Bonneval
v.
Livingston Parish Gravity Drainage District No. 1.

Nos. 2007 CA 0628, 2007 CA 0629, 2007 CA 0630.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, First Circuit.

September 14, 2007.
Writ Denied October 31, 2007.

*997 Robert S. Angelico, Cheryl M. Kornick, K. Todd Wallace, Kelly B. Becker, Liskow *998 & Lewis, New Orleans, for Plaintiffs-Appellants A. Ponder Jones and Beverly Bonneval.

Eric L. Pittman, Denham Springs, for Defendant-Appellee Livingston Parish Law Enf. District.

Harry J. Phillips, Jr., Thomas R. Peak, Tracy A. Morganti, Taylor, Porter, Brooks & Phillips, Baton Rouge, for Defendant-Appellee Livingston Parish School Board.

D. Blayne Honeycutt, Wanda J. Edwards, Fayard & Honeycutt, Denham Springs, for Defendant-Appellee Livingston Parish Gravity Drainage District No. 1.

William L. Schuette, Fred L. Chevalier, Jones, Walker, Waechter, Poitevent, Carrere & Denegre, L.L.P., Baton Rouge, for Intervenor-Appellee Denham Springs Economic Development District.

Before: PARRO, KUHN, and DOWNING, JJ.

PARRO, J.

The plaintiffs appeal a judgment dismissing all of their remaining challenges to an election in which the voters of Livingston Parish had approved propositions whereby a portion of revenues derived from certain sales taxes levied and collected by the defendants would be re-dedicated to payment of municipal bonds issued to finance the development of a Bass Pro Shop retail outlet in Livingston Parish. The defendants filed a motion to dismiss the appeal on the basis that this court has no subject matter jurisdiction over this matter. After a review of the record and the latest decision from the Louisiana Supreme Court involving this continuing litigation, we grant the motion and dismiss this appeal.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

On May 26, 2005, A. Ponder Jones, one of the plaintiffs in this matter, filed two lawsuits as a taxpayer of Livingston Parish and a resident of the district in which certain public entities levy and collect sales and use taxes; Beverly Bonneval filed a similar suit on the same day against a third public entity.[1] The defendants in these three cases (the Election Challenge Suits), the Livingston Parish Law Enforcement District (the Law Enforcement District), the Livingston Parish School Board (the School Board), and the Livingston Parish Gravity Drainage District No. 1 (the Drainage District), are all political subdivisions of the State of Louisiana with the authority to levy and collect sales and use taxes. The defendants had agreed to form a cooperative endeavor agreement with the Denham Springs Economic Development District (the Development District), whereby they would re-dedicate certain percentages of their sales and use tax revenues for a limited time for debt service on sales tax increment revenue bonds issued by the Development District to finance a Bass Pro Shop retail outlet in Livingston Parish.[2] A resolution describing the bonds, their security, the proposed cooperative endeavor agreement, and the method of payment of the bonds, and authorizing the issuance of the bonds (the Bond Resolution), was adopted by the Development District on March 8, 2005. This resolution was published in accordance *999 with applicable law on March 13, 2005. Each of the defendants submitted to the voters propositions authorizing the re-dedication of certain percentages of the sales and use taxes they collect for the purpose of debt service on the bonds used to finance the Bass Pro project.[3] All of these propositions were overwhelmingly approved in a parish-wide election held April 23, 2005. In accordance with that election, by ordinances approved by each taxing entity, the defendants promulgated the official results of the election authorizing the re-dedication of the taxes.[4]

The plaintiffs in these Election Challenge Suits sought a judgment setting aside those ordinances on the grounds that the terms of the propositions, the ordinances, and the taxes authorized therein were unconstitutional and/or in contravention of the statutes that enabled the defendants to levy and collect sales and use taxes. They further sought a declaratory judgment holding that the ordinances and the taxes authorized in them were unconstitutional and/or in contravention of the enabling legislation. The petitions pointed out that Article VI, § 30 of the Louisiana Constitution provides that political subdivisions "may exercise the power of taxation . . . under authority granted by the legislature for parish, municipal, and other local purposes, strictly public in their nature." (Emphasis added in the petitions). Specifically, the Law Enforcement District was authorized, pursuant to LSA-R.S. 33:2740.7, to levy a sales and use tax within the unincorporated areas of Livingston Parish, the proceeds of which were to be used "for operating and maintaining the parish prison and providing for the payment of other costs of law enforcement in the parish." The Drainage District was authorized, pursuant to LSA-R.S. 38:1805, to levy a sales and use tax, the proceeds of which were to "be used exclusively to acquire drainage works; rights of way for canals and ditches; flood prevention works; equipment and facilities necessary to construct, maintain and operate outlets for the waters of the district; and to prevent flooding." The plaintiffs argued that the re-dedications of the sales and use taxes approved by the voters in the elections and promulgated in the ordinances by these two political subdivisions were not for the purposes approved by the legislature in the enabling statutes, but were "to pay debt service on sales tax increment revenue bonds issued by or on *1000 behalf of the [Development District] to finance a Bass Pro retail outlet and related public improvements and infrastructure within the [Development District]. . . ." The plaintiffs argued that the elections were invalid because only the legislature could authorize the political subdivisions to exercise the power of taxation, and the public could not change the purposes for which the legislature had approved the taxes. They claimed the ordinances exceeded the authority granted by the legislature and violated Article VI, § 30 of the Louisiana Constitution.[5]

The plaintiffs further contended that the ordinances passed by all three public entities were in violation of Article VII, § 14(A) of the Louisiana Constitution, which restricts the manner in which local entities may use sales and use tax proceeds, stating, "[e]xcept as otherwise provided by this constitution, the funds, credit, property, or things of value of the state or of any political subdivision shall not be loaned, pledged, or donated to or for any person, association, or corporation, public or private." The plaintiffs' petitions pointed out that the supreme court had interpreted this provision as prohibiting local entities from loaning, pledging, or donating proceeds from taxes without a "pre-existing legal obligation" to do so, and also as prohibiting the use of tax revenues to pay the debts of another governmental entity. City of Port Allen v. Louisiana Mun. Risk Mgmt. Agency, 439 So.2d 399, 401 (La.1983).

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
970 So. 2d 996, 2007 WL 2683736, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jones-v-livingston-parish-law-enfor-dist-lactapp-2007.