§ 18:1285 — Notice of election

§1285. Notice of election
A.(1)(a)(i) Notice of the election shall be given and shall embrace substantially all
matters required to be set forth in the resolution ordering the election, including a list of
precincts where the proposition will be voted on and an indication for each precinct as to
whether or not all registered voters in the precinct will be eligible to vote on the proposition,
unless the proposition is to be voted on parishwide.
(ii) If the notice is relative to the increase of a special tax, the notice shall also state
the proposed increase in the millage rate of a property tax or percentage rate of sales tax.
(iii) If the notice is relative to an election which affects ad valorem taxation, the
notice shall also state that a portion of the monies collected shall be remitted to certain state
and statewide retirement systems in the manner required by law.
(iv) The notice shall also state that the governing authority of the political
subdivision ordering the election will, in open session, at the hour and place named, proceed
to canvass the returns and declare the result of the election.
(v) The notice shall also state the estimated cost of the election as determined by the
secretary of state based upon the provisions of Chapter 8-A of this Title and actual costs of
similar elections.
(b) The list of commissioners for an election called in accordance with R.S.
18:1286(A) is not required to be set forth in the notice of election.
(2) The notice shall be published once a week for four consecutive weeks in the
official journal of the political subdivision, or, if there is none, then in a newspaper of general
circulation in the parish or, if there is no newspaper of general circulation in the parish, then
in a newspaper of general circulation in an adjoining parish. Not less than forty-five days nor
more than ninety days shall intervene between the date of the first publication and the date
of the election.
B.(1)(a) Written notice of the election and the certificate required by Subparagraph
(b) of this Paragraph shall be transmitted to the secretary of state and each clerk of court and
registrar of voters in the area affected by the election. If the election is to be held on a
primary election date, then such notice and certificate shall be received by the secretary of
state at least four weeks prior to the opening of the qualifying period for the primary election.
If this deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, then the deadline shall be the
following day which is not a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday. If the election is not to be
held on a primary election date, then the notice and certificate shall be received by the
secretary of state on or before the sixty-first day prior to the election. The secretary of state
shall not accept any revisions to propositions, including but not limited to changes in title,
text, or numerical designations, after the last day for submission of the notice and certificate
to the secretary of state, unless prior to the printing of the ballots, the revision will correct
a typographical error and the revision has been approved by the governing authority that
called the proposition election.
(b) The secretary of state shall not prepare or certify the ballot with respect to any
election for bond, debt, or tax propositions, conducted pursuant to this Chapter, or in respect
to any other election where the proposition is subject to approval by the Louisiana State Bond
Commission, including but not limited to any proposition to adopt, amend, or repeal a home
rule charter which is subject to such approval, until he receives certification in writing from
the chairman of that commission that the commission has considered and approved the
proposition.
(2) The secretary of state shall not include any proposition on any ballot of any
election if such notice and certificate required by Subparagraph (1)(b) of this Subsection are
not timely received by the secretary of state. The failure of the clerk of court or registrar of
voters to timely receive notice and the certificate, as provided for herein, shall not prevent
the secretary of state from including the proposition on the ballot. Any elector who is
eligible to vote in the election may apply for injunctive relief to prohibit the placing of a
proposition on the ballot if notice and the certificate are not timely received by the secretary
of state. Venue for such application shall be in any parish in which the election is called, and
the secretary of state shall be a proper party defendant.

Legislative History

Acts 1977, No. 545, §2, eff. Jan. 1, 1978; Acts 1979, No. 229, §1, eff. July 13, 1979; Acts 1980, No. 792, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1981; Acts 1981, No. 76, §1, eff. June 26, 1981; S.C.R. No. 8 of 1981 1st Ex. Sess; Acts 1984, No. 589, §1, eff. July 12, 1984; Acts 1986, No. 669, §1; Acts 1987, No. 831, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1988; Acts 1988, No. 909, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1989, Acts 1989, No. 179, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1990; Acts 1992, No. 949, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1993; Acts 1993, No. 418, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1994; Acts 1995, No. 1114, §1; Acts 1997, No. 1420, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1998; Acts 1999, No. 254, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2000; Acts 2001, No. 451, §6, eff. Jan. 12, 2004; Acts 2006, No. 560, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2007; Acts 2010, No. 570, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2011; Acts 2010, No. 591, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2011; Acts 2012, No. 139, §2, eff. Jan. 1, 2013; Acts 2012, No. 283, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2013; Acts 2016, No. 281, §2, eff. Jan. 1, 2017; Acts 2019, No. 205, §1; Acts 2021, No. 381, §1, eff. June 17, 2021; Acts 2024, No. 640, §1, eff. See Act; Acts 2025, No. 386, §§ 1, 2, 4, and 5, eff. June 20, 2025.