§ 46:1064.1 — Hospital Service District No. 1 of Terrebonne Parish; sale or lease

Louisiana § 46:1064.1

• Jurisdiction: Louisiana
• Title 46: Public Welfare and Assistance

Text

§1064.1. Hospital Service District No. 1 of Terrebonne Parish; sale or lease
of hospital
A.(1) Sale of hospital. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the
contrary, the sale of Terrebonne General Medical Center, hereinafter the
"hospital", by Hospital Service District No. 1 of Terrebonne Parish, hereinafter
the "district", shall be in accordance with the provisions of this Subsection.
The provisions of this Subsection shall apply to the sale of the hospital
pursuant to authority granted by R.S. 33:4341 and R.S. 46:1053(M) and any
other authority granted by law.
(2) In order to be eligible for consideration by the board of
commissioners of the district, hereinafter the "district governing authority", an
offer for the purchase of the hospital shall meet all of the following
requirements:
(a) The offer shall be in writing and shall be signed by the person or
entity making the offer.
(b) The offer shall contain a complete and detailed statement of all
terms and provisions of the sale and shall identify the offeror by giving the full
name, address, and type of business entity of the offeror.
(c) The offer shall be accompanied by a certified check for one
hundred thousand dollars, as a guaranty of good faith, which check shall be
forfeited to the district if the proposed sale is approved but the proponent does
not consummate the sale.
(3) When an offer is submitted to the district governing authority in
accordance with Paragraph (2) of this Subsection, the affirmative vote of not
less than two-thirds of the full membership of the district governing authority
shall be required for the district governing authority to accept the offer, which
acceptance shall be conditioned upon the approval of the parish governing
authority and the voters of the district as provided for in this Subsection. If the
district governing authority so votes to accept the offer, it shall recommend the
sale of the hospital to the governing authority of the parish for approval. The
district governing authority may convene in executive session to consider an
offer if the district governing authority determines that such consideration is
part of its strategic marketing plan and therefore an executive session is
authorized by R.S. 46:1073.
(4) When an offer is submitted to the parish governing authority in
accordance with Paragraph (3) of this Subsection, the following shall apply:
(a) Notwithstanding the provisions of R.S. 42:11 et seq. or any other
law to the contrary, the parish governing authority may convene in executive
session for the sole purpose of considering the approval of the acceptance of
the offer.
(b) The parish governing authority shall not vote to place a proposition
on the ballot until the parish governing authority holds a public hearing on the
question. If an executive session is held pursuant to Subparagraph (a) of this
Paragraph, the public hearing shall be held no sooner than two weeks after the
first such executive session on the question.
(c) The question of acceptance of the offer shall not be submitted to the
district voters pursuant to Subparagraph (d) of this Paragraph unless
submission is approved by vote of not less than two-thirds of the full
membership of the parish governing authority.
(d) If the parish governing authority votes in the affirmative to approve
the acceptance of the offer by not less than two-thirds of its full membership,
the parish governing authority shall submit a proposition to approve the sale
of the hospital to the voters of the district in an election held for that purpose.
(5) The district shall sell the hospital in accordance with the offer only
if the proposed sale is approved by a majority of the qualified electors of the
district voting on the proposition at an election held for that purpose and
conducted in accordance with the Louisiana Election Code and at which
election voter turnout in the district is not less than fifty percent of the
registered voters.
B.(1) Lease of hospital. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the
contrary, no lease of the controlling interest of the hospital by the district shall
be authorized unless all of the provisions of this Subsection have been
complied with.
(2) In order to be eligible for consideration by the district governing
authority, an offer for the lease of the controlling interest of the hospital shall
meet all of the following requirements:
(a) The offer shall be in writing and shall be signed by the person or
entity making the offer.
(b) The offer shall contain a complete and detailed statement of all
terms and provisions of the lease and shall identify the offeror by giving the
full name, address, and type of business entity of the offeror.
(c) The offer shall be accompanied by a certified check for one
hundred thousand dollars as a guaranty of good faith, which check shall be
forfeited to the district if the proposed lease is approved but the proponent
does not consummate the lease.
(3) When an offer is submitted to the district governing authority in
accordance with Paragraph (2) of this Subsection, the affirmative vote of not
less than two-thirds of the full membership of the district governing authority
shall be required for the district governing authority to accept the offer, which
acceptance shall be conditioned upon the approval of the governing authority
of the parish as provided for in this Subsection. If the district governing
authority so votes to recommend acceptance of the offer, it shall recommend
the lease to the governing authority of the parish for approval. The district
governing authority may convene in executive session to consider the offer if
the district governing authority determines that such consideration is part of its
strategic marketing plan and therefore an executive session is authorized by
R.S. 46:1073.
(4) When an offer is submitted to the parish governing authority for
approval in accordance with Paragraph (3) of this Subsection, the following
procedures shall be followed:
(a) Notwithstanding the provisions of R.S. 42:11 et seq. or any other
law to the contrary, the parish governing authority may convene in executive
session for the sole purpose of considering the approval of the offer.
(b) The parish governing authority shall not vote to approve a
proposition for the lease of the controlling interest of the hospital until it holds
a public hearing on the question. If an executive session is held pursuant to
Subparagraph (a) of this Paragraph, the public hearing shall be held no sooner
than two weeks after the first such executive session on the matter.
(c) The acceptance by the district of the offer to lease the hospital shall
not be approved by the parish governing authority unless the approval is
concurred in by a majority of the full membership of the parish governing
authority.
(5) The provisions of this Subsection shall not apply to the lease of
property by the district which constitutes less than the controlling interest of
the hospital, and shall not apply to the lease of incidental property for the
provision of incidental, integral, or supplemental functions such as treatment
modalities, food services, or concession areas, nor shall it preclude the lease
of medical office buildings and facilities associated with such buildings
pursuant to and in accordance with R.S. 46:1074.
C.(1) Proceeds. All proceeds from a sale or lease of Terrebonne
General Medical Center shall be placed in a permanent endowment trust. The
proceeds of the sale or lease shall constitute the principal of such trust and
shall remain permanently endowed, in perpetuity, and shall not be removed
from trust for any purpose except by a two-thirds vote of the district governing
authority and a two-thirds vote of the parish governing authority to purchase
Terrebonne General Medical Center or to build a hospital or medical center
consistent with the objects and purposes of the hospital service district as set
forth in R.S. 46:1051 et seq.
(2) The endowed sale or lease proceeds described in Paragraph (1) of
this Subsection shall constitute the principal of the trust, and the sole principal
beneficiary of such trust shall be Hospital Service District No. 1 of Terrebonne
Parish. All income which accrues on such principal during the first four years
following the sale or lease of Terrebonne General Medical Center shall be
added to the principal, or corpus, of the trust and shall be endowed and
disposed of only in accordance with the provisions of Paragraph (1) of this
Subsection.
(3) Beginning with the fifth year of the existence of the trust and every
year thereafter twenty-five percent of all income earned by the endowed
principal shall be added to the endowed principal of the trust.
(4)(a) Beginning with the fifth year of the existence of the trust, and
every year thereafter, the district governing authority acting as a board of
trustees for the endowment trust may expend available funds for projects and
undertakings within the hospital service district which are consistent with the
objects and purposes of the district as set forth in R.S. 46:1051 et seq.
(b) The district governing authority, with a two-thirds vote, may
expend up to five percent of available revenues for emergencies affecting the
parish governing authority, the parish school board, the Terrebonne Parish
Levee and Conservation District, or any levee district with jurisdiction
completely within the parish if such expenditure is pursuant to a cooperative
endeavor between the district governing authority and the appropriate political
subdivision.
(c) Any available funds not used for stated purposes within three years
shall be returned to the endowment fund and added to the principal of the trust.

Legislative History

Acts 1997, No. 1083, §2.