Rep. Mandie Landry, District 91, New Orleans
A New Orleans lawmaker’s proposed legislation would impose term limits on Louisiana sheriffs and tax assessors. New Orleans Democrat Representative Mandie Landry says the Governor, state legislators and many local public officials are subject to term limits, but sheriffs seem to be immune and often get entrenched; particularly in the state’s rural parishes.
“It seems that people tend to stay in them for decades, if not even longer … and in a lot of areas of the state, that leads to a lot of control being centralized in one person for a really long time.”
It’s not unusual for parish sheriffs to be in office for thirty years or more if voters keep re-electing them. Landry’s bill is a proposed Constitutional amendment and would need two-thirds majority votes in both House & Senate in order to go to voters this fall. Landry says it would limit sheriffs to three four-year terms in office.
“You have a lot of power over money, over law enforcement, over all politics … centered in one person. And to know there is no end in sight really, really puts a lot of power in those two hands,” says Landry.
Landry’s other bill (also a proposed Constitutional Amendment) would impose limits of three four-year terms on persons serving as tax assessors. She says this is another local office that would benefit from restricting how long one can be in office. Landry says she’d like to eventually see term limits imposed on ALL elected officials, at all levels of government. Her bills will be among the roughly 1000 discussed when the regular legislative session starts next week.
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