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Louisiana State Senate

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Louisiana State Senate

Seal of Louisiana.png
General Information
Type:   Upper house
Term limits:   3 terms (12 years)
2012 session start:   March 12, 2012
Website:   Official Senate Page
Leadership
Senate President:   John Alario, (R)
Structure
Members:  39
   Democratic Party (15)
Republican Party (24)
Length of term:   4 years
Authority:   Art III, Section 3, Louisiana Constitution
Salary:   $15,362/year
Elections
Last Election:  November 7, 2007 (39 seats)
Next election:  November 19, 2011 (39 seats)
Redistricting:  Louisiana legislature has control

Contents

The Louisiana State Senate is the upper house of the Louisiana State Legislature. 39 members serve as state senators and are elected to four-year terms in the State Senate. The senate meets at the State Capitol in Baton Rouge. Each member represents an average of 116,240 residents, as of the 2010 Census.[1] After the 2000 Census, each member represented 114,589 residents.[2]

Sessions

Article III of the Louisiana Constitution establishes when the Louisiana State Legislature, of which the Senate is a part, is to be in session. Section 2 of Article III states that, in even-numbered years, the Legislature shall convene on the last Monday in March and meet for no more than sixty legislative days during a period of eighty-five calendar days. In odd-numbered years, the Legislature is to convene on the last Monday in April and meet for no more than forty-five legislative days during a period of sixty calendar days. During regular sessions in odd-numbered years, the Legislature can only consider measures regarding the state budget, revenues, and appropriations.

Section 2 of Article III also allows the Legislature to be called into a special session by the Governor of Louisiana or by a majority of the members of each legislative house. During special sessions, the Legislature can only legislate on matters related to the proclaimed purposes of the session.

Section 2 of Article III also authorizes the Governor of Louisiana to call an emergency session without prior notice in the event of a public emergency.

2012

See also: Dates of 2012 state legislative sessions

In 2012, the Senate will be in session from March 12 through June 4.

2011

See also: Dates of 2011 state legislative sessions

In 2011, the Senate was in regular session from April 25 through June 23. The Legislature was in a special session regarding the census and redistricting from March 20-April 15. [3]

2010

See also: Dates of 2010 state legislative sessions

In 2010, the Senate was in session from March 29th to June 21st. [4]

Elections

Louisiana is one of only four states that hold state elections in odd-numbered years. Clerk of the Louisiana House Alfred "Butch Speer explains why:

For scores of years we conducted our party primaries in the winter of the odd numbered years, with any necessary 2d primary held in January. Because Republican voter registration was so miniscule from 1877 until 1980, the general elections were mere irritants to the Democrat primary victor. Once we scrapped the partisan primary system [1975] we set the entire system up to run in the fall of the odd numbered year, our traditional election season.[5]

2011

See also: Louisiana State Senate elections, 2011

Primary elections for the office of Louisiana's state senators were held in Louisiana on October 22, 2011, with necessary runoffs on November 19, 2011.

2007

As of the 2000 Census, each of Louisiana's 39 state senators represents an average population of 1114,589 people. In 2007, the candidates for state senate raised a total of $18,266,324 in campaign contributions.

Year Number of candidates Total contributions
2007 90 $18,266,324
2003 95 $13,648,458

The top 10 donors were:[6]

Donor Amount
Leach Jr., Claude (Buddy) $293,669
Senate Democratic Campaign Cmte of Louisiana $249,598
Leach, Claude Buddy $237,000
Louisiana Republican Party $230,380
Quinn, Patrick & Julie $230,000
Peacock, Barrow $229,782
Jack Donahue $205,000
John A. Alario, Jr. $200,000
Louisiana Republican Legislative Delegation Campaign Cmte $185,000
Louisiana Association of Business & Industry $174,344

Qualifications

In order to run for office, the following qualifications are in place:

  • Must be 18 years of age or older[7].
  • Must be a resident of the district they seek to hold office to for a minimum of two years[7].
  • Must not have served more than two and one half terms previously in office. This is for any candidate who has held office in the past after January 8, 1996[8].
  • Have not been convicted of a felony offense[8].
  • Have no outstanding fines with the Louisiana Ethics Administration Program[8].
  • Pay a $225 filing fee with the Clerk of Court in the parish they reside in or collect 400 signatures[9].
  • If running as a Republican or Democrat, pay an additional $112.50 filing fee with the state and/or parish executive committee of their party[9].

Vacancies

See also: How vacancies are filled in state legislatures
How Vacancies are filled in State Legislatures
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If there is a vacancy in the Senate, the vacant seat must be filled by a special election. An election is required if there is six months or more left in the unexpired term. The Senate President must call for an election no later than 10 days after the vacancy happened. The Senate President must determine the dates for the election along with all filing deadlines. The person elected to the seat serves for the remainder of the unexpired term[10].

Term limits

See also: State legislatures with term limits

The Louisiana legislature is one of 15 state legislatures with term limits. Of the 15 states, it is the only state where term limits were imposed by the state's legislators, rather than through the ballot initiative process. Under Louisiana's term limits, state senators can serve no more than three 4-year terms in the senate.[11]

The state's term limits law was enacted in 1995. The first year that the term limits enacted in 1995 impacted the ability of incumbents to run for office was in 2007.[12]

Senators

Partisan composition

See also: Partisan composition of state senates
Party As of May 2012
     Democratic Party 15
     Republican Party 24
Total 39


Leadership

The President and President Pro Tempore of the Senate are elected by the full body, needing at least 20 votes for confirmation. The President is the presiding officer of the body, whose duties include preserving order, calling votes, appointing/removing members of each Senate and conference committee, and approving all expenditures of the Senate. In the absence of the President, the President Pro Tempore assumes all duties of the position.[13]

Current leadership

Office Representative Party
President of the Senate John Alario Ends.png Republican
President Pro Tempore Sharon Weston Broome Electiondot.png Democratic
Senate Republican Chairman Daniel Martiny Ends.png Republican

Salaries

See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries

As of 2011, members of the Louisiana legislature are paid $16,800/year. Additionally, legislators receive $6,000/year for expenses and $152/day per diem tied to the federal rate.[14]

The $16,800/year that Louisiana legislators are paid as of 2011 is the same as they were paid during legislative sessions in 2007. Per diem has increased from $138/day in 2007 to $152/day in 2011.[15]

When sworn in

See also: When state legislators assume office after a general election

Louisiana legislators assume office at noon on the second Monday in January after their election.

List of Current Members

District Representative Party
1 A.G. Crowe Ends.png Republican
2 Troy Brown Electiondot.png Democratic
3 Jean-Paul J. Morrell Electiondot.png Democratic
4 Edwin Murray Electiondot.png Democratic
5 Karen Peterson Electiondot.png Democratic
6 Mack White Jr. Ends.png Republican
7 David Heitmeier Electiondot.png Democratic
8 John Alario Ends.png Republican
9 Conrad Appel Ends.png Republican
10 Daniel Martiny Ends.png Republican
11 Jack Donahue Ends.png Republican
12 Ben Nevers Electiondot.png Democratic
13 Dale M. Erdey Ends.png Republican
14 Yvonne Dorsey Electiondot.png Democratic
15 Sharon Weston Broome Electiondot.png Democratic
16 Dan Claitor Ends.png Republican
17 Rick Ward III Electiondot.png Democratic
18 Jody Amedee Ends.png Republican
19 Gary Smith, Jr. Electiondot.png Democratic
20 Norby Chabert Ends.png Republican
21 R.L. Allain II Ends.png Republican
22 Fred Mills, Jr. Ends.png Republican
23 Patrick Cortez Ends.png Republican
24 Elbert Guillory Electiondot.png Democratic
25 Dan Morrish Ends.png Republican
26 Jonathan Perry Ends.png Republican
27 Ronnie Johns Ends.png Republican
28 Eric LaFleur Electiondot.png Democratic
29 Richard Gallot, Jr. Ends.png Republican
30 John R. Smith Ends.png Republican
31 Gerald Long Ends.png Republican
32 Neil Riser Ends.png Republican
33 Mike Walsworth Ends.png Republican
34 Francis C. Thompson Electiondot.png Democratic
35 Robert Kostelka Ends.png Republican
36 Robert Adley Ends.png Republican
37 Barrow Peacock Ends.png Republican
38 Sherri Smith Cheek Ends.png Republican
39 Gregory Tarver Electiondot.png Democratic

Standing Senate Committees

There are a total of seventeen standing committees in the Louisiana Senate. These committees are comprised of seven members with the exception of two committees: Finance Committee and Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Committee, have eleven each. It is under the discretion of the Senate President to appoint and remove members of a committee.

External links

References

  1. ↑ Population in 2010 of the American states
  2. ↑ Population in 2000 of the American states
  3. ↑ StateNet, Daily Session Summary, 4 March 2011
  4. ↑ 2010 session dates for Louisiana Legislature
  5. ↑ The Thicket, "Why do Four States Have Odd-Year Elections?," August 25, 2011
  6. ↑ Follow the Money: "Louisiana Senate 2007 Campaign Contributions"
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Louisiana Secretary of State "Candidate Qualifications"
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Louisiana Secretary of State "Candidate Qualification Form"
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Louisiana Secretary of State "Filing Fees"
  10. ↑ Louisiana Legislature "Louisiana Election Code"(Referenced Statute 18:601, Louisiana Statutes)
  11. ↑ Louisiana term constraints
  12. ↑ State legislative term limits
  13. ↑ Senate Rules of Order - Chapter 3: Officers
  14. ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "2011 Legislator Compensation Data"
  15. ↑ Empire Center, "Legislative Salaries Per State as of 2007"
v • d • e
Reddot.png Current members of the Louisiana State Senate
Senate President: John Alario (R)
Democratic (15) • Republican (24) • Louisiana State Senate • Louisiana House of Representatives
v • d • e
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