Avoyelles Parish 'Justice Center’ bill passes House

Wheels have been set in motion for the creation of 12th Judicial Justice Center District.

House Bill 806, authored and filed by State Rep. Robert Johnson, has passed the House and will now be heard in the Senate. Johnson said it has been referred to a committee and will go to the Senate floor soon.

The bill allows any parish “having a population of not less than 41,500 people and not more than 45,000 people” in the last U.S. Census to create a parish justice center district.

Avoyelles is the only parish meeting the population requirement, but because of the wording the bill did not have to follow the procedures for a “local bill.”

The purpose of the district would be to “locate, build, operate and maintain courtroom facilities for the judicial district.” Johnson said the judges, parish bar association and Avoyelles Police Jury all passed resolutions requesting he file the bill to allow the justice center district to be created.

“Even if the Legislature adopts the bill, the district will not be in place without a vote of the people,” Johnson said.

NOT A COURTHOUSE

The courtroom facilities would include judges’ offices, support staff offices, public restrooms “and other facilities deemed appropriate for administration of justice by the governing authority of the district.”

The description is careful to avoid anything that might be construed as a “courthouse,” which also houses such agencies as the Police Jury, Assessor, Registrar of Voters and Clerk of Court.

The building authorized by the bill is not a courthouse, but rather “courtroom facilities.”

The proposed bill also notes that the governing authority of the justice center district would be a “board of commissioners consisting of the elected judges of the judicial district.”

That board would be able to seek voter approval of a property tax or sales tax to pay for the court system’s operations under this law. The bill notes that any sales tax approved for the district would not count against the local sales tax limit allowed within the parish.

If sufficient taxes are approved by the voters to fund the court system’s operation, the Police Jury would no longer be involved in the operations or funding of the courts if this becomes law.

If voters do not approve sufficient taxes to fund the district’s operations, the district is in effect not created and “the parish governing authority may, as it deems appropriate, exercise its own authority, as otherwise provided by law, to provide for the acquisition, construction, renovation, operation or maintenance of the parish courthouse.”

“This bill actually would just give legislative permission for the voters to approve the creation of this district,” Johnson said.

There is certainly a need to provide adequate space for the courts’ operations,” he continued. “Both of the judges, the bar association and the Police Jury have been working to address this issue.”