2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 13 - Courts and Judicial Procedure › §13:5726. St. Tammany Parish; coroner; powers and duties; funding of coroner and operational expenses

RS 13:5726 - St. Tammany Parish; coroner; powers and duties; funding of coroner and operational expenses
A. The governing authority of St. Tammany Parish shall levy and the sheriff of St. Tammany Parish, as tax collector, shall receive all tax revenues collected from ad valorem tax for coroner purposes each year as first approved by a majority of the electors of the parish at an election held for that purpose on November 2, 2004, including any extensions or renewals of the ad valorem tax.
B.(1) All tax proceeds collected under Subsection A of this Section shall be deposited by the sheriff, as tax collector, directly into a special account with the governing authority of St. Tammany Parish to be advanced to the coroner by January thirty-first of the year following the collection of such tax proceeds, after requiring sufficient tax revenues to be paid first to St. Tammany Parish.
(2) The governing authority of St. Tammany Parish shall make all payments with respect to any present or future bonds or debt obligations issued and secured by St. Tammany Parish. These payments shall include but are not limited to all of the following:
(a) Principal.
(b) Interest.
(c) Redemption premiums.
(d) Expenses.
(e) Other administrative costs.
(3) The governing authority of St. Tammany Parish and the coroner shall enter into a cooperative endeavor agreement setting forth permitted use of facilities financed with St. Tammany Parish bonds or other debt obligations, to ensure continued tax-exempt status of any such bonds or other debt obligations.
(4) The coroner shall be responsible for all salaries and operational expenses of the St. Tammany Parish coroner's office, thereby relieving the governing authority of St. Tammany Parish of any funding responsibility under R.S. 13:5706.
(5) The coroner shall receive a salary set by the governing authority of St. Tammany Parish for his full-time services as parish coroner, ex officio parish physician, or health officer. The salary shall be the average of the salaries of the St. Tammany Parish sheriff, assessor, and clerk.
(6) The coroner shall establish an annual salary for all deputy or assistant coroners, secretaries, stenographers, clerks, technicians, investigators, official photographers, or other helpers.
C.(1) The St. Tammany Parish coroner's office may acquire and own any immovable property upon which the daily operations of the coroner's office are conducted.
(2) All immovable property previously transferred to the governing authority of St. Tammany Parish by the St. Tammany Parish coroner's office including but not limited to buildings, component parts, and other appurtenances, shall be transferred to the St. Tammany Parish coroner's office free and clear of all mortgages, liens, or other encumbrances no later than October 1, 2021.
D. The St. Tammany Parish coroner's office shall comply with the provisions set forth in the Louisiana Bid Laws, R.S. 38:2211 et seq., the Louisiana Procurement Code, R.S. 39:1551 et seq., and the Louisiana Local Government Budget Act, R.S. 39:1301 et seq. The office shall also be subject to all audit laws including but not limited to any audit called for and conducted by the governing authority of St. Tammany Parish.
E. The coroner of St. Tammany Parish shall prepare and present to the governing authority of the parish an annual report showing the operations of his office, the monies received by the office, and the purposes for which the monies were expended. The coroner shall include in each annual report an estimate of prospective revenues and proposed expenditures and expenses for the ensuing year. The date upon which the annual report shall be presented may be determined by the governing authority of the parish.
Acts 2021, No. 151, §1.