§2311. Boards; creation, organization, powers, duties

A.(1) There are hereby created the following professional services selection boards:

(a) The Louisiana Architects Selection Board. The board shall be composed of eight members. Five shall be regular members, one elected from each of five districts set forth in Items (i) through (v) of this Subparagraph. Each member shall be elected in an election conducted by the Louisiana State Board of Architectural Examiners, under such rules and regulations to be promulgated by the Louisiana State Board of Architectural Examiners, in which election all properly licensed architects residing in Louisiana are eligible to vote for the same number of candidates as there are positions to be filled. The five elected architects shall be residents in the state of Louisiana and of the district from which they seek election, and no two architects shall be elected from the same architectural firm, agency, or partnership. In addition to the five regular members, whenever a particular project is under consideration, the head of the particular user agency or his representative shall participate as a sixth member; the participation of such member shall be restricted to matters directly affecting the project of his agency and he shall be entitled to vote on all matters affecting the project of his agency. In addition to the elected members and user agency representative, the assistant director of facility planning and control shall participate as the seventh member of the board. The districts shall be composed as follows:

(i) District 1: Orleans, Plaquemines, and St. Bernard.

(ii) District 2: Assumption, Jefferson, Lafourche, St. Charles, St. James, St. John the Baptist, St. Tammany, Terrebonne, and Washington.

(iii) District 3: Ascension, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberville, Livingston, St. Helena, St. Martin, Tangipahoa, West Baton Rouge, and West Feliciana.

(iv) District 4: Acadia, Allen, Avoyelles, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, Evangeline, Grant, Iberia, Jefferson Davis, Lafayette, Natchitoches, Pointe Coupee, Rapides, Sabine, St. Landry, St. Mary, Vermilion, and Vernon.

(v) District 5: Bienville, Bossier, Caddo, Caldwell, Catahoula, Claiborne, Concordia, DeSoto, East Carroll, Franklin, Jackson, LaSalle, Lincoln, Madison, Morehouse, Ouachita, Red River, Richland, Tensas, Union, Webster, West Carroll, and Winn.

(b) The Louisiana Engineers Selection Board. It shall be composed of six members. Two members shall be named in an election conducted by the Consulting Engineers Council of Louisiana, Inc., at which all properly licensed engineers, who are principals of firms with offices in Louisiana, may vote for the same number of candidates as there are positions to be filled, two members shall be named in an election conducted by the Louisiana Engineering Society at which all properly licensed engineers residing in the state of Louisiana may vote for the same number of candidates as there are positions to be filled. In addition to the four regular members, whenever a particular project is under consideration, the head of the particular user agency or his representative shall participate as a fifth member; the participation of such member shall be restricted to matters directly affecting the project of his agency and he shall be entitled to vote on all matters affecting the project of his agency. All members shall reside in the state of Louisiana and no two engineers shall be appointed or elected from the same engineering firm, agency, or partnership.

(c) The Louisiana Landscape Architects Selection Board. It shall be composed of six members. Four members shall be named in an election conducted under the auspices of the Louisiana Society of Landscape Architects at which all properly licensed landscape architects residing in Louisiana may vote. In addition to the four regular members, whenever a particular project is under consideration, the head of the particular user agency or his representative shall participate as a fifth member; the participation of such member shall be restricted to matters directly affecting the project of his agency and he shall be entitled to vote on all matters affecting the project of his agency.

(2) The director of Facility Planning and Control, or his designee, shall be the eighth member of the board established by Subparagraph (a) of Paragraph (1) and the sixth member of the boards established in Subparagraphs (b) and (c) of Paragraph (1) and shall have the same voting rights and powers as the other members of the respective boards. All elected members of the boards shall be elected for a term of one year.

(3) No person involved in the sale or promotion of materials, equipment, or supplies related to construction, landscaping, or horticulture activities, shall be eligible to serve on any of the aforementioned selection boards.

B. Members of the boards may be removed for just and reasonable cause during their terms at the discretion of the respective appointing authority, in which event the appointing authority shall appoint a new member to fill the unexpired term of the removed member. All other vacancies shall be filled by the appointing authority for the unexpired term. No person may serve more than two consecutive one-year terms, or any part thereof. After a member's term has expired, that member shall not be eligible to serve on the board for a period of at least two years.

C. No member or firm of which a member is an associate, employee, stockholder, or partner shall be eligible to receive agency contracts during the term of his service on such board and for a period of six months thereafter. No member shall perform services as a consultant to any firm which has received a state agency contract from the board on which that member serves during the year of the board member's service and for one year thereafter.

D. A majority of the members on each of the boards shall constitute a quorum, and a majority vote shall be required in all votes for the selection of persons for professional services. The director of facility planning and control of the division of administration shall not hold the position of, or act as, a chairman of the boards.

E. The board shall have the power and authority, after public notice and a hearing thereon, to adopt and amend such rules and regulations as may be necessary for the performance of their duties as enumerated in this Part. Copies of the rules and regulations shall be furnished to any person by the boards upon written request, for which a nominal fee to defray printing costs may be charged.

F. The domicile of each of the boards shall be Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

G. The Division of Administration shall provide each of the boards with the facilities, office space, staff, and funding necessary to the performance of its duties.

H. Board members shall serve without compensation, except that they shall be reimbursed according to the state schedule for per mile travel reimbursement to and from meetings of the board.

I. Each board shall establish, and make its selection based upon, a formal, written qualifications-based selection procedure.

Added by Acts 1975, No. 721, §1. Amended by Acts 1976, No. 525, §1; Acts 1979, No. 164, §1; Acts 1982, No. 696, §1, eff. Aug. 2, 1982; Acts 1988, No. 966, §1, eff. July 27, 1988; Acts 1999, No. 921, §1, eff. July 7, 1999.