§330. Responsibility for property; bond for property manager; trade-ins for higher education boards and institutions and vocational-technical schools

A. Each property manager shall be the custodian of and shall be responsible for all property of his agency until his release from responsibility is approved as provided in Subsection D of this Section; provided, however, that when any property is entrusted to any other officer or employee of the agency, the property manager shall require a written receipt for such property to be executed by the person receiving the property, and in such event the property manager shall be relieved of responsibility for the property. Upon the return of the property to the custody of the property manager, he shall return the person's receipt, or if unable to return it, shall give his receipt for the return of the property, and the other person shall be relieved of responsibility therefor except for any damage which has arisen out of his wrongful or negligent act or omission. The property manager shall retain the receipt for any property which has been lost, stolen or is otherwise unaccounted for, until an investigation has been conducted and all claims in connection therewith have been disposed of as is provided in Subsection F of this Section. The property manager may retain a receipt for any property which he believes has been damaged while entrusted to another, until an investigation has been conducted as provided for in this Part.

B.(1) No property of any agency shall be sold to any person or legal entity or otherwise be alienated or transferred, assigned, or entrusted to any other agency or to any officer or employee of any other agency without the written consent of the commissioner. However, and notwithstanding any other provision to the contrary, the Board of Regents, each public college and university management board, each public institution of higher education, and each vocational-technical school may sell or trade in used or obsolete instructional, research, or scientific property and farm equipment, except tractors, at the agricultural research stations when purchasing new replacement property. All funds received from the sale of, or allowed as a trade-in value for such obsolete items, shall be credited against the purchase price of the replacement property. No person employed by the state shall be eligible to purchase this equipment. Any sale or trade-in of movable property under the provisions of this Section shall be subject to approval, prior to the sale or trade-in, by the director of property control; provided approval by the director shall not unreasonably delay the sale or trade-in.

(2) The commissioner shall have control of surplus property and may assign such property for use as required, and may adopt regulations governing the condemnation and disposition of property of the agency which has been held by the state for more than six months and is of no use to the state or its agencies.

(3) Except as provided in Paragraph (4) of this Subsection, first preference in the acquisition of state surplus property authorized for disposition shall be given to other state agencies. Second preference shall be given to political subdivisions of the state of Louisiana, other governmental agencies, private elementary, secondary, or proprietary schools, housing authorities, or independent colleges or universities, and then preference shall be given to all charitable, educational, or religious organizations prior to its being offered to private persons, firms, or corporations.

(4) Notwithstanding the provisions of Paragraph (3) of this Subsection relative to surplus computer equipment, first preference in the acquisition of surplus computer equipment authorized for disposition shall be given to public elementary and secondary schools in the state, and community and technical colleges under the management and control of the Board of Supervisors of Louisiana Community and Technical Colleges.

(5) The commissioner may adopt and promulgate regulations to carry out the provisions of this Section.

C. Each property manager shall file with the commissioner a bond furnished by a bonding company approved by the commissioner and paid for by the agency in an amount to be determined by the Legislative Auditor payable to the State of Louisiana, which bond shall serve as a guarantee or indemnity that the property manager will faithfully perform his duties under the provisions of this Part.

D. Whenever any property manager ceases for any reason to be the property manager of an agency, the head of the agency shall immediately notify the commissioner in writing, and the commissioner shall cause an examination to be made of the property and property records under the jurisdiction of the property manager and shall approve the release of the property manager from responsibility and liability therefor or shall make a written report of any defects in the records or damage to or shortages of property. The outgoing property manager shall not be held accountable for property which he has entrusted to any other officer or employee of the agency and for which he holds the receipt of such officer or employee. The property of the agency and the receipts held by the outgoing property manager shall be transferred to the new property manager, who shall execute his written receipt for all property received by him or coming into his custody, including property for which receipts are transferred from the outgoing property manager, and the new property manager shall be the custodian of all such property and shall be responsible for all such property entrusted to others for which he has received receipts.

E. Each property manager and each person to whom property is entrusted and receipted for as provided in this Part shall be liable for the payment of damages whenever his wrongful or negligent act or omission causes any loss, theft, disappearance, damage to or destruction of property of his agency for which he is responsible as provided in this Part, and such damages shall be recoverable in a civil suit therefor prosecuted on behalf of the state by the Attorney General.

F. Whenever a property manager has knowledge or reason to believe that any property of the agency is lost, stolen or otherwise unaccounted for or is damaged or destroyed, or whenever any other person has such knowledge or reason for such belief with respect to property entrusted to him, such property manager or such person shall report his knowledge or reason to the head of the agency. The head of the agency shall immediately notify the commissioner, who shall cause an investigation to be made to determine whether the property manager or the person entrusted with the property or any other person has by his wrongful or negligent act or omission caused the loss, theft, disappearance, damage to, or destruction of such property. After the investigation, the commissioner shall either (1) release the property manager or person entrusted with the property from liability, (2) collect payment of damages from or arrange for such payment by the property manager or person entrusted with the property or (3) certify the facts to the Attorney General. If the commissioner deems that the investigation shows some other person to be liable for the damages, he shall take such steps as are necessary to recover damages therefor or otherwise satisfy the claims of the state with regard thereto.

G.(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, no property as defined in this Part which is determined to be historically significant by the commissioner of administration shall be disposed of by sale, donation, transfer, or other form of alienation in any manner, or destroyed except as provided in this Subsection.

(2) Property which is determined to be historically significant shall be treated in the same manner as any other property under this Part; however, historically significant property shall be clearly marked as such and shall be identified separately in each agency's inventory control system.

(3) In the event that an agency determines that historically significant property under its control is surplus to its needs as provided under this Part, the commissioner of administration shall be responsible for determining the appropriate disposition of such property with respect to storage, relocation, transfer, or other disposition as may be provided by rules and regulations issued pursuant to Paragraph (5) of this Subsection.

(4) In the event that a property manager reports, pursuant to Subsection F of this Section, that historically significant property has been damaged, the commissioner of administration shall determine whether such property may be restored to a useable condition; if the damaged property may not be restored, the commissioner of administration shall determine the final disposition of such property.

(5)(a) The commissioner of administration, based upon the recommendations of the state historic preservation officer and the staff of the division of historic preservation as provided by R.S. 25:911 et seq., shall issue such rules, regulations, and guidelines as are necessary and proper to carry out the provisions of this Subsection, including establishing a definition for "historically significant".

(b) Such rules, regulations, and guidelines shall include but not be limited to identifying the characteristics which shall describe or constitute historically significant property; establishing a review process or panel to decide questions of historical significance; procedures relative to the preservation, upkeep, and repair of such property; and procedures for appraising or valuing historically significant property.

(c) Annually, the commissioner of administration shall provide a list of the historically significant property within the control of each agency to the governor and to the presiding officer of each house of the legislature at least thirty days before each regular session of the legislature.

Added by Acts 1964, No. 115 §1. Amended by Acts 1974, No. 659, §1; Acts 1977, No. 376, §1; Acts 1978, No. 249, §1; Acts 1980, No. 290, §1; Acts 1983, No. 167, §1; Acts 1984, No. 132, §1; Acts 1986, No. 257, §1; Acts 1987, No. 674, §1; Acts 1989, No. 421, §1; Acts 1998, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 112, §1, eff. May 5, 1998; Acts 2005, No. 152, §2, eff. June 28, 2005.