§375. Vacancies in positions of employment; regulation of filling; executive orders contents

A.(1) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the governor shall have authority to prohibit or regulate the filling of vacancies in the executive branch of state government. In the exercise of such authority the governor may issue executive orders to provide that no vacancy in an existing position of employment shall be filled, or a new position of employment created or filled, within the executive branch of state government. The governor may alternatively issue executive orders to provide for the filling of any such new or existing vacancy only in accordance with procedures he may provide. Such authority to prohibit or regulate such employment may be exercised throughout the entirety of the executive branch or, selectively, with respect to particular agencies, programs, or categories of employment as the governor shall determine.

(2) In issuing such executive order as necessary to carry out the provisions of this Subsection, the governor shall state in such executive order a general fund dollar savings objective.

(3) The Division of Administration shall submit a report to the legislature indicating the general fund dollar savings achieved as a result of executive orders issued under this Subsection regulating the filling of vacancies.

B. Procedures established by the governor to regulate filling of such vacancies may include, but shall not necessarily be limited to procedures for:

(1) The submitting of applications by an agency head or appointing authority for approval to fill a vacancy, either new or existing.

(2) Providing justification for the approval of the filling of a vacancy.

(3) Requiring and obtaining additional information from the agency with respect to the position, the job description and duties, and any other related information.

(4) Approval or disapproval of the application.

(5) Reports by agencies of information concerning numbers of positions of employment, those filled, those not filled, and any other information relating to personnel numbers, costs, and attrition.

(6) The submission of a detailed list as provided in R.S. 42:376 by the various heads of the agencies, boards, commissions and departments of the executive branch including the submission of said detailed list by the various statewide elected officials in the executive branch.

C. All agencies, departments, boards, commissions, entities, officers and employees of the executive branch shall be subject to the provisions of this Section and to any applicable provisions of executive orders issued hereunder and shall act in accordance with such executive orders.

D. The governor may order the commissioner of administration to withhold allotments in the appropriate category of expenditures from which the salary or compensation of any employee employed in violation of any such executive order is paid in an amount equal to such compensation.

E. For the purposes of this Section, the following terms shall have the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

(1) "Executive branch" means and includes all departments, agencies, boards, commissions, and other instrumentalities declared by the constitution or laws of this state to constitute a part of the executive branch of state government and all such instrumentalities not declared by the constitution or by law to be within the legislative or judicial branches of state government, but does not mean or include political subdivisions, as defined by Article VI, Section 44(2) of the Louisiana Constitution of 1974.

(2) "Position of new employment" means any authorized position of employment for which a budget has been approved and an appropriation has been made or a transfer of funds effected pursuant to law, but which position has never been filled or occupied by the employment of any person.

(3) "Vacancy" means any authorized position of employment for which a budget has been approved and an appropriation has been made or a transfer of funds effected pursuant to law, and which position has been occupied previously but, due to termination of employment, is unoccupied.

Added by Acts 1980, No. 691, §1. Amended by Acts 1982, No. 395, §1.