The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part of the
legislative instrument, were prepared by Dawn Romero Watson.
DIGEST
SB 396 Engrossed 2016 Regular Session Johns
Present law defines "promotional seniority" to mean the total cumulative employment in a class of
positions of the next lower class from that which a promotion is to be made less the aggregate of
suspension without pay while serving in a position of the class. Present law provides that
promotions within the Lake Charles and Lafayette police departments shall be made by promotional
seniority.
Proposed law provides that an employee who is finally discharged or resigns from his position
forfeits all accumulated seniority. Provides that an employee who is suspended and returns to his
position immediately following the suspension does not forfeit his seniority accumulated to the date
of his suspension, but does not earn credit for the lost time in future computations.
Proposed law, regarding the Lake Charles Police Department, also adds that time an employee
spends serving in the armed forces of the United States on official training, active training exercises
and active duty deployment shall count toward promotional seniority and shall be construed as
continuous employment and unbroken by a resignation or discharge.
Present law requires the civil service boards to establish and maintain employment lists containing
names of person eligible for appointment to the various classes of positions in the classified service.
Proposed law, regarding the Lake Charles Police Department, provides that an employee who is a
member of the armed forces of the US and is at an official training, active training exercise or active
duty deployment on the date a promotional test for which he is qualified and eligible takes place shall
have his name placed on the promotion employment list with promotional seniority credit back to
the original testing date provided the employee takes and attains a passing score on a promotion test
upon his return from training or active duty deployment. Provides that his name shall remain on the
promotional employment list for 48 months following his attaining a passing score.
Present law provides that admission to tests provided by the civil service board through the state
examiner shall be limited to regular employees of the class next lower that for which they are to be
examined.
Proposed law adds that, regarding the Lake Charles Police Department, any employee who served
in the armed forces of the US upon his return from training or active duty deployment shall be
allowed admission to a promotional test he would have otherwise been qualified and eligible for
when the date the examination took place was during his official training, active training exercise,
or active duty deployment.
Present law provides that, regarding the Lake Charles and Lafayette Police Department, whenever an entire class is abolished in the classified service, the regular employees of the class shall be
demoted to lower classes and priority to positions shall be governed by total promotional seniority
earned in the class in the order of highest to lowest. Provides that if two or more persons possess
an equivalent amount of promotional seniority, the names of such persons shall be placed on the
promotional list in the order of departmental seniority, from highest or lowest.
Proposed law retains present law and corrects the name of the list used when a class of positions are
abolished to the reinstatement list.
Effective August 1, 2016.
(Amends R.S. 33:2473(20)(b) and 2493(A)(1) and R.S. 33: 2491(D)(2) and 2498(C) both as
amended by Act Nos. 240 and 243 of the 2015 R.S.)
Summary of Amendments Adopted by Senate
Committee Amendments Proposed by Senate Committee on Local and Municipal Affairs to
the original bill
1. Deletes proposed law requirement that cumulative time in a class of positions for
purposes of promotional seniority be continuous.
2. Corrects reference to name of employment list used for purposes of promotion of an
employee who has been deployed.