The state House of Representatives will debate a bill Wednesday that, if approved, would require school districts across the state to hold a local-option election this fall and let voters decide whether to impose term limits on school board members.
The state House of Representatives will debate a bill Wednesday that, if approved, would require school districts across the state to hold a local-option election this fall and let voters decide whether to impose term limits on school board members. House Bill 292 by Stephen Pugh, a Ponchatoula Republican, sets three consecutive four-year terms as the limit of service for school board members, provided the voters in a school district elect to impose the term limit. The proposed bill also stipulates that current school board members who are halfway through a third term by election day - Nov. 6, 2012 - will not be eligible to seek reelection.
The law wouldn't affect Lafayette Parish, which already imposes a three four-year term limit on school board members. The Recovery School District in New Orleans and charter schools would be exempt. Most of the other school districts in the state, however, would have to decide the issue for themselves.
Read the bill here.