RS 25:341

CHAPTER 5. STATE MUSEUM §341. Establishment and location; purpose; board of directors; appointment; compensation of members; terms; oaths A. The Louisiana State Museum is established as a complex of facilities under the management and supervision of the office of the state museum of the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism. B. The Louisiana State Museum shall be a historical, cultural, and educational institution whose primary purpose shall be to collect, preserve, and present, as an educational resource, objects of art, documents, artifacts, and the like that reflect the history, art, and culture of Louisiana. C. The Board of Directors of the Louisiana State Museum, hereafter in this Chapter referred to as the board, is hereby created in the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism. D. The board shall be composed of members as provided in Subsection E of this Section. Each appointed member of the board shall have a knowledge of and interest in art, history, and cultural restoration. Further, each member nominee shall have experience in at least one of the following subject areas: marketing, law, historic preservation, museum sciences, finance, accounting, business administration, fundraising for nonprofits, facility management, community or consumer advocacy, or other pertinent disciplines. E.(1) The following members of the board shall serve as ex officio members: (a) The governor, or his designee. (b) The lieutenant governor, or his designee. (c) The president of the Senate, or his designee. (d) The speaker of the House of Representatives, or his designee. (2) Beginning January 15, 2029, each of the following members of the board shall be appointed by the lieutenant governor from a list of names submitted by a nominating entity as follows: (a) One member selected from a list of three names nominated by the Friends of the Cabildo. (b) One member selected from a list of three names nominated by the Louisiana Historical Society. (c) One member selected from a list of three names nominated by the Louisiana Historical Association. (d) One member selected from a list of three names nominated by the Wedell-Williams Memorial Foundation, Inc. (e) One member selected from a list of three names nominated by the Louisiana Museum Foundation. (f) One member selected from a list of three names nominated by the Friends of the Edward Douglass White Historic Site. (g) One member selected from a list of three names nominated by the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Foundation in collaboration with Friends of the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and Northwest Louisiana History Museum. (h) One member selected from a list of three names nominated by the Louisiana Civil Rights Museum Advisory Board in collaboration with the Friends of the Louisiana Civil Rights Museum. (i) One member selected from a list of three names nominated by the Friends of Capitol Park Museum. (j) One member selected from a list of three names nominated by the Vieux Carre Commission. (3) Seven members shall be appointed by the lieutenant governor from the state at large in such manner as to provide that membership on the board will reflect the ethnic and cultural diversity of the population of the state and encourage statewide representation on the board. (4)(a) Notwithstanding the provisions of Paragraph (2) of this Subsection, should any entity fail to make all or any of the nominations required in Paragraph (2) of this Subsection within thirty days of its receipt of a request for nominations from the appointing authority, the lieutenant governor may make an appointment for that nominating entity's seat on the board from the state at large. (b) A nominee whose name is submitted by more than one entity concurrently shall automatically be disqualified from consideration so long as the nominee remains on multiple lists. The lieutenant governor shall notify the offending nominating entities of the duplicate nominees in writing and each such nominating entity shall have fifteen days from receipt of such notice to resubmit a list of names for consideration. Should an entity fail to submit an un-duplicated list of four names timely, the lieutenant governor may make the appointment for that nominating entity's seat on the board from the state at large. F.(1) Each appointment by the lieutenant governor shall be submitted to the Senate for confirmation. (2)(a) For members appointed pursuant to Paragraph (E)(2) or (3) of this Section, the term of office shall be four years after initial terms as provided in Subparagraph (b) of this Paragraph. (b) Four members shall serve an initial term of one year; four members shall serve an initial term of two years; four members shall serve an initial term of three years; four members shall serve an initial term of four years, as determined by lot at the first meeting of the board held in calendar year 2029. G.(1)(a) When a vacancy on the board occurs among the members appointed pursuant to the provisions of Paragraph (E)(2) of this Section, the entity that nominated the member shall submit to the lieutenant governor a list of three nominees to fill the vacancy. The lieutenant governor shall fill the vacancy by appointment from among the nominees and the appointment shall be for the remainder of the term. (b) In the event there is more than one position vacant on the board concurrently, a nominee whose name is submitted by more than one entity shall automatically be disqualified from consideration so long as the nominee remains on multiple lists. The lieutenant governor shall notify the offending nominating entities of the duplicate nominees in writing and each such nominating entity shall have fifteen days from receipt of such notice to resubmit a list of names for consideration. Should an entity fail to submit an un-duplicated list of three names timely, the lieutenant governor may make the appointment for that nominating entity's seat on the board from the state at large. (c) Should a vacancy occur before January 15, 2029, in one of the two positions on the board that represent the Friends of the Cabildo, the Louisiana Museum Foundation, or the Friends of the Capitol Park Museum, the lieutenant governor shall not appoint a member to fill that vacancy provided that the other position that represents the Friends of the Cabildo, the Louisiana Museum Foundation, or the Friends of the Capitol Park is occupied. (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of Paragraph (1) of this Subsection, should any entity fail to make any or all nominations required by Paragraph (1) of this Subsection within thirty days after the vacancy occurs, the lieutenant governor may make an appointment for that nominating entity's seat on the board from the state at large. (3) When a vacancy occurs among the at-large members appointed pursuant to the provisions of Paragraph (E)(3) of this Section, then the lieutenant governor shall appoint a person to fill the vacancy within thirty days of the vacancy. The member appointed to fill a vacancy shall serve the remainder of the unexpired term. H. The members of the board shall serve without compensation, but they shall receive their actual expenses incurred in attending any meeting of the board. I. Each member of the board shall take and subscribe to the oath of office required of state officials. Acts 1983, No. 687, §4; Acts 1987, No. 416, §1; Acts 1990, No. 726, §1; Acts 1991, No. 9, §§1 and 3, eff. June 6, 1991; Acts 1997, No. 318, §1, eff. June 18, 1997; Acts 2003, No. 1205, §1, eff. July 3, 2003; Acts 2007, No. 53, §1, eff. June 30, 2007; Acts 2008, No. 908, §1; Acts 2014, No. 832, §6; Acts 2015, No. 263, §1, eff. Jan. 12, 2016; Acts 2020, No. 257, §1; Acts 2025, No. 450, §1.