RS 34:843

§843. Objects; removal; disposition A.(1) The owner of any tug, towboat, barge, watercraft, ship, vessel, equipment, machinery, or any object of any kind or description, whether foreign or domestic, which has been left unattended, stored, junked, or abandoned in any canal, coulee, drainage ditch, outfall canal, bayou, bay, lake, or any other waterway, whether navigable or not, or on the banks thereof within the state of Louisiana, or the owner of any such object moored or tied off in a drainage ditch or canal, or in an outfall canal shall remove the object from the waterway or bank within thirty days after receipt of a written notice by certified mail from the federal, state, or local governing authority having jurisdiction thereof, hereinafter referred to as "authority", to remove the object. Concurrently with the giving of any notice to an owner, the authority shall provide written notice by certified mail to each holder of a properly filed and perfected ship mortgage filed pursuant to 46 U.S.C. 31301 et seq., as reflected in an Abstract of Title obtained from the National Vessel Documentation Center or security interest encumbering any such vessel or object subject to this Section. For purposes of this Section, if the owner of a vessel has not been issued a certificate of documentation by the United States Coast Guard under 46 U.S.C. 121 and has not been issued a certificate of title by the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries pursuant to R.S. 34:852.1 et seq., then the owner of the vessel shall be presumed to be the last known registrant of the vessel. This shall be a rebuttable presumption. In the event that the owner or registrant cannot be identified or located by the authority, the authority shall publish in the official journal of the parish where the object is located, a notice that the object shall be removed at any time after thirty calendar days of publication of the notice at the cost of the owner and shall be disposed of. If the object poses no immediate danger to life or property, the owner shall, within thirty days after receipt of notice by certified mail, present to the authority having jurisdiction over the matter, a plan for the removal of the object as soon as possible, considering factors of safety, cost, and efficiency in accomplishing the removal. The authority shall approve or reject the plan within thirty days from the date of submission by the owner. (2) In the event the moored, tied off, unattended, stored, junked, or abandoned object poses immediate danger to life or property, it shall be removed by the owner immediately upon receipt of written or oral notice to remove. Any object within one hundred feet of a drainage pump discharge station is presumed to be an immediate danger to life or property. B.(1) In the event that a plan for removal of the object is not presented to the authority, or a plan is not approved by the authority, within the periods provided for in Paragraph A(1), then the authority may have the object removed at the owner's cost and junk, discard, or otherwise dispose of the object or sell, exchange, or otherwise transfer ownership of the object to any person, corporation, or entity whatsoever for any price or consideration which the authority may deem advisable, or for no consideration, and apply the proceeds received, if any, to the cost of removing the object, and the balance, if any, shall become the property of the authority. (2) In the event the object poses immediate danger to life or property and is not removed upon written or oral notice to remove as provided in Paragraph (A)(2) of this Section, or the owner cannot be identified or located, the authority may cause the removal of the object at the owner's cost, risk, and expense, and may discard or otherwise dispose of the object, or sell, exchange, or otherwise transfer ownership of the object to any person, corporation, or entity whatsoever for any price or consideration which the authority may deem advisable, or for no consideration, and apply the proceeds received, if any, to the cost of removing the object, and the balance, if any, shall become the property of the authority. C. The authority shall not be liable or responsible to the owner or other claimant of the object for any damage to or destruction of the object in connection with the removal, storage, sale, or other disposition of the object. D. Whoever violates the provisions of this Section shall be fined five hundred dollars or imprisoned for not more than six months, or both. E. In the event the object is not removed by the owner within the periods provided for in this Section, any third party may remove the object at their own expense and junk, discard, or otherwise dispose of the object or sell, exchange, or otherwise transfer ownership of the object to any person, corporation, or entity for any price or consideration. F. The Department of Wildlife and Fisheries shall promulgate and adopt rules and regulations to provide a clear process for the following: (1) Parties to obtain information regarding the registration or ownership of any vessel which has been deemed abandoned and is subject to the requirements for certificates of documentation by the United States Coast Guard under 46 U.S.C. 121, subject to titling pursuant to the Vessel and Motor Titling Act, R.S. 34:852.1 et seq., or is subject to registration through the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. (2) Parties to obtain information regarding the identity of all holders of security interests or preferred ship mortgages encumbering any vessel which has been deemed abandoned and has been issued a certificate of documentation by the United States Coast Guard under 46 U.S.C. 121 or issued a title by the Department Wildlife and Fisheries pursuant to the Vessel and Motor Titling Act, R.S. 34:852.1 et seq. (3) Parties to obtain a salvage title and for selling any abandoned vessel that has been recovered. (4) Notifying new registrants that they will be deemed as the owner and be held responsible if the vessel is deemed abandoned. G. Nothing in this Section shall be construed to authorize entry onto private property without consent of the property owner. Acts 1985, No. 805, §1; Acts 1988, No. 527, §1, eff. July 8, 1988; Acts 1988, No. 758, §1, eff. July 15, 1988; Acts 1991, No. 309, §§1 and 3; Acts 2025, No. 216, §1.