§181. Parish-wide election on horse racing meet

A. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, no horse racing meet in a parish in which no racing meet is being conducted on the effective date of this section, or in which no racing meet under a license from the Louisiana State Racing Commission has been conducted prior to such effective date, shall be allowed where pari-mutuel betting is authorized by law unless the operation and conduct of the racing meet first has been approved at an election held in accordance with the provisions of this section; however, said election shall not be required prior to conducting quarter horse racing in St. Landry, Iberville, West Baton Rouge, Pointe Coupee and St. Martin Parishes.

B. Any person desiring to operate and conduct a horse racing meet in a parish in which no racing meet is being conducted on the effective date of this section, or in which no racing meet under a license issued by the State Racing Commission has been conducted prior to such effective date, shall make application to the governing authority of the parish in which the proposed horse racing meet is to be conducted. The application shall state the location of the proposed horse racing meet and describe the facilities proposed to be constructed for the holding of the racing meet and shall have attached the license, or a certified copy thereof, for the meeting issued to the applicant by the State Racing Commission.

C. Upon receipt of the application the governing authority of the parish in which the racing meet is proposed to be held shall call and conduct a referendum election within the parish for the purpose of submitting to the qualified electors of the parish the proposition whether or not the proposed racing meeting shall be allowed.

D. The referendum election shall be held on a date fixed by the parish governing authority within a period of thirty days of receipt of the application. Notice of the election shall be published at least twice at five day intervals in the official journal of the parish or if the official journal is not published daily, then publication shall be in a daily newspaper of general circulation in the parish. The publication shall be completed at least five days prior to the date on which the election is to be held. The parish governing authority also shall have five spot announcements at least two days apart of the election broadcast on radio or television channels readily receivable in the parish and shall make notice of the election available to the news media. All qualified electors of the parish shall be entitled to vote in the election.

E. The proposition to be printed on the election ballot shall be: "Shall the business of horse racing be conducted within the parish of __________" and the voters shall vote for or against the proposition, a vote for the proposition being a "Yes" vote and a vote against the proposition being a "No" vote. The election shall be by secret ballot and conducted as nearly as possible in accordance with the general election laws of the state. Voting machines may be used and if used, the proposition to be submitted shall be shown on the machine ballot. Any elector who was qualified to vote in the election may demand a recount of the ballots or contest the election in the manner and within the time provided by law for recount or contest of elections under the general election laws of the state. The parish board of election supervisors shall supervise the election. It shall appoint three commissioners and one clerk, who shall be qualified electors and residents of the precinct, to preside over the election at each polling precinct. To reduce expenses of holding the election, the governing authority of the parish may combine regular voting precincts provided notice of any such combination is included in the notice of the election. The governing authority of the parish shall promulgate the results of the election. For the proposition to carry, it must receive a majority vote in favor thereof of the votes cast in the election.

F. The parish governing authority shall notify the applicant and the State Racing Commission promptly of the results of the election. If the racing meet has been approved, the applicant may proceed with the racing meet in accordance with the license and rules and regulations of the State Racing Commission. If the proposed racing meet has not been approved at the election, the commission shall revoke the license theretofore issued to the applicant and shall not accept or consider an application for a license for a racing meet in the same parish until the expiration of at least two years from the date of the election at which the racing meet in the parish was disapproved.

G. Any person who conducts or attempts to conduct a racing meet in a parish in which approval of the racing meet at an election is required by this section without such election approval shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be imprisoned in the parish jail for not more than six months and, in addition, shall be fined not more than one thousand dollars.

In addition to the penalty provided in this subsection, the district court of the parish of location of the proposed racing meet, upon application of the governing authority of the parish and upon a showing that this section is applicable and that a racing meet is being conducted or is attempted to be conducted in violation of this section is empowered to and shall grant injunctive relief.

Added by Acts 1972, No. 43, §1. Amended by Acts 1974, No. 626, §2.