legislation

Louisiana Act 234

Granted authority to police juries to regulate subdivisions and layouts of streets and parks. However, there was no requirement or mention of planning before deciding on regulations.

The police juries were granted a measure of planning authority in 1928. The statute does not provide for any separate planning agency or other administrative machinery but it does empower a police jury to legislate broadly with respect both to the laying out and modification of streets, parks and other public improvements and to the private platting and subdividing of land.

Louisiana Act 859

Act 859 passed by the Louisiana Legislature in 2004, 

Housing and Community Development Act of 1974

When Congress passed the HCD Act of 1974, it broke down the barriers of prevailing practice - where under separate categorical programs, the Federal Government had made the decisions about every community development project undertaken by cities. The HCD Act departed from this model by creating the CDBG program. CDBG merged 7 categorical programs into a block of flexible community development funds distributed each year by a formula that considers population and measures of distress including poverty, age of housing, housing overcrowding, and growth lag.

FEMA Planning Pilot Grants

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recently approved funding to update existing hazard mitigation plans for five Louisiana parishes - Acadia, Jefferson, Jefferson Davis, St. Helena and Tangipahoa.

Louisiana Coastal Management Program Created

First established in 1978 and further revised and refined in 1989, 2009 and 2012, the State government has taken an active role in establishing coastal protection areas, programs and authorities to offer protection from tropical storms and attempt to reverse land loss. The Department of Natural Resources is one of several entities managing this.

State Planning and Development Districts established

Powers and Duties of the Regional Planning Commission are contained in the Louisiana Revised Statue 33: 135.

The Louisiana Association of Planning and Development Districts is comprised of eight State Planning Districts working together as partners to advance the development of Louisiana. LAPDD has specific interests in recovery and resiliency, job creation and retention, and capacity. The areas are:

Regional Planning Areas and Commissions Formed

RS:33:131-1

Urbanized areas exceeding fifty thousand in population and spanning one or more parishes may be organized into a regional planning area.

Louisiana Act 201 - Parish Zoning

Parish governing authorities are authorized to adopt and enforce zoning. Previously, this was limited to municipalities.

Louisiana Revised Statute 33:101

The Revised Statutes of the State of Louisiana (then click Title 33) include laws governing the Physical Development of Parishes and Municipalities. Of particular note are the following statues:

Village of Euclid v. Ambler Realty Company

The U.S. Supreme Court decided that a municipal zoning ordinance was not an unreasonable extension of the police powers of the municipality. This groundbreaking case upheld zoning ordinances as a form of local control over nuisances and development.

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