Answer

The hospital district cannot donate property as doing so would violate Article VII, §14 of the Louisiana Constitution. The district may, however, enter into a CEA with the City as long as it can meet the guidelines as set out by the Attorney General. The Attorney General has outlined a three-prong test to determine if a CEA transferring public property is proper under Article VII, §14 of the Louisiana Constitution. The test as enumerated in AG Op. No. 16-0022 is as follows: A public entity must have the legal authority to make the transfer and must show all of the following: 1. A public purpose for the transfer which comports with the governmental purpose for which the public entity has legal authority to pursue; 2. The transfer, taken as a whole, does not appear to be gratuitous (there should be real reciprocal obligations between the parties to the transfer); and 3. The public entity has a demonstrable, objective, and reasonable expectation of receiving at least equivalent value in exchange for the transfer. See LLA’s CEA Memo and Sample which can be found on the Legal Assistance & FAQs Overview page of the LLA Website for additional information on this matter. If a CEA meeting these requirements are not possible, the District should sell the RAP under the surplus property provisions. Louisiana Legislative Auditor website: 06/16/2025 11:06:39 PM