§753. Louisiana State Board of Dentistry; appointment of members; term of office; vacancies; nominating meetings; quorum; domicile

            A. There is hereby created within the Louisiana Department of Health the Louisiana State Board of Dentistry, referred to hereafter in this Chapter as the "board", which shall carry out the purposes and enforce the provisions of this Chapter, subject to the provisions of R.S. 36:803.

            B. The board shall be composed of fifteen members to include one consumer, thirteen qualified and licensed dentists as provided in Subsection C of this Section, and one qualified and licensed dental hygienist.

            C. Each member of the board shall be appointed by the governor as follows:

            (1)(a) One dentist shall be appointed from each board district, except that two dentists shall be appointed from District Five and designated as representatives "A" and "B". Each appointment from an electoral district shall be made from a list of three names of nominees for the respective district submitted to the governor by the board. The district nominees shall be selected from the roster of licensed dentists in the districts at a nominating meeting convened in accordance with the provisions of Subsection F of this Section. The voting domicile of each nominee for appointment and not his office address shall determine his district for purposes of holding office in accordance with the provisions of this Paragraph. The nominating meeting shall be held at least ninety days prior to the vacancy occurring by reason of an expiring term or within thirty days after a vacancy occurring by reason of death, resignation, or for any other reason.

            (b) Louisiana shall be divided into nine board districts, as follows:

            (i) District One shall be composed of the parishes of Acadia, Evangeline, Iberia, Lafayette, St. Landry, and St. Martin, that portion of St. Mary Parish west of the Calumet Cut Canal, and Vermilion Parish.

            (ii) District Two shall be composed of the parishes of Assumption and Lafourche, that portion of St. Mary Parish east of the Calumet Cut Canal, and Terrebonne Parish.

            (iii) District Three shall be composed of that portion of Allen Parish north of latitude 30 deg. 45 min., and the parishes of Avoyelles, Catahoula, Concordia, and Grant, that portion of LaSalle Parish south of latitude 31 deg. 53 min., and the parishes of Natchitoches, Rapides, Sabine, Vernon, and Winn.

            (iv) District Four shall be composed of the parishes of Caldwell, East Carroll, Franklin, and Jackson, that portion of LaSalle Parish north of latitude 31 deg. 53 min., and the parishes of Lincoln, Madison, Morehouse, Ouachita, Richland, Tensas, Union, and West Carroll.

            (v) District Five shall be composed of the parishes of Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. James, St. John the Baptist, and that portion of St. Tammany Parish east of Bayou Lacombe.

            (vi) District Six shall be composed of that portion of St. Tammany Parish west of Bayou Lacombe, and the parishes of Tangipahoa and Washington.

            (vii) District Seven shall be composed of the parishes of Bienville, Bossier, Caddo, Claiborne, DeSoto, Red River, and Webster.

            (viii) District Eight shall be composed of the parishes of Ascension, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberville, Livingston, Pointe Coupee, St. Helena, West Baton Rouge, and West Feliciana.

            (ix) District Nine shall be composed of that portion of Allen Parish south of latitude 30 deg. 45 min., and the parishes of Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, and Jefferson Davis.

            (c) Repealed by Acts 2022, No. 422, §2.

            (2) Three dentists shall be appointed from the state at large to fill seats designated as "At-Large Seats A, B, and C" in accordance with the following requirements:

            (a) One seat shall be designated as "At-Large Seat A" and shall be appointed from the state at large from a list of three licensed black dentists certified by the board secretary to the governor. The board secretary shall obtain a list of three nominees for the "At-Large Seat A" position by ballot sent by United States mail to all licensed black dentists in the state at their last known mailing address as indicated in the board files. Each licensed black dentist may nominate any three licensed black dentists by completing the ballot with the full name, residence, address, city, and home telephone number of the three nominees and mailing the ballot to the board offices. The submission of such information on the ballot shall serve as confirmation that the voter has discussed the nomination with the nominees and they have agreed to serve if nominated and appointed by the governor. The ballot shall be mailed by the board secretary at least ninety days prior to any vacancy occurring by reason of an expiring term or within thirty days after a vacancy occurring by reason of death, resignation, or for any other reason. After the board secretary has tabulated all ballots received at the board offices, the names of the three nominees receiving the greatest number of votes shall be certified by the secretary and sent to the governor.

            (b) One seat shall be designated as "At-Large Seat B" and shall be appointed from a roster of all licensed dentists in the state. A vacancy occurring in "At-Large Seat B" shall be filled by the governor without the necessity of a nomination or other requirement, except that the appointee shall be licensed and domiciled in the state.

            (c) One seat shall be designated as "At-Large Seat C" and shall be appointed from a roster of all licensed dentists in the state who are board-eligible or board-certified oral and maxillofacial surgeons, all licensed dentists in the state who are board-eligible or board-certified dental anesthesiologists, and all licensed dentists in the state who have comparable training and expertise as defined by the Louisiana State Board of Dentistry in deep sedation and anesthesia. A vacancy occurring in "At-Large Seat C" shall be filled by the governor without the necessity of a nomination or other requirement, except that the appointee shall be licensed and domiciled in the state and additionally shall be qualified as a board-eligible or board-certified oral and maxillofacial surgeon, a board-eligible or board-certified dental anesthesiologist, or a dentist who has comparable training and expertise as defined by the Louisiana State Board of Dentistry in deep sedation and anesthesia.

            (3) The hygienist shall be appointed from the state at large, from a list of three nominees certified by the board secretary and sent to the governor. The board secretary shall obtain a list of three nominees for the at-large dental hygienist position by ballot sent by United States mail to all licensed dental hygienists in the state at their last known mailing address as indicated in the board files. Each licensed dental hygienist may nominate any three licensed dental hygienists by completing the ballot with the full name, residence, address, city, and home telephone number of the three nominees, and mailing same to the board offices. The submission of such information on the ballot shall serve as confirmation that the voter has discussed the nomination with the nominees and they have agreed to serve if nominated and appointed by the governor. The ballot shall be mailed out by the board secretary at least ninety days prior to any vacancy occurring by reason of an expiring term or within thirty days after a vacancy occurring by reason of death, resignation, or for any other reason. After the board secretary has tabulated all ballots received at the board offices, the names of the three nominees receiving the largest number of votes shall be certified by the secretary and sent to the governor.

            (4)(a) The consumer member shall be selected from the state at large and appointed by the governor. The consumer member of the board shall possess all of the following qualifications:

            (i) Is a citizen of the United States and has been a resident of Louisiana for at least one year immediately prior to appointment.

            (ii) Has attained the age of majority.

            (iii) Shall not have ever been licensed by any of the licensing boards identified in R.S. 36:259(A), nor shall he have a spouse who has ever been licensed by a board identified in R.S. 36:259(A).

            (iv) Has never been convicted of a felony.

            (v) Shall not have nor shall ever have had a material financial interest in the healthcare profession.

            (b) The consumer member shall be a full voting member of the board with all rights and privileges conferred on board members, except that the consumer member shall not participate in the grading of individual examinations.

            (5) In the event the governor declares a state of emergency, all nominating procedures may be delayed for a period of not longer than one hundred eighty days from the date the emergency was first declared by the governor.

            D. Each appointment by the governor shall be submitted to the Senate for confirmation.

            E.(1)(a) Each person appointed to the board shall serve a term of five years.

            (b) Regardless of a board member's dates of service, including past service, no person shall serve more than a total of two full terms on the board, whether the service is consecutive or not.

            (2) Each member shall serve until his successor has been appointed.

            (3) A vacancy occurring on the board for any reason shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment was made. A member appointed to fill a vacancy shall serve the remainder of the calendar year in which the vacancy occurred. The member may then be appointed to serve an initial full term of five years and may be eligible for a second five-year term if reappointed and confirmed.

            F.(1) The board shall have the authority to regulate nominating meetings, including prescribing the place, date, and time of the meetings, the methods of nomination, and the manner of voting.

            (2) The board secretary shall notify each licensee by United States mail at his last known place of business or residence address as indicated in the board files, at least ten days prior to a nominating meeting.

            (3) The board secretary or employee designated by the president shall require that each licensee in attendance vote only for those persons duly nominated. Cumulative or proxy voting shall not be permitted. Each licensee must vote for three nominees in order for his ballot to be valid, and any ballot indicating votes for more or less than three nominees shall be null and void. The names of the three persons receiving the greatest number of votes shall be certified by the secretary and sent to the governor.

            (4) The voting domicile of each licensee and not his office address shall determine eligibility for voting under this Subsection.

            G. No full-time member of the faculty or teaching staff of any university or college having a dental or dental hygiene department in this state shall be appointed to the board. No dentist or dental hygienist may own stock in or operate a dental supply business or commercial laboratory prior to being appointed to the board or while serving on the board. A part-time member of the faculty or teaching staff of any university or college having a dental or dental hygiene department in this state may be appointed to the board as long as the time spent providing instruction at the dental college is no more than eight hours per week.

            H. A majority of the members of the board shall constitute a quorum for all purposes including but not limited to the transaction of business, the holding of meetings, administration of examinations, granting of licenses and permits, and the rulemaking functions of the board.

            I. The domicile of the board shall be the parish of East Baton Rouge.

            J. Each member of the board shall be actively engaged in the practice of dentistry or the practice of dental hygiene at the time of appointment, except for the consumer member.

            K. Repealed by Acts 2022, No. 422, §2.

            Acts 1990, No. 413, §1, eff. July 18, 1990; Acts 1991, No. 331, §1, eff. Jan. 13, 1992; Acts 1991, No. 341, §1, eff. Jan. 13, 1992; Acts 1992, No. 969, §1, eff. July 9, 1992; Acts 1993, No. 48, §1; Acts 1995, No. 920, §1; Acts 1997, No. 83, §1; Acts 1999, No. 1358, §1; Acts 2001, No. 712, §1; Acts 2006, No. 329, §1; Acts 2014, No. 866, §1, eff. June 23, 2014; Acts 2016, No. 491, §1; Acts 2018, No. 515, §2; Acts 2019, No. 324, §1, eff. June 11, 2019; Acts 2022, No. 271, §2; Acts 2022, No. 422, §§1, 2.