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Judge: Port Allen administrator cannot run for mayor because of property tax break in Plaquemine
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PORT ALLEN — Port Allen's city administrator cannot run for mayor because of a property tax break he enjoys on a Plaquemine home he owns with his wife, a judge ruled Wednesday.
District Judge Tonya S. Lurry ordered Lance Joseph's name stricken from the Nov. 5 ballot. Two others remain in the race. Joseph said he plans to appeal.
State law requires mayors to be residents of the cities they run, and that they have established residency for at least a year. Joseph says he lives in Port Allen with his father, but a city resident challenged his candidacy on grounds that Joseph actually lives 14 miles away.
Iberville Parish officials say they automatically granted Joseph and his wife a homestead exemption on their property taxes more than a decade ago after the couple built a home on Island Drive near Bayou Plaquemine.
Joseph told WBRZ last week he didn't know how the exemption was added, and that he hadn't applied for it. The assessor's office told WBRZ that it has notified Joseph about the tax break regularly and given him the option to remove it.
In state election law, homestead exemptions are presumed to be proof of residency.
"We're obviously pleased with the outcome," said Doug Smith, who represented Port Allen resident Regina Rizzutto in her lawsuit against Joseph and the parish clerk. "The rules must apply to everybody, especially for those who end up in charge of making the rules or enforcing the rules such as a mayor or other elected officials."
Terecita Pattan, who also works at City Hall as a human resources officer is running for mayor as an independent, and Clyde Robertson Sr. is running as a Democrat.
The current mayor, Richard Lee III, is retiring when his term expires at the end of the year.
Smith also represented April King in her lawsuit challenging Shelton Berry's candidacy for a city council seat. Berry was ruled ineligible Tuesday, leaving King as the only candidate for the post.
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