Sarah Thompson
The Tensas Parish Police Jury approved changes to its meeting procedures and monthly schedule during its Feb. 24 meeting, adopting one ordinance and two resolu‑tions that will guide how the jury conducts business for the remainder of the year. While several items appeared on the agenda, the proposed changes to meeting structure and scheduling received the most discussion.
As part of the changes, the jury adopted a new meeting schedule for 2026. Regular meetings will now be held at 10 a.m. on the third Monday of each month, beginning March 16, with dates continu‑ing through December as listed in the resolu‑tion. This replaces the previous schedule of two regular meetings each month. Committee meet‑ings will be held at 10 a.m. on the first Monday of each month.
Police Jury President Terrence South opened the conversation by intro‑ducing Ordinance No. 2026‑02‑24, which out‑lines the use of Robert’s Rules of Order and rel‑evant provisions of the Open Meetings Law as the formal procedural framework for both public and committee meetings. Copies of the three‑and‑a‑half‑page ordi‑nance and accompanying resolutions were distrib‑uted to jurors for review.
South explained the jury had long operated under informal guidelines but had never formally adopted a procedural struc‑ture. “This is something I got with the attorney on,” he said. “We always have informal rules, so he looked at Robert’s Rules of Order and put this together. This will give us a struc‑ture to go by so we don’t have to guess should we do this or should we do that.”
Juror Bubba Rushing questioned how the pro‑posed changes originated, noting that the jury had been following attor‑ney‑provided guidelines up to this point. South reiter‑ated the ordinance would formalize those practices through a vote.
Discussion then shifted to the number of monthly meetings. Juror Bill Crigler asked about the advantages of holding one regular meeting per month instead of two. South responded that jurors would still meet twice monthly because committee meetings would continue, and special meet‑ings could be called if needed. “There are a lot of police juries that only have one meeting and things seem to be going fine,” South said.
A motion to adopt the ordinance was made by Alex Watson and seconded by Robert Clark. A roll call vote was held with Clark, Foster, South and Watson voting yes and Crigler and Rushing voting no. Arceneaux abstained.
South then intro‑duced Resolution No. 2026‑02‑24, which for‑mally establishes the regular meeting schedule. As jurors reviewed the document, Crigler sought clarification on whether it addressed committee meetings. South explained the resolution applied only to regular meetings.
A second resolu‑tion, No. 2026‑02‑24(A), outlines the committee meeting schedule. Jurors discussed how overlapping committee assignments would be handled and whether meetings would need to be staggered. South noted the structure could work efficiently if members adhered to the agenda and conducted business promptly.
“Stick to the agenda. Take care of business and vote. We can get that done,” he said.
The resolution setting the regular meeting dates passed with only Arceneaux voting against it and the resolution setting committee meetings passed unanimously.
South noted the new structure could be revisited if needed.
“And if this doesn’t work, we can always go back,” he said.
In other business, the jury approved repairs to a motor grader and excavator, authorized the use of parish spaces for the Tensas Sheriff’s Office Fun Day in May and the Tensas Revival Easter Egg Hunt in April, approved the purchase of 300 garbage carts and called an election for the continuance of the tax supporting the Tensas Public Health Unit and the Tensas Parish Library.
Full minutes will be printed in the Tensas Gazette’s legal section once approved by the jury.
