House approves bill to require training for sheriffs
by Jeff Adelson and Ed Anderson - Times-Picayune (excerpt)

BATON ROUGE -- Sheriffs would be required to undergo training to be eligible for a pay raise, under a bill the House passed Wednesday. The program created by Senate Bill 97 will "reduce negative stigma" due to sheriffs who run afoul of the law, said Rep. Jeff Arnold, D-Algiers, who presented the bill to the House. The measure by Sen. J.P. Morrell, D-New Orleans, passed the House with a 94-1 vote, with Rep. Jim Fannin, D-Jonesboro, casting the only vote against the measure. The bill would require the governor's office to establish a five-member board to set up a training program for sheriffs. Each sheriff would be required to complete a training program within a year of taking office and complete 12 hours of continuing education every year. Any sheriff that completed those requirements would be eligible for a pay raise if the Legislature approved a pay raise to district court judges. The bill must go back to the upper chamber so Senators can consider amendments added in the House.