Tangipahoa Parish, LA Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing law
- Ch. 34, Art. V, §§ 34-112—34-120
- Adopted
- Ordinance No. 08-61, August 25, 2008
- Scope
- Rural/unincorporated Tangipahoa Parish property only
- First offense fine
- Up to $500.00, may be suspended for repairs
- Repeat offense
- Up to $2,000.00 fine plus 80 hours community service
- Appeal window
- 30 calendar days to 21st Judicial District Court
Summary
Tangipahoa Parish treats a deteriorated, hazardous property as 'criminal blighting' once a parish hearing officer declares it blighted after notice and an administrative hearing. Owners who let that condition persist face escalating fines, up to 80 hours of community service, and a recorded lien against the property, enforced entirely outside the regular courts through Sections 34-112 through 34-120.
Blighted property means any property declared vacant, uninhabitable, and/or hazardous by an administrative hearing officer pursuant to this article, R.S. 13:2575, or other applicable law. ... Criminal blighting of property is the intentional or criminally negligent permitting of the existence of a condition of deterioration of property by the owner, which is deemed to have occurred when the property has been declared or certified as blighted after an administrative hearing, pursuant to R.S. 13:2575 or 13:2576, and after all reviews or appeals have occurred. ... (a)On the first conviction of a violation of this article, the offender shall be punished by a fine not to exceed $500.00. Imposition of a fine may be suspended and in lieu thereof, the court may require the offender to satisfactorily correct all existing housing violations on the blighted property.
Full Breakdown
Article V, 'Criminal Blighting of Property,' Sections 34-112 through 34-120, was adopted by Ordinance No. 08-61 on August 25, 2008 and applies to commercial and residential property in the rural or unincorporated portions of the parish. S. 13:2575, and defines 'public nuisance' to include any structure that, by its condition, is dilapidated, decayed, unsafe, unsanitary or a fire hazard, or whose deteriorated grounds depreciate nearby property values. Section 34-113 defines the offense itself: criminally negligent or intentional permitting of a deteriorated condition by the owner, which is deemed to occur only after the property has been certified blighted following an administrative hearing and all appeals have run.
The parish president appoints the hearing officer under Section 34-114, who may be the parish health director or health officer, or an attorney with at least two years' Louisiana practice. Owners get at least 15 days' written notice by certified mail before the hearing under Section 34-116, and the hearing officer must rule within 30 days of the hearing under Section 34-117. Section 34-119 lets the parish record a lien and privilege against the blighted property for all fines, costs and penalties, which is added to the property's ad valorem tax bill if unpaid. An owner may appeal a hearing officer's finding to the 21st Judicial District Court within 30 calendar days under Section 34-120.
Violations & Fines
Section 34-118 escalates penalties by offense: a first conviction draws a fine of up to $500.00, which a court may suspend if the owner corrects the housing violations instead; a second conviction adds up to 40 hours of community service to the same $500.00 fine; and a third or later conviction carries a fine of up to $2,000.00 and up to 80 hours of community service. A prior offense does not count if more than five years passed before the current one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who decides if my property is legally 'blighted' in Tangipahoa Parish?
How much notice do I get before a blight hearing?
What is the penalty for a first criminal blighting conviction?
Can the parish put a lien on my property over a blight violation?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Tangipahoa Parish
Compare Tangipahoa Parish to another location·View the Louisiana property maintenance overview
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