University law student Donald Hodge filed a petition against the LSU Board of Supervisors Thursday.
Hodge argues the Tiger Stadium ticket surcharge the Board of Supervisors approved Aug. 21 violates the Louisiana constitution.
The petition said the board contradicted the state constitution and “exceeded its authority in approving a new fee for the privilege to purchase tickets.”
According to the petition, the Board of Supervisors violated Article 7, Section 2.1 of the state constitution in approving the new fee.
Article 7 says, “Any new fee or civil fine or increase in an existing fee or civil fine imposed or assessed by the state or any board, department or agency of the state shall require the enactment of a law by a two-thirds vote of the elected members of each house of the legislature.”
Hodge said he thought the Board of Supervisors ignored the state constitution in passing the fee and that the proper place for that type of action is the state Legislature.
Ray Lamonica, general counsel to the LSU System, said Hodge had e-mailed a copy of the petition, but it had not been formally served as of Thursday afternoon.
Lamonica said while the board plans to respond in court, he thought Hodge was making an incorrect interpretation of the constitution.
Lamonica said he did not think the surcharges on football tickets were within the scope of the constitutional definition of a fee.
The proposal was approved in August as part of a plan to bring all individual ticket prices, excluding student tickets, to a uniform price of $36.
In addition, the proposal created a Preferred Seating Program, which requires a mandatory surcharge on most season tickets.
Under the program, season ticket holders will have to pay an additional $85 to $400 surcharge, depending on their seat locations, to watch football games in Tiger Stadium.
The petition asks for “a permanent injunction invalidating the new fee of Aug. 21, 2003 as unconstitutional and ordering the board to prevent implementation of the new fee.”