With the start of the regular legislative session on this Monday, lawmakers will have their hands full, with more than 850 prefiled bills to consider before the regular legislative session is scheduled to end on June 12. As the Louisiana Radio Network reports, the legislature will be considering at least seven bills designed to strengthen elections in the state. Secretary of State Nancy Landry says one of them is a constitutional amendment that would ban foreign funding of a political campaign, whether it supports a candidate or a ballot measure. “They’ll put money in a 501c4 nonprofit and then funnel that money to PACs and superPACs, which would then campaign for or against measures on the ballot or to fund a PAC or superPAC that would be for or against a candidate.” Landry says ten states have enacted such a ban.
Then there’s Senate Bill 90, which would ban any wagering on the outcome of an election, which Landry says is already banned in 30 states. Another bill would boost election commissioner pay.
Meanwhile, trucking companies are urging the legislature to do something about expensive commercial vehicle insurance rates. Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry and Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple blame frivolous lawsuits as a cause of higher insurance rates. Jake Minner, the director at Bengal Transportation Services in Louisiana, says his company has been hit with very costly frivolous lawsuits. “We’ve had folks hit us with very minimal damage, refused medical treatment on the roadside and then two weeks later we’re being served paperwork that they’re injured.” Minner says his company’s insurance rates have soared from six-thousand dollars per truck per year to $23,000 increasing almost nine times the rate of inflation.
The state budget will present hurdles for lawmakers with a $194 million shortfall and how to find $198 million to go towards teacher stipends. As Louisiana Public Radio reports, the plan to use three education trust funds to pay off teacher retirement debt that in theory would allow school systems to then be able fund teacher stipends was rejected by voters last month.
There’s also a bill to give tax breaks to student-athletes with Name, Image and Likeness deals. And another to add exceptions to the state’s abortion ban for minors.
