Lawmakers look ahead to 2023 session

Elementary school recess, home insurance, asphalt for road projects and, as usual, taxes will be among the targets of legislators representing St. Mary Parish in the coming legislative session.

State Sen. Bret Allain of Franklin, state Rep. Beryl Amedee of Gray and state Rep. Vincent St. Blanc, all Republicans, spoke March 29 at a St. Mary Chamber Legislative Breakfast at The Forest restaurant in Franklin.

The 2023 session opens Monday and must end no later than June 8.

The session probably will be the last for a while in which St. Mary has its current level of clout in the Legislature. Allain, who has chaired the Senate Revenue and Fiscal
Affairs Committee during the last four years, is term-limited.

“Twelve years is a long time,” Allain said at the breakfast, “particularly the last four years when I was part of the leadership. …

“Everybody pulls at you, and the work never stops. I was glad to do it, but it’s time for a little break.”

Three candidates have announced plans to run for the District 21 Senate seat: Allain’s son, Robert Allain; parish Chief Administrative Officer Henry C. “Bo” LaGrange; and Morgan City businessman Stephen Swiber.

Incumbent Allain said his work up to now has focused on infrastructure and job training. Those goals came together with funding for the planned Coastal Center at Nicholls State, which Allain said will train those who guide $50 billion in coastal restoration work over the next 50 years, and millions more for nursing education at Nicholls State and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

COVID exposed a nursing shortage, he said.

“The goal is to double the output at those universities,” Allain said.

His other focus has been on Louisiana’s tax structure, which he said is not economy-friendly.

“One of the biggest impediments we have here in Louisiana is our tax structure,” Allain said.

Voters have already approved the lowering of the state’s top income tax rate from 6% to 4.75%. Allain hopes to get rid of state franchise and inventory taxes, which he says discourage investment.

Amedee said the five bills she pre-filed are among the 1,200 she expects to be taken up this session.

Her bills:

--A constitutional amendment enshrining parental rights as fundamental.

--A requirement that insurance companies experiencing financial trouble notify state officials as “they are beginning to wobble.” The move could help people avoid long waits to have their claims processed, she said.

--Two pathways to receiving a state plumber’s license, which Amedee said are needed to address a shortage. One measure allows a licensed plumber to have more than one apprentice. The other sets a number of working hours that can be used to avoid the apprenticeship requirement.

--A minimum of 15 daily minutes of unstructured recess time for elementary students. The time could still be counted against required instructional time.

--A bill crafted to see that “central bank digital currency does not take over Louisiana.”

Amedee also supports a resolution calling for a study of alternatives to agricultural burning.

St. Blanc says he has a bill easing limits on trucks carrying aggregate and cement trucks to speed road projects.