Jeremy Alford: Money will be focus of election-year session

There will be many moving pieces that go into defining next year’s regular session, beginning with its close proximity to the fall statewide ballot.

Nothing colors a regular session like re-election time.

Lawmakers are always eager to swing for the fences while also taking care not to stir up fresh controversies just months before voters issue their job reviews.

The next state budget, which lawmakers will craft and send to the governor for approval, will also play an oversized role in defining the final regular session of the term, which convenes April 10.

The Revenue Estimating Conference, which is charged with determining how much money the state has to spend, recently identified an extra $925 million for the current budget year and $608 million in lagniappe for the next.

Lawmakers will have a hand in shaping the allocations for these dollars, but the Division of Administration will make recommendations to the Legislature in February.

(Teacher pay raises will likely make an appearance on this list.)

Money will ultimately be the hallmark of the 2023 regular session, especially since tax proposals and revenue-raising measures are allowed during odd-numbered years.

Members of the House, where most tax-related proposals must start, are already cooking up proposals to centralize sales tax collections, revamp the state sales tax structure and significantly reform income taxes.

This policy freedom to influence the state’s finances does come with some limitations. During odd-numbered years, lawmakers can only file five non-fiscal, general subject matter bills.

That means senators and representatives will have to be selective when it comes to non-fiscal bills.

What will make the cut?

Requests from local officials back home?

Ideas from corporate donors? Bill templates from supportive associations?

To be sure, insurance issues will be on the agenda in a real way.

Hurricanes, floods and tornadoes have left our neighbors homeless over the last few years as they continue to fight with adjusters and attorneys.

Insurers, for their part, are fleeing the state and refusing to write policies here. Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon has repeatedly referred to the situation as a “crisis” and has asked for a special session of the Legislature to address the problem.

Donelon wants the Legislature to identify about $45 million to incentivize property insurance companies to write in Louisiana again.

So far neither the governor nor the legislative leadership are warming to the idea, not with the regular session right around the proverbial corner.

Still, some lawmakers are worried about the timing. “We cannot wait until the regular session,” said Senate Insurance Chair Kirk Talbot, R-River Ridge, “because over 80,000 people who have Citizens
Insurance will renew in January, and they will have to wait a year until we can get them out and with a private insurer who will charge a cheaper premium than Citizens.”
(Citizens is the state-operated insurer of last resort.)

It’s likely difficult for those who haven’t been impacted to understand the long road to recovery.

For example, Jim Henderson, president of the University of Louisiana System, said a sizable portion of his session agenda next year will involve “stabilizing member institutions that serve communities still recovering from major hurricanes."

As for other insurance topics, Talbot said, “I anticipate a flurry of insurance related legislation to be filed this session.
"Although we passed a half dozen or so pro-consumer bills, I am sure we will see a lot of bills relating to consumers. We will also see a number of bills dealing with cancer treatment and other health insurance matters.”

There will also be other bills involving power deregulation, gun rights, abortion exceptions and a bevy of other issues ranging from quiet to loud.

In a recent interview, consultant Gordon Reese, vice president of Mandeville-based Innovative Politics, suggested the bills that actually get moved will probably be more on the quiet side.

(Probably.)

“In the current polarized political climate, with the election looming, you can rest assured there will still be plenty of legislation that grabs attention,” said Reese.

“But I would be surprised if the most controversial issues make it through both chambers in this upcoming session, as the body and its leaders are typically less willing to lean on members in an election year to make any vote that could be considered risky to their political future.”

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