Regular Session Gets into Swing
The 2022 Regular Session convened last week, with legislators focused largely on procedural actions – reading bills into the record, scheduling committee hearings, and discussing state departmental budgets.
Of significance was the first hearing of the House Select Committee to investigate the death of Ronald Greene. The House and Governmental Affairs also met to consider a rule change ensuring the Select Committee could have the power to subpoena witnesses.
Read The Advocate’s coverage of the Select Committee hearing here.
Economic Development Toolkit
As always, 1A is monitoring measures related to Louisiana’s economic development toolkit. Of particular interest this session is the extension of the Quality Jobs (QJ) program, which offers payroll rebates of up to 6% to companies that create high-quality, full-time jobs. To qualify for the program, jobs created must pay at least $18 per hour and offer health benefits.
Bills have been introduced in the House (HB 230 by Rep. Bishop) and Senate (SB 41 by Sen. Reese) to extend the QJ program through 2026. 1A is supporting both measures, which are scheduled for committee hearings early this week.
Looking Ahead
While week one of the Session got off to a relatively quiet start, don’t expect things to stay that way for long. Major debates are on tap in the coming weeks, including how to spend $2.8 billion in one-time money from federal pandemic aid and state budget surpluses, as well as a showdown over the Governor’s veto of a new congressional district map.
Be on the lookout for future 1A legislative updates as the Session progresses.