HB 420 Louisiana House · 2026 Regular Session

CHILDREN/DCFS: Requires the Department of Children and Family Services to obtain background checks on all employees (EN INCREASE GF EX See Note)

HB 420 requires Louisiana's Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) to conduct criminal background checks and review the state central registry of child abuse/neglect reports for all current and prospective employees. It directly affects every DCFS employee and job applicant, regardless of their specific role. The bill mandates these checks as a standard hiring and employment requirement, replacing previous limited provisions. This change aims to ensure all staff working with children meet baseline safety standards before being hired or retained.

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2026

Committee Review

May 2026

House Passage

May 2026

Senate Passage

May 2026

Signed into Law

Jun 2026

Introduced Feb 25, 2026 Signed Jun 9, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

HB420 Original → HB420 Act 803 · 3 edits

MINOR

This bill converts HB 420 from a draft proposal into an enacted law (Act No. 803), finalizing the legal text for the legislature. The substantive policy content remains focused on requiring the Department of Children and Family Services to conduct criminal background checks and search the central registry for all employees and prospective employees, ensuring child safety through consistent vetting procedures.

Scope change

The bill's scope of applicability remains unchanged; it continues to apply to all employees and prospective employees of the Department of Children and Family Services.

TECHNICAL

The bill was finalized by changing the header from 'ORIGINAL' to 'ENROLLED' and updating the act number to 'Act No. 803', indicating it has passed all legislative stages and is ready for the governor's signature.

The page count was reduced from 3 to 2 pages, likely due to the removal of the legislative digest and explanatory notes that are not part of the final statutory text.

Minor formatting adjustments were made to the summary of laws section, specifically reordering the list of statutes being amended and enacted to match the final enrolled version.

Floor votes · Senate May 18, 2026 · House Apr 9, 2026

How they voted

36–0

Passed · 4 other

Total votes 40

May 18, 2026

D Democratic12

10 Yea 2

83% Yea

R Republican28

26 Yea 2

92% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

May 26, 2026

Lower · Passed

Read by title, roll called, yeas 99, nays 0, Senate amendments concurred in.

lower

May 18, 2026

Upper · Passed

Rules suspended. The amended bill was read by title, passed by a vote of 35 yeas and 0 nays, and ordered returned to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.

upper

May 7, 2026

Committee

Committee amendments read and adopted. Read by title and referred to the Legislative Bureau.

upper

May 6, 2026

Upper · Passed

Reported with amendments.

upper

Apr 9, 2026

Lower · Passed

Read third time by title, roll called on final passage, yeas 95, nays 1. Finally passed, title adopted, ordered to the Senate.

lower

Apr 1, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported favorably (9-0).

lower

Mar 9, 2026

Committee

Read by title, under the rules, referred to the Committee on Health and Welfare.

lower

Feb 25, 2026

Committee

Under the rules, provisionally referred to the Committee on Health and Welfare.

lower

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors