SB 482 Louisiana Senate · 2026 Regular Session

SCHOOLS: Provides for career coaches to assist public middle and high school students and their parents in developing an individualized graduation plan for each student. (8/1/26)

This bill authorizes the use of career coaches alongside school counselors to help public middle and high school students and their parents create personalized graduation plans. The law establishes that these professionals can work together or independently to guide students through their educational goals. By adding career coaches to the list of eligible advisors, the measure expands the support options available to students without changing the core requirement of developing an individualized plan.

Issues: ✓ Education

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Mar 2026

Committee Review

Apr 2026

Senate Passage

Apr 2026

House Passage

May 2026

Signed into Law

May 2026

Introduced Mar 31, 2026 Signed May 27, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

SB482 Original → SB482 Act 413 · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended to expand the team responsible for developing student graduation plans, adding career coaches as an option alongside school counselors. It also strengthened the process for revising these plans by requiring written parental approval and added new requirements for the state to publish lists of approved career coaching vendors and track local school board spending.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded from solely involving school counselors to explicitly including career coaches as authorized personnel for student planning, and added new administrative reporting requirements for the Department of Education.

REQUIREMENT

Changed the team composition for developing Individual Graduation Plans to allow for either a school counselor or a career coach, rather than requiring both simultaneously.

Added a mandatory requirement that any revisions to a student's graduation plan must be approved in writing by the student's parent or legal guardian.

Added a requirement for the State Department of Education to publish a list of high-quality career coaching vendors for schools to select from by January 1, 2027.

Added a requirement for the State Department of Education to annually publish a list of local school boards that have not spent more than 95% of their career development fund dollars.

FISCAL

Added provisions allowing local school boards to form regional consortia to share the costs of contracting with career coaches.

Floor votes · Senate Apr 21, 2026 · House May 11, 2026

How they voted

38–0

Passed · 2 other

Total votes 40

Apr 21, 2026

D Democratic12

11 Yea 1

91% Yea

R Republican28

27 Yea 1

96% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

May 11, 2026

Lower · Passed

Read third time by title, roll called on final passage, yeas 96, nays 0. Finally passed, ordered to the Senate.

lower

May 5, 2026

Introduced

Reported without Legislative Bureau amendments.

lower

Apr 29, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported favorably (11-0). Referred to the Legislative Bureau.

lower

Apr 22, 2026

Committee

Read by title, under the rules, referred to the Committee on Education.

lower

Apr 21, 2026

Upper · Passed

Read by title, passed by a vote of 37 yeas and 0 nays, and sent to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.

upper

Apr 15, 2026

Upper · Passed

Reported with amendments.

upper

Mar 31, 2026

Introduced

Rules suspended. Introduced in the Senate. Read by title and placed on the Calendar for a second reading.

upper

1 primary · 4 co-sponsors