Housing

HB 335 requires state agencies, local governments, and organizations administering federal, state, or local public benefits (like food assistance or housing programs) to verify applicants' U.S. citizenship or valid immigration status under federal law. It mandates that entities must verify citizenship before approving benefits, with specific procedures for cases where applicants lack proper status. The bill also requires these entities to undergo annual audits by the legislative auditor and submit yearly reports to state leadership detailing how many applicants were referred to immigration authorities or had benefits terminated due to citizenship verification. These reports must include statistics on referrals to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and terminations of public assistance under the law.

This bill is a resolution that asks the Louisiana Housing Corporation to work with other state agencies to study whether it's possible to create a housing assistance program using vacant state-owned property. The program would specifically help state government employees who spend more than 30% of their income on rent, with priority for those spending over 50%. To support this study, the resolution requests that the Division of Administration provide data on available vacant state property and that the State Civil Service Commission supply salary information for state employees. The Louisiana Housing Corporation would then report its findings back to the House of Representatives and the Appropriations Committee.