HB 441 repeals a requirement from Act No. 384 (2024) that previously mandated the State Civil Service Commission and New Orleans' City Civil Service Commission to create a plan for transferring employees of the New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board into the state civil service system. This bill directly affects employees of the New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board by ending the obligation to develop such a transfer plan. The key mechanism is simply removing the specific provision (Section 2 of Act No. 384) from law. As a procedural repeal, it makes no new policy changes but alters the existing legal framework governing the board's employee classification.
HB 145 creates a new program to cover uncovered medical and dental expenses for full-time firemen and law enforcement officers (including sheriffs, state police, municipal police, and university police) injured while performing job duties. It requires the Law Enforcement Officers and Firemen's Survivor Benefit Review Board to review claims within 60 days and authorizes the state risk director to pay up to $50,000 per injury for expenses not covered by workers' compensation or employer health insurance. The bill excludes coverage for injuries caused by intentional misconduct, intoxication, or gross negligence. This program applies to injuries occurring on or after January 1, 2023, with the law taking effect July 1, 2026.
This resolution asks the city of Shreveport to establish an interest-free loan program for Transportation Security Administration agents working at the Shreveport Regional Airport. The request is based on a federal government shutdown that began in February 2026, during which these security employees continue working without pay. The bill cites Maryland's similar program as a model for providing financial assistance to essential workers during government shutdowns. It is a non-binding request rather than a law, meaning the city of Shreveport is not required to act on it. The resolution directs copies to the mayor, city council, and Caddo Parish Commission for their consideration.
This bill allows full-time firefighters in Louisiana local government fire departments to join state insurance programs if their employer chooses to participate. It defines eligible fire departments as any local organization whose main purpose is fire prevention and extinguishing, and requires that all employees and retirees in the same class be included if one firefighter participates. The law also grants credit for prior health insurance coverage during the period before the employer opts into the program, ensuring firefighters don't lose coverage history. Employers retain the discretion to decide whether to enroll their fire department staff in these benefits, with no legal barrier preventing such participation. The changes take effect on January 1, 2027.
SB 162 modifies Louisiana's workers' compensation system by changing how disputes over medical treatment decisions are handled. It allows any party disagreeing with a medical director's decision to appeal within 45 days using LWC Form 1008. To overturn a decision, the appealing party must present "clear and convincing evidence" showing the decision violated the law, and only evidence previously reviewed by the medical director can be used in the appeal. This directly affects workers and employers in Louisiana workers' compensation cases involving medical treatment disputes. The bill focuses on streamlining the appeals process for medical treatment decisions under the existing workers' compensation framework.
HB 31 allows Louisiana municipalities with populations under 5,000 to permanently exit the Municipal Police Employees' Retirement System. To terminate participation, a city must pass a resolution, provide 30 days' written notice to the retirement system and new hires, and stop enrolling future employees. Existing police employees hired before the termination date remain covered under the system, but new hires after the effective date will not be enrolled. The termination becomes effective 60 days after the governing authority adopts the resolution.
