Bills for regular session starting to come in

Even though lawmakers and other political players are completely entrenched in the task of remapping Louisiana’s election districts, there is still a regular session scheduled to convene April 25. So far, members of the House and Senate have filed at least 70 bills for consideration. The count will surely grow substantially; in 2009, the last time lawmakers conducted a regular fiscal session, more than 1,200 bills were filed. A bill by Rep. John Bel Edwards of Amite, the chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, is taking direct aim at Gov. Bobby Jindal’s practice of personally handing out Honor Medals around the state. Detractors accuse the Republican governor of using the medal ceremonies as a public relations ploy. Others have complained that recipients sometimes have to wait for months for Jindal to find time in his busy schedule to conduct the ceremonies. Edwards’ House Bill 28 would allow veterans of the Armed Forces to choose their own “method of delivery.” It further requires delivery within 48 hours, unless the veteran opts for an award ceremony with the governor. There are also headline-grabbing bills in the hopper, just waiting for media attention: for example, House Bill 55 by Rep. Ledricka Johnson Thierry, D-Opelousas. It would prohibit certain sex offenders from “using or accessing” social networking sites like Facebook as well as chat rooms and peer-to-peer networks. Finally, there are bills filed that serve as reminders that there are rural areas and non-rural areas. House Bill 57 by Rep. Jack Montoucet, D-Crowley, would allow crawfish farmers to use a 12-gauge or smaller shotgun to “take” otter, muskrat and mink if those animals are destroying mudbugs or adjacent property. —Jeremy Alford