Session Information

2007 Regular Session Highlights

Homeland Security Military Affairs

by: Heyward Jeffers
(225) 342-2064

Sheltering Of Sex Offenders During Declared Emergencies. In the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, the issue of housing registered sex offenders was raised by concerned local officials and law enforcement. Current law requires that the state plan on shelter of sex offenders provides that the state shall shelter such offenders, if possible, in an alternate shelter, separate and apart from the general population of evacuees. House Bill 120 by Representative McVea (pending Senate Finance) prohibits the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, or their designee, from establishing in any parish a separate shelter for housing sexual offenders unless the governing authority of that parish has approved an ordinance authorizing the establishment of such separate shelters for sexual offenders and state funding has been made available to the local governing authority for such separate shelters. The measure had traversed the house and the Senate Committee on Judiciary B by the last week of the session and awaited action by the Senate Committee on Finance after being declared a dual referral due to fiscal impact.

Similar legislation, House Bill 740 by Representative Dorsey (pending House Judiciary), would have prohibited the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness from locating an alternate shelter for registered sexual offenders within a six-mile radius of a day care facility. The bill remained bottled up in the House Committee on Judiciary as the session rolled into its final week and appeared to be dead for 2007.

The Federal Real ID Act of 2005. The United States Congress passed legislation in 2005 that requires states to verify and reissue and estimated 245 million driver's licenses and identification cards in order to keep those forms of identification out of the hands of terrorists and make it tougher for illegal immigrants to get state-issued identification. State officials across the country have expressed grave concerns that the Act will impose inconveniences and higher taxes on their citizens. If a state does not comply with the Act's standards, license holder in that state will not be able to board airplanes or enter federal buildings. House Concurrent Resolution 20 by Representative Bowler (subject to call-Senate Floor) asks national lawmakers to repeal the Act. The new federal law was scheduled to take effect May 11, 2008. That provision's effective date has presently been delayed until December 31, 2009. Twenty other state legislatures are currently considering bills protesting or threatening not to comply with the Act. The bill was awaiting action in the Senate on final passage as the session entered its final days.

Emergency Preparedness. Louisiana presently has some twenty parishes that have no full-time emergency preparedness directors and three parishes have no one operating in that role. Senate Bill 63 by Senator Barham (pending Senate Finance) proposes that the legislature appropriate 60,000 dollars for each parish to hire a full-time emergency preparedness director. If a parish already has such a director, the funds would be used to enhance emergency preparedness operations in that parish. The bill was heard by the Senate Committee on Judiciary B and approved without opposition. However, because the fiscal note on the measure exceeded 500,000 dollars, it was assigned to the Senate Committee on Finance. It was heard by that committee and deferred voluntarily by the author until questions regarding funding could be answered by officials in the Blanco Administration. The bill still sat on the finance committee's agenda as the 2007 Regular Session of the Legislature moved into it's final week and was expected to die there upon final adjournment.

Telecommunications. One of the more daunting issues of the 2007 Regular Session of the Legislature was an attempt to establish a governance structure for planning, implementing, and maintaining a Statewide Communications Interoperability Plan. Senate Bill 274 by Senator Boasso (pending Senate Commerce) would have created the office of interoperability within the office of homeland security and emergency preparedness. The director of the office would oversee, direct, and manage public safety and first responders interoperability programs and efforts and report to the director of the governor's office of homeland security and emergency preparedness. It has been widely acknowledged nationwide that one of the biggest failures resulting from the terrorists attacks of September 11, 2001, and disasters such as Hurricane Katrina has been the communications breakdown following the emergency event. This ambitious initiative would comprehensively address communication issues at the federal, state and local levels. However, the number of disparate stakeholders in the plan at the state, parish and municipal levels increased the difficulty of reaching consensus on the plan. The author of the proposal and Blanco administration officials were unable to agree on key aspects of the bill and it died in the Senate Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection and International Affairs.

Investments in Terrorist Nations. Louisiana appears to be a leader when it comes to banning investment of state retirement systems funds in companies having facilities or employees in nations determined to have terrorist ties. House Bill 864 by Representative Schneider (enrolled) requires any public retirement system having investments in international markets to join a "terror-free index fund" which would identify and prohibit such fund holdings in companies with prohibited nations. Libya would be removed from the list of prohibited nations due to its friendly changes in foreign policy. The definition of "prohibited nations" would include nations such as Iran, North Korea, Sudan and Syria. The bill was up for final senate passage as the session entered its last week and was expected to pass the legislature and be sent to the governor for her consideration.

Benefits for Guardsmen. Another important area where Louisiana leads many other states is a proposal that the state provide an insurance allowance to its national guard members. Senate Bill 158 by Senator Marionneaux (enrolled) allows the benefit. Under the measure, Louisiana would provide 250,000 dollars in death benefits and 100,000 dollars in total, permanent, disability benefits to all officers and members of the Louisiana National Guard as long as they are in the service of the state of Louisiana in the course of the business of the military forces of this state. These benefits would be in addition to any federal insurance benefits paid. The benefits would also be provided, by the state, should the president or the governor activate Louisiana National Guard members and would be in effect for all members located out of the state or country or going to or coming from such duty. A current prohibition on such state compensation for injury or death occurring while in the service of the United States of America or while going to or returning from such service would be repealed. The bill was scheduled to be heard by the House on final passage as the session moved into its final days.

Military Law. House Bill 441 by Representative LaFleur (enrolled) is a comprehensive set of changes to the laws currently relating to the administration of the Military Department. The proposal clarifies that the governor may, with or without a declaration of emergency, order any part of the Louisiana National Guard, State Guard, or militia into active service for various missions. The bill also provides that the military forces of the state may be called into service to assist civil authorities in Louisiana or to provide support to other states under an Emergency Management Assistance Compact. The Military Department may also establish and maintain the Louisiana Military Police for the purpose of conducting law enforcement functions related to and in connection with their duties in the active Louisiana National Guard. If the active military police or security police of the guard are activated by the governor in support of civilian authorities, the adjutant general may commission such active members of the guard as Louisiana Military Police. Other technical changes provide that when any person is arrested subject to the Louisiana Code of Military Justice, that person shall be provided details of the charges against them within twenty-four hours of their arrest and shall also be appointed a military defense counsel. The bill was amended in the Senate and was awaiting House concurrence in those changes as the deadline for final passage of a bill approached.

Military Funerals. Senate Bill 170 by Senator Nevers (pending Senate Judiciary B) was an attempt to provide increased military honors available to eligible veterans. The bill would have created honor guard details from members of the Louisiana National Guard, the Air National Guard, the Louisiana State Guard, state military police forces, or the volunteer Reserve Officers Training Corps units at state universities and college to attend the funerals of eligible veterans and render appropriate military burial services. The proposal would have provided for per diem for honor guard members, as well as training, equipment, uniforms and other military requirements for such services. The bill was assigned to the Senate Committee on Judiciary B and never moved during the session, spelling certain defeat for the measure.

Legislative Honors for Fallen Soldiers. More than two dozen condolence resolutions to the families of troops killed in Iraq and Afghanistan were authored by Senator Marionneaux, Senate Bill 41 (enrolled) and a Military Day For Families of Fallen Soldiers was held in the Senate Chamber June 5, 2007, with a number of those families being present and participating in an honors ceremony that was so quiet and respectful a pin drop could be heard and weeping was the most common sound in the upper chamber.