A Louisiana Capitol Update from Haynie and Associates

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NASL

February 10th, 2023

Update from Ryan Haynie and Randy Haynie:

January 2023

The 2023 Louisiana Legislative session is quickly approaching and will run from April 10 through June 8.  Each lawmaker will be allowed unlimited fiscal bills (taxes, credits, exemptions) but will be limited to only 5 general subject matter bills.  Haynie & Associates clients can anticipate lawmakers to utilize all their available general bills this session, as this will be the final session of the term and the last opportunity to address policy priorities and campaign promises before the October 14 election. 

Legislation has already begun to be pre-filed and can be seen in its introduced form at www.legis.la.gov and will continue through the March 29^th pre-file introductory deadline.  Each lawmaker is allowed five session introductions through April 18^th, 2023.  Haynie & Associates will review and distribute all introduced legislation for our clients and are already hard at work preparing the proactive strategies of our clients. Typically, an election year session makes it difficult to gather the needed votes on controversial legislation, as lawmakers tend to become risk-averse when their re-election is only months away.   

2023 is shaping up to be an important and pivotal year in Louisiana Politics.  On October 14^th all 144 state legislators (105 members of the House and 39 members of the Senate) and all 7 Statewide officials will be on the ballot.  Governor John Bel Edwards has reached the end of his 8-year term and the open race to replace him will bring about heavy spending and many twists and turns if history is to be any indicator.  The field of candidates running for Governor is not yet set and will not be final until qualifying for the elections concludes on August 10th.

To date Attorney General Jeff Landry (R), Senator Sharron Hewitt (R), Treasurer John Schroder (R), Rep. Richard Nelson (R), and Hunter Lundy (D) have announced their official intentions to run for Governor, while others have officially declared themselves out of the race such as Lt. Governor Nungesser and US Senators Cassidy and Kennedy.  Other potential Gubernatorial candidates well-known to the electorate are still said to be undecided including DOTD Secretary Shawn Wilson (D), Congressman Garrett Graves (R), and a handful of other big names.

Now is a great time for our clients to reach out to their local lawmakers and form a relationship and offer support in their upcoming re-election, or to meet and educate candidates on their top issues. Term limits and political ambition for other positions will both contribute to relatively high turnover in the legislature.  Haynie and Associates will participate in multiple polling groups helping to inform our client and our decisions for both statewide and legislative elections.

Haynie and Associates will be active in planning and hosting fundraisers throughout the year and encourages and facilitates our client’s participation. Please reach out to discuss local races and invite our participation or introduce us to local candidates.  Haynie & Associates looks forward to continuing to successfully serve the lobbying and governmental affairs needs of our clients in 2023. We expect to see some of you in DC at Washington Mardi Gras!

(Pictured: Ryan Haynie and Randy Haynie)