By: Greg LaRose | Louisiana Illuminator
It remains to be seen whether Louisiana lawmakers will call for a constitutional convention, but some of the parameters for what the process would look like are advancing in the legislature.
House Bill 244, by Rep. Kyle Green, D-Marrero, gained second-level clearance Monday, receiving approval from the House Committee on Civil Law and Procedure. The House and Governmental Affairs Committee gave its nod April 1, and the proposal goes next to the House floor.
The proposal is a constitutional amendment that will need two-thirds support from both chambers to be placed on the Nov. 3 ballot.
Green’s bill does not set a date for a convention or an election calendar for delegates. If a convention is called, his legislation specifies that it be made up of 144 elected delegates, with one from each of the 105 Louisiana House districts and 39 state Senate districts.
All amendments to the constitution would require two-thirds approval from delegates to be placed before voters. Once a draft is compiled, it would need to be ratified by at least three-fourths of Louisiana’s 64 parishes in addition to a majority of voters statewide before the governor can proclaim it the new constitution.
Louisiana last updated its constitution 52 years ago, with the new version having taken effect Jan. 1, 1975.
A separate proposal, House Bill 4 by Rep. Dixon McMakin, R-Baton Rouge, would pull together a constitutional convention from April 10 to Oct. 15, 2028. Its delegate total would be 93, with two elected from each Louisiana Senate district and one each from the five Public Service Commission districts. The governor would appoint the remaining 10 delegates.
A draft constitution would go before voters Dec. 16, 2028, and take effect Jan. 1, 2029, if approved.
McMakin’s bill advanced from House and Governmental Affairs the same day as Green’s and awaits a hearing in the House Committee on Appropriations for approval of the per diem payments to delegates.