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The Louisiana Senate passes contentious car insurance bills. See who won and who lost.

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4 months ago

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The Louisiana Senate passes contentious car insurance bills. See who won and who lost.


Gov. Jeff Landry showed who’s the boss at the State Capitol when he rammed a car insurance bill through the Senate late Wednesday night over the vehement objections of Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple and business trade groups.

House Bill 148 would grant the insurance commissioner greater authority to reject “excessive” rate increases, which Landry has said several times would prompt him to blame Temple if rates remain high. With a last-minute amendment sought by the governor, HB148 also would require insurance companies to make their rate filing requests public. They say this could force them to expose trade secrets.

But balancing out the scales, the Senate also passed five bills that affect who can sue and how much they can collect – measures that Temple, the insurance industry and their business allies say would reduce payouts and thus reduce rates. The Senate passed the bills over the opposition of trial lawyers and their Democratic allies.

“What just passed out of the Senate, and if passed into law, would be the most comprehensive insurance reform in Louisiana’s history,” said Sen. Patrick McMath, R-Covington. “These changes are geared toward addressing the unaffordable car insurance crisis in Louisiana.”

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Sen. Jay Luneau, D-Alexandria, offered a different take.

“We’re just taking away more people’s rights, and rates won’t go down,” he said, adding that the Senate’s rush to approve bills with late changes “leads to bad legislation.”

Temple supported the pro-insurance industry bills that passed but slammed the rate increase bill.

“It’s a false claim that rates are high because the commissioner doesn’t have some magical power,” he said. “It doesn’t address the fundamental problem in Louisiana – bodily injury and legal abuse.”

In sum, senators said, Landry emerged as the big winner politically, while Temple and the insurance industry appear to have had mixed results, with trial lawyers seemingly on the losing end.

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Wednesday’s late night action sets up Landry to sign a raft of car insurance bills as early as Wednesday next week, legislative sources said.

He will sign all five bills passed by the Senate Monday night, the governor’s office said Thursday, although whether all five bills will have won final House approval by then is not clear.

The fight over how to address high car insurance rates has been the highest profile political battle since the legislative session began in mid-April.

Landry and legislators have been pulled by both sides throughout, with Temple and his business allies on the offensive and trial lawyers and their allies playing defense.

The governor has repeatedly positioned himself in the middle, saying he doesn’t like billboard lawyers (although he went turkey hunting in Texas with several prominent trial attorneys just before the session began) but also believes that insurance companies are earning big profits in Louisiana.

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In a speech Thursday in New Iberia, Landry said a study by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners shows that Louisiana is an outlier on one key metric: “Our minor injury claims are double the national average,” he said.

Temple has said Louisiana has had twice as many minor injury claims as New York even though that state counts five times as many residents.

Senate President Cameron Henry has been talking with Landry and Senate colleagues for days about how to handle the nearly 20 pro-insurance industry bills that passed the House.

Henry, R-Metairie, outlined his plans to Republican colleagues Wednesday afternoon in a private meeting in the Senate dining room: the Senate would approve five bills.

House Bill 450 by Rep. Michael Melerine, R-Shreveport, would require someone who sued over injuries in a car accident to show that the injuries actually occurred during the accident. HB450 goes to Landry for his signature.

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House Bill 434 by Rep. Jason DeWitt, R-Alexandria, would disallow a driver without car insurance from collecting an award for bodily injury medical expenses for any amount below $100,000, up from $15,000 today. HB434 also goes to Landry for his signature.

House Bill 431 by Rep. Emily Chenevert, R-Baton Rouge, would bar drivers responsible for at least 51% of an accident from receiving a damage award to cover their injuries. Under current law, a driver responsible for, say, 51% of the accident can collect a payment equal to 49% of the overall damage award. Because of an amendment added to the bill, HB431 needs House approval before it can become law.

House Bill 436 by Rep. Gabe Firment, R-Pollack, would prohibit undocumented immigrants who are injured in car accidents from collecting general damages. HB436 requires the House to accept the Senate changes to the bill.

Senate Bill 231 by Sen. Mike Reese, R-Leesville, would allow lawyers for insurance companies to tell jurors how much people injured in wrecks actually pay in medical bills. Under current law, jurors hear the total amount billed, regardless of what the plaintiff paid. A House committee is slated to take up SB231 next week.

Temple said HB431, HB450 and SB231 would “move the needle forward.”

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Senate Democrats argued against the five bills, saying the Legislature has passed a host of pro-industry bills over the years, yet rates never come down.

Luneau, Sen. Sam Jenkins of Shreveport and Sen. Royce Duplessis of New Orleans all offered amendments to the Republican-sponsored bills that, if passed, would mandate a 2% reduction in rates. Republicans rejected those amendments on each bill.

Democrats also pointed to an April report by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners which said that in 2023, insurance companies in Louisiana had the third highest underwriting profit, the fourth lowest loss ratio and the fifth highest return on net worth.

As part of Henry’s plan, the Senate also would adopt HB148 – the measure that Landry most wanted and that Temple didn’t want – after it had been amended.

HB148 is the only bill Landry testified in favor of during the legislative session, saying last month that Temple should want to have greater authority to hold down rates.

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Senators expressed reluctance privately in recent days to advance the bill because it didn’t require the commissioner to cite actuarial data in rejecting proposed rate increases.

But Landry lobbied hard to get them to approve it Monday night, senators said Thursday. The amended version now includes actuarial language.

Sen. Kirk Talbot, a River Ridge Republican and a close friend of Henry’s, pushed the bill through the Senate.

That task fell to Talbot even though he has been one of the insurance industry’s strongest allies.

Talbot didn’t return a phone call Thursday.

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HB148 returns to the House for approval of the Senate changes.



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Louisiana

Louisiana passes law allowing state park rangers to enforce littering laws anywhere in state

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7 days ago

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September 23, 2025

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Louisiana passes law allowing state park rangers to enforce littering laws anywhere in state


BATON ROUGE – Louisiana passed a state law allowing state park rangers to enforce state litter laws anywhere in Louisiana.

The increased enforcement comes alongside revamped reinforcement efforts with a hotline. The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries will field hotline calls and pass information to state park rangers, who if given proper information, can issue a citation.

Simple littering, such as trash flying out the back of a pickup truck, carries up to $175 in fines plus court costs. Intentional littering, such as deliberately throwing trash out of a window onto a roadway, brings up to a $250 fine. Gross littering, such as depositing large amounts of trash into a ditch or having an illegal dumpsite, carries $500 to $1,000 in fines.

Officials say crimes such as dumping violations have more in-depth processes; anyone interested can find more information at the Keep Louisiana Beautiful website.

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This Week in Southeastern Athletics – September 15-21, 2025 – Southeastern Louisiana University Athletics

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2 weeks ago

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September 14, 2025

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This Week in Southeastern Athletics – September 15-21, 2025 – Southeastern Louisiana University Athletics


This Week in Southeastern Athletics – September 15-21, 2025
Monday, September 15
Golf | at Grover Page Classic | Memphis, Tenn. | 8:15 a.m.
Football | Inside Southeastern Football with Frank Scelfo | Brady’s | 7 p.m. | Kajun 107.1 FM | The Highway 104.7 FM | The Boss 97.7 FM/WFPR 1400 AM
            – Community Spotlight Guest: Scott Henderson, The Salad Station/Tommy’s on                                 
             Thomas
 
Tuesday, September 16
Golf | at Grover Page Classic | Memphis, Tenn. | 8:15 a.m.
 
Thursday, September 18

Volleyball | at Texas A&M (Texas A&M Invitational) | College Station, Texas | 6 p.m.
 
Friday, September 19

Volleyball | vs. LMU (Texas A&M Invitational) | College Station, Texas | 3 p.m.
 
Saturday, September 20
Football | at LSU | Baton Rouge | SEC Network | SEC Network | Kajun 107.1 FM | The Highway 104.7 FM | The Boss 97.7 FM/WFPR 1400 AM

Volleyball | vs. New Hampshire (Texas A&M Invitational) | College Station, Texas | Noon
 
Sunday, September 21
Soccer | at UTRGV | Edinburg, Texas | 1 p.m. | ESPN+*

Southeastern home events in bold | All times Central | * – Southland Conference event

 

HAMMOND, La. – The Southeastern Louisiana University football and two-time defending Southland Conference champion volleyball team hit the road for nonconference play, the SLU soccer team opens Southland Conference play, the Lion men’s golf team opens the fall portion of its 2025-26 schedule and Southeastern Athletics will compete in the university’s Giving Day during this week in Southeastern Athletics.

 

The SLU football team (2-1) will close out nonconference play at No. 3 LSU. Saturday’s game will kickoff at 6:45 p.m. in Tiger Stadium.

 

The Southeastern volleyball team (5-3) will close out an eight-match road swing this week, heading to College Station, Texas to compete in the Texas A&M Invitational. The Lady Lions will face host Texas A&M Thursday at 6 p.m., Loyola Marymount Friday at 3 p.m. and New Hampshire Saturday at noon during the tournament.

 

The SLU women’s soccer team (1-4-2) will open league play on the road this week. Southeastern will face new league member UTRGV Sunday at 1 p.m. in Edinburg, Texas.

 

The Lion golf team opens the 2025-26 season this week. Southeastern will head to Memphis, Tenn. to compete in the Grover Page Classic Monday and Tuesday.

 

Southeastern Giving Day is set for Wednesday and is an opportunity to give back to the university, including Southeastern Athletics. Visit www.southeasterngivingday.org for more information.

 

On the Air

This week’s football game will be televised on SEC Network, while Thursday’s volleyball match will air on SEC Network+. Sunday’s soccer match can be seen on ESPN+.

 

The 2025 season of Inside Southeastern Football with Frank Scelfo will continue Monday at 7 p.m. at Brady’s in downtown Hammond. Scelfo and host Allen Waddell will discuss all things Lion football on the hour-long show weekly during the season, which airs on the Southeastern Sports Radio Network (Kajun 107.1 FM, The Highway 104.7 FM and The Boss 97.7 FM/WFPR 1400 AM).

 

Scott Henderson of The Salad Station and Tommy’s on Thomas will be Monday’s Community Spotlight Guest.

 

The same Southeastern Sports Radio Network stations will broadcast Saturday’s football game.

 

SOCIAL MEDIA

For more information on Southeastern Athletics, follow @LionUpAthletics on X and Instagram or like /LionUpAthletics on Facebook.

 

CLEAR BAG POLICY

Southeastern Athletics has instituted a clear bag policy for all ticketed events. For more information on the clear bag policy, visit www.LionSports.net/clear.

 

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Louisiana’s Win Streak Snapped After Hard-Fought Battle at Ole Miss

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2 weeks ago

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September 13, 2025

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Louisiana’s Win Streak Snapped After Hard-Fought Battle at Ole Miss


OXFORD, Miss. – The Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns Volleyball team had the momentum in its favor each of the first two sets before Ole Miss battled back and went on to post a 3-0 win (25-20, 25-22, 25-19) on Friday, September 12 at the Gillom Athletics Performance Center in Oxford, Mississippi.

The Rebels (4-3) leaned upon 16 kills each time to overcome the pressure from the Ragin’ Cajuns (6-2) and open a 2-0 match lead. Then in Set 3, Ole Miss hit .400 and sided out at 80 percent to end the contest early.

Louisiana put itself in position to be the ones ahead 2-0 in the match, tied 13-13 midway through Set 1 and laying hold to a 17-13 advantage late in Set 2. Ultimately the offensive edge for Ole Miss, which held a 45-29 edge in kills and .391 to .176 advantage in hitting percentage for the match, paid dividends.

Both sides had balanced scoring, the Ragin’ Cajuns led by nine kills from Cailin Demps and seven kills from Grace Sweeney. The Rebels, though, were able to have four players score more than five kills led by the trio of Shayla Meyer (10), Melia Johnson (9) and Gabi Placide (9) each reaching nine scores.

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The loss snapped Louisiana’s three-match win streak, the squad ending a five-match road swing with a 3-2 mark.

Ole Miss claimed victory in its 2025 season home opener and remained unbeaten in the 2000s against UL.

Jazmine Gaston scored a kill on each of her first two swings in Set 1 as the Cajuns remained ahead early 9-7 after taking the lead at 4-3 on a Kennedy Gustafson ace.

The teams were near even with five kills apiece and both hitting .300-plus through the 13-all tie. Meyer helped the Rebels make the decisive move, scoring the tiebreaking kill and serving up an ace to gain separation for good.

Sweeney asserted herself at the onset of Set 2, scoring two aces and a kill in a personal 3-0 run that pulled Louisiana ahead 4-1, then preserved the lead with yet another early kill to make it 9-7.

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Later on, Sweeney teamed up with Harley Krause on back-to-back winners as the Cajuns stretched the lead out to 17-13. The Rebels, though, reversed course as a kill, ace and block all in succession ignited a 12-5 set-ending run that prevented Louisiana from evening the match.

With a kill on each of its first three swings in Set 3 the Rebels quickly opened a 5-3 lead and led the rest of the way. Demps, who scored five kills in the frame, began to find her groove getting two kills over a span of five rallies keeping the Cajuns within striking distance at 15-11.

Ole Miss sided out after a UL service error then came up with another timely block to advance the lead to 17-11. The teams traded side outs through Demps’ final kill of the night which made it 21-16 before the Rebels scored three straight for the final separation.

LEADING THE RAGIN’ CAJUNS
Sweeney in Set 2 and Demps in Set 3 both turned in a five-kill set performance. The duo combined for 16 of the Ragin’ Cajuns’ 29 kills.

Demps’ output marked the eighth time in as many matches she’s scored at least nine kills.

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Freshman Lindsey Henry had a hand in both of the team’s blocks while Gustafson collected a team-leading eight digs.

Sweeney was a close second with six digs and setter Ryleigh Garis scooped five digs to go with her team-high tying 12 assists.

Chelsea Gilmore and Sweeney served up two aces apiece to pace the Ragin’ Cajuns to six aces.

UP NEXT FOR LOUISIANA
The Ragin’ Cajuns return home to E.K. Long Gym for the Ragin’ Cajuns Classic scheduled for Friday-Saturday, September 19-20.

Louisiana hosts Southern and Nicholls in the round robin event, meeting the Jaguars on Friday (Sept. 19) at 6:00 p.m. and then matching up with the Colonels on Saturday (Sept. 20) at Noon.

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The Ragin’ Cajuns Classic marks the final non-conference matches of the 2025 season. Louisiana opens Sun Belt play the following weekend, September 26-27, on the road at Texas State.

FOLLOW THE RAGIN’ CAJUNS
Follow the Ragin’ Cajuns on Twitter (@RaginCajunsVB [twitter.com]), Facebook (/RaginCajunsVB [facebook.com]) or Instagram (@RaginCajunsVB [instagram.com]) to stay up-to-date on all that is happening with Louisiana Volleyball.

Fans are also encouraged to stay engaged with the Ragin’ Cajuns by downloading the #GeauxCajuns app. Click here [apps.apple.com] for iOS/Apple platforms and here [play.google.com] for Android platforms.





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