By: Jeff Singer

Louisiana will become the first state in the nation to let voters weigh in on a proposal to ban private funding for elections this fall, an effort that comes after years of conservative conspiracy theories about Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg's role in the 2020 presidential election. No one has released any polls of the Oct. 14 contest over Amendment 1, which will take place the same day that the Pelican State holds its all-party primary for governor, but a prominent local voting rights advocate tells Bolts' Alex Burness he's pessimistic about opponents' chances.

By: Alex Burness

Louisiana’s Ascension Parish stores its voting machines in a warehouse without climate control, says Bridget Hanna, the parish’s elected clerk of court and top elections official. This worries her on days like these, when temperatures routinely hit 100 degrees, compounded by extreme humidity.

Louisiana’s voting machines are from 2006—old enough that when they falter, Hanna says, it’s often impossible to locate replacement parts. That’s a common frustration: aging voting equipment poses a projected multi-billion-dollar concern in the United States, amid a general national crisis of underfunding for local election administration.

By: Sam Karlin

Mandie Landry’s recent effort to pass a bill addressing gun violence got off to a rocky start.

One day in January, Landry, a progressive New Orleans Democrat, found herself at the center of a vitriolic online debate. In response to a tweet about the failure of another gun measure she had proposed, she argued for a law holding people who leave guns in cars liable for violence that ensues after their guns are stolen.

By: Melissa Flournoy

Do you want to know why young people are leaving Louisiana and moving to more progressive cities? They want to plan for the future, not cling to the past; they want rights to health care, education and respect for all people and races.

They want good-paying jobs and a high quality of life. They want to embrace the future.

Most people who work on, or follow, civil rights issues in the U.S. woke up on Thursday, June 8, 2023, with a feeling of impending doom. That morning, the U.S. Supreme Court was expected to announce its ruling in the Allen v. Milligan case, which derived from a lawsuit challenging Alabama’s congressional map for diluting the voting power of Black voters in violation of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA), the law’s most critical remaining provision. The Court’s decision would determine whether the VRA, one of the most important laws in U.S. history, remained in place in any meaningful form. Few, if any, thought it would survive.

By: Piper Hutchinson

A Louisiana Senate Committee advanced a controversial bill Tuesday that would allow adults over the age of 21 to carry a concealed firearm without a license or training. 

The Senate Judiciary B Committee signed off on House Bill 131 by Rep. Danny McCormick, R-Oil City, on a 4-1 vote, with committee Chair Sen. Gary Smith, D-Norco, being the sole vote opposed. Sen. Gregory Tarver, D-Shreveport, joined Republicans in supporting the bill. 

By: Jeff Palermo

By: Nicole Potter

The Louisiana House of Representatives recently passed a bill to improve the state’s expungement program for cannabis possession convictions. Rep. Delisha Boyd sponsored the bill, which passed with a 69-30 vote. “House Bill 286 is a request for a reduction in expungement fees in first offense marijuana. I’ve worked closely with the DA association, sheriffs, and the clerks, to put this bill in its proper posture,” Boyd said at the hearing on May 23.

The Louisiana House Democratic Caucus recently posted on social media about the bill’s passing as well. “This bill passed the House today and will make it easier for people to get the post-conviction relief and justice they need and deserve. #LaLege #LaGov.”

By: Shannon Heckt

BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) – A bill that looked to add protections in the workplace for LGBTQ people failed in a House committee Wednesday. Advocates believe it is critical to codify protections into state law, others said it opens up businesses to lawsuits.

The legislature has advanced bills that would limit discussion around gender identity and sexual orientation in schools and also prevent some kids from getting books about the LGBTQ community.

By: Wesley Muller

Republican lawmakers on a state House panel killed a measure that would have established a $10 per hour minimum wage in Louisiana and increased to $14 by 2028.

House Bill 374, sponsored by Rep. Ed Larvadain, D-Alexandria, failed to pass the House Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations in a 5-9 vote along party lines Wednesday.

By: Greg Larose

An attempt to unlink a long-running anti-drug effort for students from a legally questionable funding source failed Thursday in the Louisiana House Judiciary Committee.

More than 40 Louisiana sheriffs staff Drug Abuse Resistance Education programs, or DARE for short, with about 160 deputies, according to the Louisiana Sheriffs’ Association. One of DARE’s funding streams comes from a $100 fee placed on defendants found guilty of certain drug offenses in their parishes.

By: Eric Grossman

Whether you’re walking down Bourbon Street or chilling in one of the parks along the Mississippi River, chances are you’re going to encounter cannabis in the Big Easy. After all, New Orleans is a global mecca for having a good time.

But despite the city’s feel-good status, Louisiana weed laws don’t follow that same chilled-out vibe. So before you go lighting up a joint or passing around edibles, be sure to take a moment to learn about the city’s weed laws. It’s a little complicated, so we tapped a handful of experts and wrote up a guide to help you out—here’s everything you need to know about legal weed in New Orleans and Louisiana before your next visit.

By: Tyler Bridges

Louisiana Progress and other progressive groups are facing an uphill battle trying to push an anti-poverty agenda through the Republican-controlled Legislature this year.

The groups note that Louisiana had the second-highest poverty rate in the U.S. in 2021 when the Census Bureau last measured the issue.

By: Wesley Muller

Louisiana Republicans will try for the third year in a row to enact new election laws, including two that Gov. John Bel Edwards previously blocked.

Republican Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin previewed his legislative package for the 2023 regular session, which begins Monday. The bills would provide “election integrity” for Louisiana, according to Ardoin.