Louisiana Voters to Decide on Four Controversial Constitutional Amendments in March 29 Election

By Torey Bovie
Louisiana State University

Louisiana voters will go to the polls Mar. 29 to decide on four proposed amendments that seek changes to the state constitution on matters concerning specialty courts, juvenile crimes, judicial elections and the tax and revenue systems.  

Most of the proposed amendments have received public backlash, and some critics of the measures have filed lawsuits to keep them off the ballot. The lawsuits are still pending.

Early voting began March 15 and runs through March 22 with sites open from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. To find locations near you, visit www.Geauxvote.com.

Here is a breakdown of all four amendments, listed in the order that they will appear on the ballot, and what they mean for the state.

Proposed Amendment No. 1

This amendment would change the state’s constitution in a few key ways. It would give the Louisiana Supreme Court more power to discipline lawyers from other states when they work in Louisiana. Supporters say this is needed if out-of-state attorneys engage in unethical practices in Louisiana. 

The amendment also would enable the state to create regional or statewide speciality courts that only deal with specific kinds of cases. Some jurisdictions have specialized courts, but these courts can be created only within a specific parish or judicial system.

Some who are against this amendment say the language is too vague. Opponents also worry that this amendment acts as a way to strip power from local judges. State Senator Royce Duplessis recently took to Instagram to give some of his thoughts on the amendment.

“We already have specialty courts,” he said. “My concern is that this is just a blanketed attempt to take power away from our locally elected judges…I have a real problem with this type of bill and this type of governing.”

Duplessis said this proposal is just a way of creating a new system that can undermine the rulings of judges in places like New Orleans, where the majority of voters are Democrats.

Proposed Amendment No. 2

The second amendment looks to reconstruct the largest section of the constitution that deals with taxes, savings, debt and budgeting. According to the Public Affairs Research Council, a private, nonprofit research agency, , Amendment 2 would:

● Liquidate three education-related trust funds worth about $2 billion to pay off retirement debt for teachers. Three trust funds for childhood, elementary, secondary and post-secondary education make up about $2 billion in education-related state funds. This amendment would allow the legislature to use those funds for the retirement debt. While college and public school systems would spend less money on retirement each year, the savings for the k-12 public school system would have to be used for teacher pay. The savings also would be used to guarantee annually the $2,000 one-time stipend that some teachers qualified to receive.

 ● Enact new limits on annual budget growth. If the government wanted to grow the budget, the amendment would place new restraints on the amount of funds and where they can be allocated. The new limit would be decided based on factors like inflation and population index 

● Lower  the cap on the individual income tax rate that lawmakers can charge from 4.75% to 3.75%. As of Jan. 1, 2025, taxpayers in all tax brackets are paying at a flat 3% rate. So, the change will not affect what Louisiana residents are already paying in taxes. The measure also would make seniors who are 65 or older eligible to double their standard income tax deductible.

● Allow the legislature to vote on new property tax exemptions, instead of requiring a public vote.. A two-thirds vote would be required to remove a property tax exemption. Nonprofits and churches are currently eligible for property tax exemptions, but if this amendment passes, the legislature would be able to remove these exemptions with a two-thirds majority vote. The legislature would need a three-fourths vote to pass any new property tax exemptions.

● Merge the Revenue Stabilization fund and Budget stabilization fund, also known as the “Rainy Day Fund.” This fund has helped lawmakers solve previous financial crises by alleviating some of the budget cuts to state services. Once the funds are merged, The Rainy Day Fund will reach its cap. The two trusts equal about $3.8 million dollars. Once the fund is capped, it most likely would take several years to add any more money to the trust. The Revenue Stabilization Fund would basically disappear.

● Allow several trusts to become a part of state statute, which would make spending the money from those funds easier for lawmakers and legislatures. This means money that the government kept as permanent savings would now be available to spend freely. Some of the funds that would move into state statute include the Millenium Trust, which contains the TOPS Fund and Health Excellence Fund, which total to about $940.9 million. Other funds that would be available for spending would be the Oil Spill Contingency Fund ($11.6 million) and the Oilfield Site Restoration Fund ($28.6 million).

Proposed amendment No. 3

The third amendment deals with juvenile crimes and who can be tried as an adult. Currently, the Louisiana constitution recognizes 16 offenses that would qualify juveniles 16 years or younger to be tried as adults.

If passed, Amendment 3 would allow judges to charge juveniles as adults without taking the previous list of offenses into consideration. For example, if a 16-year-old steals something from a store,  a judge can legally charge the youth as an adult . Under current law, a juvenile can be charged as an adult for 16 offenses that are considered more serious crimes.

Many who are against this amendment believe that it will boost the number of young children who are sent to adult prisons. Louisiana is one of only four states in the country that legally charge 17-year-olds as adults.

According to a review by PAR Louisiana, “ In 2021, 7.2% of Louisiana prison inmates–or 2,777 people– had been incarcerated for crimes they committed while they were under the age of 18.”   

Proposed Amendment No. 4

Amendment 4 would change the way the election timeline works for judicial elections so that an election for a newly created judgeship or a vacant position coincides with the regular election calendar.

Currently, if a judicial seat becomes vacant, the governor must call a special election for someone new to be elected if the election can’t fall on one of the four designated election days of the year. This ensures a newly elected official within 12 months.

Some organizations, such as The Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, cite Amendment 4 as a way to limit the amount of elections that the state holds, while also saving money on election administration costs. By changing the current timeline, the government won't have to create special election days for the closed primary system, which  could possibly lower the amount spent on additional election days. 

But critics say the legislature can simply change the state statute, instead of ingraining the change into the constitution.

For a more detailed explanation of the amendments, visit the Public Affairs Research Council’s website at https://parlouisiana.org/resources/guide-to-the-constitutional-amendments/

This story was reported and written by a student with the support of the non-profit Louisiana Collegiate News Collaborative, an LSU-led coalition of eight universities funded by the Henry Luce and John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur foundations.