Regular Session News #5: Several TRSL-impacting bills move forward

It’s been a busy week at the Louisiana Capitol. Several of the bills that would affect TRSL were considered by various committees. Here’s a recap of what happened:
 
On Monday, proposed constitutional amendment House Bill 473 (Rep. Emerson) was reported favorably by the House Ways and Means Committee. HB 473 would apply the balance in three educational trust funds to make a one-time payment to erase a portion of TRSL’s retirement debt, also known as the unfunded accrued liability (UAL). In effect, the one-time payment would pay off or nearly pay off TRSL’s two oldest debt schedules, thereby, reducing the employer contribution rate for TRSL-participating employers. HB 473 was recommitted to the House Civil Law and Procedure Committee, which is scheduled to consider the bill at 9:30 a.m. on Monday, May 5.
 
The House Ways and Means Committee also reported proposed constitutional amendment House Bill 472 (Rep. Emerson) by substitute on Monday. HB 472 became House Bill 678 also by Rep. Emerson. HB 678, which was recommitted to the House Appropriations Committee, was reported favorably with amendments on Wednesday. As amended, HB 678 proposes to remove several constitutional dedications of mineral revenues, including dedications to pay down TRSL’s initial unfunded accrued liability (IUAL). HB 678 now goes back to the House floor for referral to the House Civil Law and Procedure Committee.
 
On Wednesday, the House Judiciary Committee reported House Bill 307 (Rep. Henry) favorably with amendments. HB 307 would require state agencies or political subdivisions to verify citizenship or immigration status when an applicant applies for federal, state, or local public benefits, including retirement benefits. If unable to verify citizenship or legal immigration status, the public entity would be required to report this information to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and terminate any recurring benefits. As amended, a required annual report would be submitted by state agencies or political divisions to various public officials and entities. HB 307 now goes to the full House for consideration.

Also scheduled next week:
The House Appropriations Committee is scheduled to meet at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, May 6, and will consider the following bills affecting TRSL:

• House Bill 466 (Rep. Carlson), a companion bill to HB 473, would direct the savings realized from the reduced employer contribution rate for TRSL-participating employers, if enacted through the constitutional amendment, to make permanent salary increases for teachers ($2,000) and school personnel ($1,000) beginning in the 2027-2028 school year. HB 466 includes provisions for state funding if the realized savings for any school district from HB 473 are insufficient to cover the raises. It also establishes specific purposes for which school systems must use any realized savings that exceed what is needed to fund the pay increases.
• House Bill 599 (Rep. Emerson), companion bill of enabling legislation for HB 678, would remove statutory provisions related to dedication of certain mineral revenues to pay down TRSL’s IUAL.