2021 legislative priorities
Click on the bill numbers to link to the Legislature's website, see the bill's text, and more.
- HB 84: Restores the right of jury service to individuals convicted of a felony and are finished with their sentence.
- HB 106: Requires a defense lawyer to advise a defendant of all consequences associated with a plea before a judge may enter that plea.
- HB 145: Provides same good time release options to people sentenced between 1997 and 2008.
- HB 158: Establishes that a person cannot be convicted of second-degree murder without proven intent to kill.
- HB 378: Streamlines voter registration for people who are placed on probation but are not incarcerated.
bill tracker
We update this Bill Tracker throughout the legislative session. As bills move through each stage in the process of becoming a law, they moved up the categories listed below. In each category, the bills are listed in order by number. Click on the bill number to head to the LA Legislature site, read the bill's text, history of the bill, and more.
VOTE's positions on the bills are as follows:
Blue - Top 5 Priority
Green - Support
Red - Oppose
Yellow - Amend or Neutral
*Note: The public can attend and speak at Committee hearings, but not Floor Hearings. Committee hearings are one of the best opportunities for your elected officials to hear about your experience and needs. To talk more about testifying in a Committee hearing, contact us.
VOTE's positions on the bills are as follows:
Blue - Top 5 Priority
Green - Support
Red - Oppose
Yellow - Amend or Neutral
*Note: The public can attend and speak at Committee hearings, but not Floor Hearings. Committee hearings are one of the best opportunities for your elected officials to hear about your experience and needs. To talk more about testifying in a Committee hearing, contact us.
Additional Resources
VOTE Research
VOTE Research
VOTE often works with other organizations and universities to conduct research at the request of the Louisiana Legislature. These requests are usually in the form of Concurrent Resolutions, which are non-binding agreements signed by the House and the Senate. Our hope is that once legislators have more information about the injustices, they will act to address them. Check some of them out:
- We has been fighting "collateral consequences" for many years, including researching and writing HCR 109, which would increase transparency for the collateral consequences of someone taking a guilty plea. The research made way for HB 106, which is one of our priority bills this year. Download the report here.
- Healthcare in for currently incarcerated people is always a priority for us. Every one of our formerly or currently incarcerated family has been a witness or victim of inadequate healthcare while inside. We just finished writing a report on the healthcare in Louisiana State Prisons as a result of HRC 91 passed last year. It's now public — download that report here.
Educational Guides - Louisiana Legislature 101
Never been to the Capitol? Not sure what phrases like like 'Legislature' and 'House Floor' mean? This explainer is for you.
Want to understand each step in how a bill becomes a law? This video, made by VOTE members, is for you.
Want to share your experience of incarceration with your elected officials? This video of our members learning how and why we testify is for you.
ready to fight?
Contact your Representative and Senator! Tell them to support the bills in green, and oppose the ones in red.
