HB
1262 by Rep. Barry
Ivey would requiring provision information to women considering abortion
about the procedure and options to encourage diversion of victims from human
trafficking. He told the House that the cost to print the pamphlets would be
negligible. Rep. Pat Smith contended even that cost might be too much for the
Department of Health and Hospitals. When technical amendments were offered, she
then asked whether English would be the only language in which these would be
printed; Ivey said DHH could accommodate more languages. After the amendments
were adopted without objection, the bill passed 80-10.
DID YOU KNOW?
HB
45 by Rep. Alan
Seabaugh would not permit those who are officers in teacher unions who do not
work in the classroom would have retirement contributions from the state
suspended into the Teachers Retirement System of Louisiana and also others in
health care who are employees in the private/nonprofit sector who have the
state paying for their retirement, who are hired after a certain date. He said
if this occurs through the four state systems, the state is on the hook for
payment, even if the employers voluntarily pay for any unfunded accrued liability.
Rep. Sam Jones
kept asking him whether he knew this voluntary payment always has been made,
but Seabaugh kept adding that these were not state employees and that the state
should not be put in a position to pay retirement for people who are not
employees of the state. Jones asked whether Seabaugh had voted for corporate
welfare for sports teams in the state, which he said he didn’t know in which
version of last year’s budget these were but he may have. Jones said he was looking
for consistency from Seabaugh; Seabaugh said he was providing consistency in
the treatment of state vs. non-state employees concerning retirement.
Upon questioning by Rep. Kevin Pearson,
Seabaugh noted that any required or voluntary payment down of the UAL by the
state also encompassed any UAL portion that would be paid by non-state
employees, thus taxpayers paid for non-employees’ retirement of all entities
that have a portion of the UAL. Rep. Ed Price asked
what happened to union officials that then did not get retirement money, but
Seabaugh pointed out they went on sabbatical and did not work for the state
during their people. Price claimed as officials they still worked for state
employees, but Seabaugh noted they actually worked for a private employer.
Price, and then Smith, claimed it was a “witch hunt” against teachers. Rep.
Kenny Cox said he wondered whether this would be a union-busting bill; Seabaugh
said it included the health care employees which to his knowledge weren’t
unionized.
