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Louisiana Amendment 3, Allow Legislature to Extend Regular Sessions to Pass Appropriations Bills Amendment (December 2024)
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| Louisiana Amendment 3 | |
|---|---|
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| Election date December 7, 2024 | |
| Topic State legislatures measures | |
Status Approved | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin State legislature |
Louisiana Amendment 3, the Allow Legislature to Extend Regular Sessions to Pass Appropriations Bills Amendment, was on the ballot in Louisiana as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on December 7, 2024.[1] The ballot measure was approved.
A "yes" vote supported allowing the state legislature to extend its regular session by two-day increments, up to a maximum of six days, in order to pass a bill appropriating money. |
A "no" vote opposed allowing the state legislature to extend its regular session by two-day increments, up to a maximum of six days, in order to pass a bill appropriating money. |
Election results
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Louisiana Amendment 3 |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
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191,729 | 57.72% | ||
| No | 140,452 | 42.28% | ||
Overview
What did the amendment do?
- See also: Text of measure
The amendment allowed the state legislature to, by a two-thirds vote, to extend its regular session by two-day increments, up to a maximum of six days, in order to pass a bill appropriating money. Prior to the election, even-year state legislative sessions were limited to 60 legislative days over 85 calendar days and odd-year sessions are limited to 45 legislative days over 60 calendar days, and constitutional law prohibited the consideration of any matter having an effect of law except a measure proposing a suspension of the law beyond the 57th legislative day or the 82nd calendar day for even-year sessions and beyond the 42nd legislative day or the 57th calendar day for odd-year sessions, except by a two-thirds vote of the elected members of each house of the legislature.[1]
State Representative Tony Bacala (R-59) sponsored this amendment. He also sponsored another amendment referred to the December ballot that would prohibit the consideration of a conference committee report or senate amendments on an appropriations bill until 48 hours after the bill and a summary of the proposed changes is distributed to all legislators.
How did the amendment get on the ballot?
- See also: Path to the ballot
In Louisiana, a two-thirds vote is needed in each chamber of the Louisiana State Legislature to refer a legislatively referred constitutional amendment to the ballot for voter consideration.
This amendment was introduced as House Bill 49. It was passed in the House on May 1, 2024, by a vote of 92-1 with 12 members absent. It was passed in the Senate on May 23 by a vote of 32-0 with seven members absent.[1]
Text of measure
Ballot question
The ballot question for the amendment is as follows:[1]
| “ | Do you support an amendment to allow the legislature to extend a regular session in increments of two days up to a maximum of six days if necessary to pass a bill appropriating money? (Amends Article III, Sections 2(A)(3)(a) and (4)(a); Adds Article III, Section 2(A)(5)) | ” |
Constitutional changes
- See also: Article III, Louisiana Constitution
The measure would amend Section 2 of Article III of the Louisiana Constitution. The following underlined text was added and struck-through text was deleted:[3]
Note: Hover over the text and scroll to see the full text.
Section 2.(A) Annual Session.
(3)(a) All regular sessions convening in even-numbered years shall be general in nature and shall convene at noon on the second Monday in March. The legislature shall meet in such a session for not more than sixty legislative days during a period of eighty-five calendar days. No such session shall continue beyond six o'clock in the evening of the eighty-fifth calendar day after convening except as provided in Subparagraph (5) of this Paragraph. No new matter intended to have the effect of law shall be introduced or received by either house after six o'clock in the evening of the twenty-third calendar day. No matter intended to have the effect of law, except a measure proposing a suspension of law, shall be considered on third reading and final passage in either house after six o'clock in the evening of the fifty-seventh legislative day or the eighty-second calendar day, whichever occurs first, except by a favorable record vote of two-thirds of the elected members of each house.
...
4(a) All regular sessions convening in odd-numbered years shall convene at noon on the second Monday in April. The legislature shall meet in such a session for not more than forty-five legislative days in a period of sixty calendar days. No such session shall continue beyond six o'clock in the evening of the sixtieth calendar day after convening except as provided in Subparagraph (5) of this Paragraph. No new matter intended to have the effect of law shall be introduced or received by either house after six o'clock in the evening of the tenth calendar day. No matter intended to have the effect of law, except a measure proposing a suspension of law, shall be considered on third reading and final passage in either house after six o'clock in the evening of the forty-second legislative day or fifty-seventh calendar day, whichever occurs first, except by a favorable record vote of two-thirds of the elected members of each house.
...
(5) Notwithstanding any contrary provision of Subsubparagraphs (3)(a) and (4)(a) of this Paragraph and only if necessary to finally pass a bill appropriating money, the legislature, by a favorable record vote of two-thirds of the elected members of each house, may extend a regular session in increments of two legislative or calendar days. During the time a regular session has been extended, the legislature shall not consider any matter having the effect of law other than those contained in a bill appropriating money. No regular session shall be extended more than six calendar days beyond the original time and day for the session to adjourn sine die. [2]
Readability score
- See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2024
Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL) and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The state legislature wrote the ballot language for this measure.
The FKGL for the ballot title is grade level 11, and the FRE is 45. The word count for the ballot title is 47.
Support
Supporters
Officials
- State Rep. Tony Bacala (R)
Organizations
Arguments
Opposition
Ballotpedia did not locate a campaign in opposition to the ballot measure.
Arguments
Campaign finance
If you are aware of a committee registered to support or oppose this measure, please email editor@ballotpedia.org.
| Cash Contributions | In-Kind Contributions | Total Contributions | Cash Expenditures | Total Expenditures | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Support | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Oppose | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Total | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
Background
Louisiana legislative sessions
Article III of the Louisiana Constitution establishes when the legislature is to be in session. Section 2 of Article III states that, in even-numbered years, the legislature shall convene on the last Monday in March and meet for no more than sixty legislative days during a period of eighty-five calendar days. In odd-numbered years, the legislature is to convene on the last Monday in April and meet for no more than forty-five legislative days during a period of sixty calendar days. During regular sessions in odd-numbered years, the legislature can only consider measures regarding the state budget, revenues, and appropriations.
Section 2 of Article III also allows the Legislature to be called into a special session by the Governor of Louisiana or by a majority of the members of each legislative house. During special sessions, the Legislature can only legislate on matters related to the proclaimed purposes of the session.
Section 2 of Article III also authorizes the Governor of Louisiana to call an emergency session without prior notice in the event of a public emergency.[4]
Bills may be prefiled at any time, except between when the legislature adjourns for an election and when the election results are certified.[5][6]
2025
In 2025, the legislature was scheduled to convene on April 14, 2025, and adjourn on June 12, 2025.
| Click [show] for past years' session dates. | |||
|---|---|---|---|
2024In 2024, the legislature was scheduled to convene on March 11, 2024, and adjourn on June 3, 2024. 2023In 2023, the legislature was scheduled to convene on April 10, 2023, and adjourn on June 8, 2023. 2022In 2022, the legislature was scheduled to convene on March 14, 2022, and adjourn on June 6, 2022. 2021In 2021, the legislature was scheduled to convene on April 12, 2021, and adjourn on June 10, 2021. 2020In 2020, the legislature was scheduled to convene on March 9, 2020, and adjourn on June 1, 2020.
Several state legislatures had their sessions impacted as a result of the 2020 coronavirus pandemic. The Louisiana State Legislature initially suspended its session from March 16, 2020, through March 31, 2020.[7] After reconvening on March 31, 2020, the legislature suspended its session indefinitely. The legislature resumed its session on May 4, 2020. It adjourned on June 30, 2020.[8][9] 2019In 2019, the legislature was in session from April 8, 2019, through June 6, 2019. 2018In 2018, the legislature was in session from March 12, 2018, through May 18, 2018. To read about notable events and legislation from this session, click here. 2017
In 2017, the legislature was in session from April 10, 2017, through June 8, 2017. The legislature held its first special session from February 13, 2017, to February 22, 2017. The legislature held its second special session from June 8, 2017, to June 16, 2017. 2016
In 2016, the legislature was in session from March 14 through June 6. A special session was held from February 14 to March 9 to address the state's budget gap.[10] A second special session was held from June 6 to June 23. 2015
In 2015, the legislature was in session from April 13 through June 11. Major issues in 2015Major issues in the 2015 legislative session included a $1.6 billion deficit, increases in the cigarette and gasoline taxes, the Common Core education standards, marijuana legislation, and religious freedom legislation.[11][12][13][14] 2014
In 2014, the legislature was in session from March 10 through June 3. Major issues in 2014Major issues in the 2014 legislative session included Common Core, education funding, Medicaid expansion, the coastal erosion lawsuit filed by the South Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East, and legalization of medical marijuana.[15][16] 2013
In 2013, the legislature was in session from April 8 to June 6. Major issues in 2013Major issues during the 2013 legislative session included the state budget, an overhaul of public education, increasing the retirement age of public workers, gun control, and abortion.[17] 2012
In 2012, the legislature was in session from March 12 through June 4. 2011
In 2011, the Legislature was in regular session from April 25 through June 23. The Legislature undertook a special session from March 20 to April 13, focusing on redistricting following the 2010 census.[18][19] 2010
In 2010, the Legislature was in session from March 29 to June 21.[20] |
Constitutional amendments in Louisiana
A total of 112 constitutional amendments appeared on the statewide ballot in Louisiana during even-numbered years from 2000 through 2022. Of the 112 amendments, 77 (68.75%) were approved and 35 (31.25%) were defeated.
| Legislatively-referred constitutional amendments, 2000-2022 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total number | Approved | Percent approved | Defeated | Percent defeated | Even-year average | Even-year median | Even-year minimum | Even-year maximum | |
| 112 | 77 | 68.75% | 35 | 31.25% | 9 | 8 | 4 | 21 | |
Path to the ballot
- See also: Amending the Louisiana Constitution
In Louisiana, a two-thirds vote is needed in each chamber of the Louisiana State Legislature to refer a legislatively referred constitutional amendment to the ballot for voter consideration.
This amendment was introduced as House Bill 49. It was passed in the House on May 1, 2024, by a vote of 92-1 with 12 members absent. It was passed in the Senate on May 23 by a vote of 32-0 with seven members absent.[1]
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How to cast a vote
- See also: Voting in Louisiana
See below to learn more about current voter registration rules, identification requirements, and poll times in Louisiana.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Louisiana State Legislature, "House Bill 49," accessed May 13, 2024
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source. Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedbill - ↑ Louisiana State Senate, "Constitution of Louisiana," accessed February 11, 2021
- ↑ Louisiana House of Representatives, "HRULE 7.2," accessed February 11, 2021
- ↑ Louisiana State Senate, "Senate Rules of Order," accessed February 11, 2021 (Referenced Rule 9.1)
- ↑ WDSU, "Louisiana state legislature will temporarily adjourn due to COVID-19," March 16, 2020
- ↑ Bossier Press-Tribune, "Louisiana legislature meets briefly before suspending session again," March 31, 2020
- ↑ The Advocate, "75% in attendance and many without masks: Louisiana legislature reconvenes amid coronavirus," May 4, 2020
- ↑ Washington Times, "Edwards officially calls special session on budget, taxes," accessed February 8, 2016
- ↑ The Times-Picayune, "2015 Louisiana Legislature: What to expect from Bobby Jindal, lawmakers," April 11, 2015
- ↑ American Press, "How different will session be?" April 12, 2015
- ↑ Bossier Press-Tribune, "Jindal taps budget, education, relgious freedom as major 2015 session issues," April 13, 2015
- ↑ Gannett Louisiana, "Marijuana fight returning to Legislature this session," April 12, 2015
- ↑ Associated Press, "Jindal pushes worker training as legislative session opens," March 10, 2014
- ↑ American Press, "Education, lawsuit key issues," March 9, 2014
- ↑ wwltv.com, "A look at major issues at session's halfway point," April 24, 2013
- ↑ Louisiana House of Representatives, "2011 Regular Session Journals," accessed February 10, 2021
- ↑ Louisiana House of Representatives, "2011 1st Extraordinary Session Journals," accessed February 10, 2021
- ↑ Louisiana House of Representatives, "2010 Regular Session Journals," accessed February 10, 2021
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "FAQ: Voting on Election Day," accessed August 15, 2024
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "Vote on Election Day," accessed August 15, 2024
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 23.2 Louisiana Secretary of State, "Register to Vote," accessed August 15, 2024
- ↑ WWNO, "Louisiana now requires proof of citizenship to vote, but hasn’t issued any guidance," January 15, 2025
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "Louisiana Voter Registration Application," accessed June 30, 2025
- ↑ Under federal law, the national mail voter registration application (a version of which is in use in all states with voter registration systems) requires applicants to indicate that they are U.S. citizens in order to complete an application to vote in state or federal elections, but does not require voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the application "may require only the minimum amount of information necessary to prevent duplicate voter registrations and permit State officials both to determine the eligibility of the applicant to vote and to administer the voting process."
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 Louisiana Secretary of State, "Vote on Election Day," accessed August 15, 2024
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "Louisiana voters' bill of rights and voting information," accessed August 15, 2024
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