NEW ORLEANS — In your Breakdown, lawmakers are busy in Baton Rouge. Here are some bills we’re watching as they move through the legislative process.
HB173 would make it a crime to stand within 25 feet of a police officer if they’ve ordered you to stand back. The House passed the bill on Tuesday, and it will now go to the Senate.
This bill was heard in committee Wednesday: HB103 would legally require school boards and parish governments with more than 25 thousand residents, plus governing bodies in towns of more than 10 thousand people, to broadcast their public meetings online or on TV. Many of those governing bodies already do, but current law only requires adequate notice of the meetings.
The House Health and Welfare Committee approved HB312 Wednesday, which would make ivermectin available over the counter without a prescription. The state of Tennessee passed a similar bill two years ago. Ivermectin is FDA-approved to treat serious parasitic diseases but is not FDA-licensed to be sold over the counter. It now goes to the full house for further debate.
There’s a fight over THC, too. Senate Republicans are pushing SB237, which would outlaw all THC-infused products that were made legal in Louisiana in the last few years. Currently, companies are allowed to sell drinks and other consumables with up to 8 milligrams of THC per serving in Louisiana, but this bill would eliminate that entire industry.
After a “robust 24 hours on Twitter”, Senator Katrina Jackson withdrew SB433, which would have required Louisiana TOPS Scholarship recipients to live and work in Louisiana for three years after graduation or pay part of their scholarship back.
The Louisiana House is set to convene Thursday afternoon. The Senate will not reconvene until Monday.
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