View in web browser

It's been a while! I hope that you had a nice holiday season - from Thanksgiving all the way through Mardi Gras - and that you're looking forward to festival season. 

The regular legislative session begins April 14, 2025. But first: we have an election on March 29 where everyone in the state will vote on four proposed constitutional amendments. Vote no on all four. More below.

My campaign debt that I owe myself is down to four digits. So close. I'd appreciate if you could help out, and of course, during the year I have expenses, such as Baton Rouge rent, technology, accounting, community events, and the like.

My annual session send off will be Thursday April 10, from 5-7pm.

Happy Spring!

- Mandie

Why you should vote NO on March 29

INSURANCE

Representative Matthew Willard (Gentilly/Bayou St. John) will do a Q&A on insurance at the April 10 sendoff. The fortified roof program is proving to significantly lower insurance prices, on average 22%, or over $1000 a year. We expect to see bills this session to help with the cost of these $15k-20k roofs, which offer significant protection during a storm.

MISCELLANEOUS

Louisiana has arrested a woman for allegedly giving her daughter the abortion pill, and has indicted a doctor in New York for sending the pills here. We knew this was coming. 

The Saints, directed by Gayle Benson, assisted the Archdiocese of New Orleans in PR spin when the names of dozens of CHILD RAPISTS were finally released by the Church.

The NYT did a great article on the bands that perform during Mardi Gras Parades.

Louisiana executed a man by nitrogen gas this week, the first execution here in years. 

Louisiana literacy rates have gone up tremendously! Thanks to my sis for all of her work in literacy over the years. :)

Local races for the October city ballot are heating up.



President Elon's cuts to NOAA are so scary to those of us on the coast.

AMENDMENTS ON THE MARCH 29 BALLOT

There are 4 proposed constitutional amendments on your Saturday, March 29 ballot. The main reason you should vote no: they were shoved through the legislature quickly, in a two week special session, and written and decided upon by insiders. Put it this way: Rep. Willard and I are on the Ways & Means Committee, and we weren't told one word about the tax proposals until we received a 100+ page binder right before a short session, which started the day after the presidential election and ended right before Thanksgiving. Check out the Public Affairs Research Council or Invest Louisiana for more information, or other articles like Clancy Dubos'. 

AMENDMENT 1: This would allow the legislature to create "specialty courts." What does that mean? Who knows! Our best guess is that these would be courts devoted to "business issues." Oil and gas maybe? Insurance? Courts just for Orleans, courts for anything at all. Judges would likely be appointed. You could be in Houma and have a claim against your insurance company, but have to litigate in Baton Rouge, in front of a judge appointed by the Governor, NOT one elected by the people of your parish. That's possible. Also, we already have too many judges in Louisiana.

(This amendment also allows the state supreme court to discipline out of state lawyers. We can already do this. NOTE: Many descriptions of this amendment, such as the Governor's, literally omit the information on specialty courts.)

AMENDMENT 2: This is the complicated tax proposal. Philosophically, it is difficult to trust something created by niche policy groups, amended by insiders, and impossible to understand because it's 100+ pages long. There are some good provisions in it, some bad, some grey, some unnecessary. For more information check out the Public Affairs Research Council or Invest Louisiana. The Advocate says vote no on 2.

AMENDMENT 3: No one knows who asked for this bill. In short: it would send more teens to adult prison, including for non-violent crimes. Teens who commit violent crimes can already be sent to the adult system. This amendment would allow a DA to send a kid with any felony whatsoever to the adult system, and actually require it in some instances. This bill is just mean. Criminal justice professionals oppose it. Even those with politics on the right hate it. This bill passed the House by the exact votes it needed - not one to spare. I personally know that many of my colleagues were extremely uncomfortable with it.

AMENDMENT 4: Again, no one knows what the deal is here. It alters the timing for certain judicial elections. Hard to understand and explain.

Fun in 2025! Snow, Mardi Gras, Valentine's Day (lol those kids),

Super Bowl, Super Sunday, SCRIM!, and

Speaker Devillier's December visit to District 91

View in web browser