Gov Landry vetoes HB 423

Musings on the LA Legislature #13

Hello all,

I hope everyone had a solid end to the work week. The past few days were pretty busy for me work-wise, but I’m about to have some time off soon. So, I’ll have more time to dedicate to the Louisiana First Standard.

Earlier this month, I reviewed the first 9 bills that Governor Landry vetoed from the Legislature’s regular session. However, Landry vetoed another 18 bills. For today’s post, we are going to look at one recently vetoed bill in particular— HB 423.

The Veto of HB 423

Last week, Governor Landry vetoed a key tort reform bill (HB 423 by rep Melerine) supported by Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple, LABI, the trucking industry, advocates of lawsuit reform, and Louisiana voters in general. The bill would have added transparency to Louisiana’s litigious legal environment regarding auto wrecks by modifying the “collateral source doctrine”.

Currently, Louisiana law only allows juries in auto accident lawsuits to see the inflated medical bill amount from a healthcare entity— rather than the real amount paid for a person’s injuries. HB 423 would have provided juries with a more accurate, realistic view of a person’s medical expenses.

Of course, the trial lawyers in Louisiana did not like HB 423. The bill would have likely lowered the amount of money that they make in auto accident lawsuits.

Sadly, Governor Landry shocked the business community and grassroots conservatives by vetoing HB 423. Landry provided his reason for vetoing the HB 423 here:

The Business Pushback against the Veto

After Landry vetoed HB 423, the LABI, LA Lawsuit Abuse Watch, the LA Trucking Industry, & Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple all released press releases expressing their dissatisfaction with Landry’s veto:

In fact, Commissioner Temple requested Gov Landry to call for a legislative special session to address Louisiana’s auto insurance crisis in his press release:

Governor Landry’s decision to veto HB 423, which passed with strong support in both legislative chambers, is discouraging for Louisiana citizens and business owners who anticipated progress addressing our state’s auto insurance crisis this session.

Louisianans have suffered from ridiculously expensive auto insurance premiums for far too long. We all have friends in states like Texas and Mississippi who save money while we pay twice as much to insure our family vehicles. Louisiana businesses, especially those near our borders, are setting up shop in other states to avoid our extreme rates.

I do agree with the Governor that we should always strive to fix issues with our civil law, but we can’t afford to wait another year before trying again on legal reform. Because of that, I’m asking Governor Landry, Senate President Henry and House Speaker DeVillier to call a special session so we can work together to pass legislation including changes to the collateral source rule and the Housley presumption.

Insurance change moves slowly. It is imperative that we prioritize starting the process of creating the competitive market our fellow citizens, business owners and truckers need and deserve. Governor Landry’s leadership was vital to the property insurance reform we achieved this session, and I look forward to working with him on legal reform as well.

Last Thursday, Governor Landry made an appearance on the Moon Griffon show to talk about his veto of HB 423. In my opinion, Landry’s interview did not go over well.

However, the most disappointing part of the interview is that Landry DID NOT provide any real solutions to Louisiana’s auto insurance crisis. Landry mainly criticized the auto insurance companies and his previous tort reform bills under Governor John Bel Edwards.

If you want to listen to Landry’s appearance on the Moon Griffon show, then check out the link below:

Sadly, I would not expect your auto insurance premiums to go down under the Landry administration. While Landry did sign several auto insurance reform bills, my personal takeaway from this interview is that we should not expect a quick fix to Louisiana’s auto insurance crisis.

Of course, I have supported most of Jeff Landry’s policies in his first 6 months as Governor. However, vetoing HB 423 does not appear to be a great decision, and the Louisiana public is not happy with his handling of the insurance crisis.

A recent poll found that roughly 60% of Louisiana voters disapprove of the Governor's handling of the insurance crisis.

We will have to wait and see if this decision will hurt Landry’s political future down the road. Let’s hope not because Landry has notched some solid wins related to education policy and social conservatism.

If you want to learn more about Landry’s veto of HB 423, then check out these two articles from The Hayride:

-”What Happens Now After Landry’s Collateral-Source-Rule Veto?” by Scott McKay

-"Louisiana’s Landry Vetoes Tort Reform Bill Concerning Collateral Source Doctrine” by Jacob Matthews

Anyways, thank you all for reading, and may Christ Jesus bless the state of Louisiana! Only Louisiana First!