House Bill 535 in the 2021 Louisiana legislative session, sponsored by Rep. Joe Orgeron, is still alive but on life support as of this writing. As readers may recall, it was introduced in response to a failure by the LDWF Commission last Fall to consider a nearshore exclusion zone for the commercial harvest of menhaden. That proposal came after public outcry over numerous incidents where bull redfish, along with other gamefish and mammals, were found dead within close proximity of harvest boats. Outside of Louisiana, every other coastal state in the Gulf-Atlantic basin either has an exclusion zone, or prohibits menhaden harvest altogether.
The original request to the commission was for a one-mile buffer. HB535 was actually a compromise measure, reducing the buffer down to 1/2 mile. The FFI Gulf Coast Council, along with CCA Louisiana and several other conservation groups, came out publicly in strong support of HB535. The bill passed the House Natural Resources Committee, and then the House floor (full vote) by wide margins.
The bill then went to the Senate Natural Resources Committee where it hit a brick wall. Commercial fishing interests of all types – not just the menhaden industry – made a strong lobbying effort to the Senate NRC. A “compromise” amendment was offered, reducing the buffer zone to 1/4 mile. It then went to the full floor of the Senate, where it passed by a vote of 35 to 3.
However, yesterday the House floor voted to reject the Senate amendments by a margin of 79-12. That means the bill must now go to conference. Three members of the House Natural Resources Committee and three members of the Senate Natural Resources Committee will meet to work out a compromise. If none is reached, HB535 is dead.
Complicating matters is the fact that tomorrow is the last day of the session. Any bills outstanding as of 6:00pm will be considered failed. The good news is, if a concurrence can be reached, both House and Senate can ratify immediately.
Two sources I spoke to this morning told me that a concurrence is likely, but that “the fight isn’t over” regardless of the outcome. One of the sources indicated there’s a real chance that Governor Edwards could veto. I checked with a legislator and his view was that the governor is more likely to not sign and let the bill become law by default. This is typically done when a governor doesn’t support legislation, but at the same time, wants to avoid a veto override session.
We shall see what the next 36 hours bring.
