HLS 16RS-536 ORIGINAL
2016 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 905
BY REPRESENTATIVE EMERSON
COURTS/DISTRICT: Provides with respect to employability certificates for reentry court
participants
1 AN ACT
2To enact R.S. 23:291.1, relative to the employment of certain persons; to provide for the
3 issuance of a permanent and a temporary certificate of employability under certain
4 conditions; to provide for revocation of certificates of employability; to prohibit
5 certain causes of action under certain circumstances; to provide for applicability to
6 certain forms of liability; and to provide for related matters.
7Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
8 Section 1. R.S. 23:291.1 is hereby enacted to read as follows:
9 ยง291.1. Certificate of employability
10 A.(1) Any judge presiding over a reentry division of court created pursuant
11 to R.S. 13:5401 shall issue a temporary certificate of employability to an offender
12 under the intensive supervision of the reentry division of court.
13 (2) Any judge presiding over a reentry division of court created pursuant to
14 R.S. 13:5401 shall issue a permanent certificate of employability to an offender who
15 has successfully completed his sentence under R.S. 13:5401.
16 B.(1) A temporary certificate of employability shall be deemed null and void
17 if the offender fails to successfully complete his sentence under R.S. 13:5401 and is
18 revoked from probation.
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CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
are additions. HLS 16RS-536 ORIGINAL
HB NO. 905
1 (2) A certificate of employability shall be deemed null and void if the
2 offender is convicted of any felony offense subsequent to the issuance of the
3 certificate of employability.
4 C. Any employer, general contractor, premises owner, or other third party
5 shall not be subject to a cause of action for negligent hiring of or failing to
6 adequately supervise an offender certified to be employed due to damages or injury
7 caused by that employee or independent contractor solely because that employee or
8 independent contractor has been previously convicted of a criminal offense.
9 D. Nothing in this Subsection shall affect the vicarious liability of the
10 employer pursuant to Civil Code Article 2320.
DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
HB 905 Original 2016 Regular Session Emerson
Abstract: Provides for the issuance of a certificate of employability for an offender who
is in the reentry division of court.
Present law (R.S. 13:5401) authorizes the district courts to assign a certain division of the
court as a reentry division of court.
Present law requires a reentry division of court to establish a workforce development
sentencing program, which shall establish guidelines for the issuance of sentences providing
inmate rehabilitation and workforce development, and which shall work in conjunction with
the Louisiana Workforce Commission.
Proposed law requires a judge presiding over a reentry division of court to issue a temporary
certificate of employability to an offender in the reentry program and a permanent certificate
of employability to an offender who has successfully completed his sentence.
Proposed law provides that a temporary certificate shall be deemed null and void if the
offender fails to complete his sentence under present law (R.S. 13:5401), and that a
certificate of employability is void if the offender is convicted of any felony offense
subsequent to the issuance of the certificate of employability.
Proposed law provides that an employer, general contractor, premises owner, or other third
party shall not be subject to a cause of action for negligent hiring of or failing to adequately
supervise an offender certified to be employed solely because that employee or independent
contractor has been previously convicted of a criminal offense.
Provides that proposed law shall not affect the vicarious liability of the employer.
(Adds R.S. 23:291.1)
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CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
are additions.