ENROLLED
ACT No. 78
2017 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 665
BY REPRESENTATIVE BARRAS
1 AN ACT
2 To appropriate funds for Fiscal Year 2017-2018 to defray the expenses of the Louisiana
3 Legislature, including the expenses of the House of Representatives and the Senate,
4 of legislative service agencies, and of the Louisiana State Law Institute; to provide
5 for the salary, expenses, and allowances of members, officers, staff, and agencies of
6 the Legislature; to provide with respect to the appropriations and allocations herein
7 made; and to provide for related matters.
8 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
9 Section 1. The sum of Seventy-Three Million Four Hundred Thirty-One Thousand
10 Eight Hundred Twenty-Six and No/100 ($73,431,826.00) Dollars, or so much thereof as may
11 be necessary, is hereby appropriated out of the state general fund and the sum of Twenty-
12 Two Million Three Hundred Seventy-Three Thousand Five Hundred Sixty-Seven and
13 No/100 ($22,373,567.00) Dollars is hereby appropriated out of self-generated funds to
14 defray the expenses of the legislature, including the House of Representatives and the
15 Senate, the staffs of the House of Representatives and of the Senate, the Legislative Auditor,
16 the Legislative Fiscal Office, the Legislative Budgetary Control Council, and the Louisiana
17 State Law Institute.
18 Section 2.(A)(1) Out of the total amount herein appropriated from the state general,
19 fund, Fifty Million Seven Hundred Sixty-Two Thousand Seven Hundred Ninety-Eight and
20 No/100 ($50,762,798.00) Dollars is hereby allocated to provide the salary and allowances
21 of members, officers, and staff of the House of Representatives, and the salary and
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1 allowances for the speaker of the House of Representatives and for expenses of his office,
2 including reimbursement for actual expenses as presiding officer and for his service to or for
3 the benefit of the House of Representatives, the legislature, the legislative branch of
4 government, or the state, as determined by the speaker, and to provide the salary and
5 allowances of members, officers, and staff of the Senate, and the salary and allowances for
6 the president of the Senate and for expenses of his office, including reimbursement for actual
7 expenses as presiding officer and for his service to or for the benefit of the Senate, the
8 legislature, the legislative branch of government, or the state, as determined by the president
9 of the Senate. These funds also shall be used to pay mileage and per diem of the members
10 of the legislature and mileage and per diem expenses of committees; salaries and/or expense
11 allowances of officers and employees of the legislature; costs of renovations, maintenance,
12 repairs, and necessary additions to the House and/or Senate chambers and other legislative
13 rooms; audio-visual systems, information networks, technological enhancements, and
14 technical support; printing the bills, journals, and calendars; computer equipment and
15 services; library services; provision of accessibility services for persons with disabilities
16 during sessions of the legislature and during the interim; and for all other expenses of the
17 legislature. Notwithstanding any other provision of the law to the contrary, any and all
18 monies paid to an employee of the legislature shall be used to determine full-time status and
19 for the eligibility and calculation of all benefits, including, but not limited to, retirement and
20 insurance. This provision shall be remedial in nature and shall not eliminate or reduce any
21 current benefits of a legislative employee. In addition to the amounts and limitations
22 provided in R.S. 24:31.5, these funds shall also be used to provide an additional two hundred
23 seventy-five dollars per month to the total amount available to each legislator for the salary
24 of his legislative assistants which shall be obtained and disbursed as hereinafter provided.
25 (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of R.S. 24:31.5, any legislative assistant
26 employed on or before December 1, 2007, may retain the salary they were earning on
27 December 1, 2007.
28 (B) Of the sum above allocated to the two houses of the legislature, Twenty-Eight
29 Million Nine Hundred Ninety-Eight Thousand Three Hundred and No/100 ($28,998,300.00)
30 Dollars is hereby set aside and allocated for the use of the House of Representatives and
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1 Twenty-One Million Seven Hundred Sixty-Four Thousand Four Hundred Ninety-Eight and
2 No/100 ($21,764,498.00) Dollars for the use of the Senate.
3 (C) The presiding officer of each house shall warrant on the state treasurer in favor
4 of the House of Representatives or the Senate, as the case may be, for the allocation herein
5 provided, or for so much thereof as may be necessary. The aforesaid warrants shall be paid
6 out of the state general fund, and the state treasurer shall pay said warrants by preference
7 over all other warrants, except warrants for the salaries of constitutional officers of the state,
8 which shall be concurrent with the warrants provided for by this Act.
9 (D)(1) The funds drawn as provided herein shall be deposited in the name of the
10 House of Representatives or the Senate, as the case may be, in an approved bank located in
11 this state selected by the presiding officer of each house. Payment of per diem and mileage,
12 salaries of the members, officers, and employees, and other expenses of the legislature shall
13 be made by individual check, payable to the person or firm entitled thereto, signed by the
14 presiding officer of the House of Representatives as to disbursements by the House, and as
15 to disbursements by the Senate, signed by the president of the Senate. Facsimile signatures
16 may be used; such payment also may be made by electronic funds transfer through the
17 automated clearing house and deposited into the account of the person or firm entitled to
18 such payment.
19 (2) Copies of legislative documents of the Senate and the House shall be provided
20 at fees according to policy and schedules adopted by the secretary of the Senate and clerk
21 of the House, jointly, and approved by the president of the Senate and the speaker of the
22 House, jointly. Funds derived from the sale of legislative documents of the Senate and the
23 House during the 2018 Regular Session shall be used to offset the cost of printing the
24 journals and calendars.
25 (3) The legislature is hereby expressly authorized to receive and expend any monies
26 received as a result of any grants or donations or other forms of assistance as provided for
27 in Article VII, Section 9(A)(1) of the Louisiana Constitution of 1974.
28 (E) Any portion of the funds herein allocated to the two houses, any portion of the
29 funds previously appropriated or interest earnings on such appropriations and any self-
30 generated revenues that are not required for the expenses of the 2017 Regular Session of the
31 Legislature, including printing and all expenses in connection therewith, are hereby
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1 appropriated and may be used to pay the mileage, per diem, expenses of committees, and any
2 other expenses of the legislature during the 2017-2018 Fiscal Year; however, all funds
3 remaining unexpended and/or unencumbered shall be returnable to the state general fund on
4 or before October 1, 2018.
5 Section 3.(A) The sum of Nine Million Ninety-Three Thousand Eight Hundred
6 Thirty-Eight and No/100 ($9,093,838.00) Dollars is hereby allocated out of the total
7 appropriation from the state general fund made in Section 1 of this Act to the legislative
8 auditor, to pay the expenses of his office, including the salaries and expenses of his
9 employees, the costs of equipment, and all other expenses incurred by that office in
10 connection with the operation thereof during the 2017-2018 Fiscal Year.
11 (B)(1) The sum of Three Hundred Fifty Thousand and No/100 ($350,000.00) Dollars
12 is hereby appropriated, payable from the state general fund, to establish an agency working
13 capital fund to be known as the Legislative Auditor Ancillary Enterprise Fund. Of the funds
14 available in the ancillary enterprise fund, the sum of Twenty-Two Million Three Hundred
15 Seventy-Three Thousand Five Hundred Sixty-Seven and No/100 ($22,373,567.00) Dollars
16 is authorized to be used by the legislative auditor, in addition to the amount allocated in
17 Section 3.(A) hereof, to pay the expenses of his office, including the salaries and expenses
18 of his employees, the costs of equipment, and all other expenses incurred by that office in
19 connection with the operations thereof during the 2017-2018 Fiscal Year.
20 (2) The legislative auditor, in addition to the authority contained in R.S. 24:517.1,
21 shall be authorized to receive reimbursement of actual expenses of audits performed on
22 federally funded programs, both direct and indirect, and regulatory boards funded primarily
23 from fees and self-generated revenues and self-supported enterprise functions for the
24 purpose of generating revenue to pay expenses as provided in Section 3.(B)(1) of this Act.
25 Reimbursement for audits performed on federally funded programs shall be limited to
26 reimbursement authorized by federal laws and regulations.
27 (3) Notwithstanding any provision of the law to the contrary, including the General
28 Appropriation Act, in addition to the authority contained in R.S. 24:517.1 and 517.3, the
29 legislative auditor is authorized to allocate and collect from each auditee included in the
30 state's Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, exclusive of those auditees audited by
31 independent certified public accountants, such amounts as may be reasonably necessary to
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1 compensate the legislative auditor for services rendered and costs incurred in connection
2 with the audit of each auditee. In the collection of such amounts, the legislative auditor
3 shall, on or after the first day of July of each year, notify and warrant, without any other
4 approval, the state treasurer of the amount allocated to each auditee. The state treasurer,
5 upon receipt of said notice and warrant, shall transfer forthwith the amounts allocated to
6 each auditee from monies accruing or available to the auditee to the Legislative Auditor
7 Ancillary Enterprise Fund. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the sum of all amounts allocated
8 to all such auditees shall not exceed the amount appropriated to the legislative auditor from
9 the Legislative Auditor Ancillary Enterprise Fund in accordance with Section 3.(B)(1)
10 herein.
11 (C) In the conduct of such functions all receipts of self-generated revenues shall be
12 deposited in the state treasury to the credit of the Legislative Auditor Ancillary Enterprise
13 Fund and disbursements made by the state treasurer to the extent of the amounts deposited
14 to the credit of such fund in accordance with provisions of law governing expenditures. All
15 monies from self-generated revenue of the legislative auditor's office shall be paid to the
16 Legislative Auditor Ancillary Enterprise Fund and shall be deemed to be available for
17 expenditure in the amount herein appropriated, and any increase in self-generated revenue
18 over the amount herein appropriated shall be available for expenditure by the legislative
19 auditor only on approval by the co-chairmen of the Legislative Budgetary Control Council.
20 (D) The legislative auditor shall warrant on the state treasurer for the monies
21 allocated by this Section, and the warrant shall be paid by the state treasurer out of the state
22 general fund. The funds so drawn shall be disbursed only in accordance with budgeted
23 amounts provided herein and such amendments as may be approved by the Legislative
24 Budgetary Control Council.
25 (E) In addition to any portion of the funds herein allocated in this Section to the
26 legislative auditor, any portion of the funds previously appropriated to the legislative auditor,
27 and all other revenue and funds of the legislative auditor, or interest earnings, are hereby
28 appropriated and may be used to defray the expenses of the legislative auditor. These funds
29 shall be subject to warrant by the legislative auditor on the state treasurer, in an amount not
30 to exceed the total balance remaining at the end of the previous fiscal year; however, all
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1 funds remaining unexpended and/or unencumbered shall be returnable to the state general
2 fund on or before October 1, 2018.
3 Section 4.(A) The sum of Two Million Eight Hundred Eighty-Six Thousand Six
4 Hundred Sixty-Four and No/100 ($2,886,664.00) Dollars is hereby allocated out of the total
5 appropriation from the state general fund made in Section 1 of this Act to the Joint
6 Legislative Committee on the Budget, to be used solely for the operations of the Legislative
7 Fiscal Office and in particular to pay the expenses thereof, including the salaries and
8 expenses of its employees, the cost of equipment, and all other expenses incurred by said
9 office in connection with the operation thereof during the 2017-2018 Fiscal Year. The
10 operations and functions of the Legislative Fiscal Office shall be under the direction and
11 supervision of the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget. Any contracts for consultant
12 services shall be approved by the Legislative Budgetary Control Council and the Joint
13 Legislative Committee on the Budget.
14 (B) The legislative fiscal officer shall warrant on the state treasurer for the allocation
15 provided by this Section, and the warrant shall be paid by the state treasurer out of the state
16 general fund. The funds so drawn shall be disbursed only in accordance with a budget
17 approved by the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget and the Legislative Budgetary
18 Control Council.
19 (C) Any portion of the funds herein allocated to the Legislative Fiscal Office, any
20 portion of the funds previously appropriated or interest earnings on such appropriations and
21 any self-generated revenues that are not required for the expenses of the 2017 Regular
22 Session of the Legislature, including printing and all expenses in connection therewith, are
23 hereby appropriated and may be used to pay expenses of the Legislative Fiscal Office during
24 the 2017-2018 Fiscal Year; however, all funds remaining unexpended and/or unencumbered
25 shall be returnable to the state general fund on or before October 1, 2018.
26 Section 5.(A) The sum of One Million One Hundred Thirty-One Thousand Four
27 Hundred One and No/100 ($1,131,401.00) Dollars is hereby allocated out of the total
28 appropriation from the state general fund made in Section 1 of this Act to the Louisiana State
29 Law Institute, to pay the expenses thereof, including the salaries and expenses of its
30 employees, the cost of equipment, and all other expenses incurred by said office in
31 connection with the operation thereof during the 2017-2018 Fiscal Year.
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1 (B) The executive director of the Louisiana State Law Institute shall warrant on the
2 state treasurer for the allocation provided by this Section, and the warrant shall be paid by
3 the state treasurer out of the state general fund. The funds so drawn shall be disbursed only
4 in accordance with a budget approved by the Legislative Budgetary Control Council and
5 subject to the budgetary control of said council.
6 (C) Any portion of the funds herein allocated to the Louisiana State Law Institute,
7 any portion of the funds previously appropriated or interest earnings on such appropriations
8 and any self-generated revenues may be used to pay expenses of the Louisiana State Law
9 Institute during the 2017-2018 Fiscal Year; however, all funds remaining unexpended and/or
10 unencumbered shall be returnable to the state general fund on or before October 1, 2018.
11 Section 6.(A) The sum of Nine Million Five Hundred Fifty-Seven Thousand One
12 Hundred Twenty-Five and No/100 ($9,557,125.00) Dollars is hereby allocated out of the
13 total appropriation from the state general fund made in Section 1 of this Act and the balance
14 on July 2, 2017 of the fund created pursuant to Section 13 of Act 513 of the 2008 Regular
15 Session is hereby appropriated to the Legislative Budgetary Control Council, all of which
16 may be used to pay the expenses thereof, including salaries and expenses of certain
17 legislative employees, expenses of the Huey P. Long Memorial Law Library, the David R.
18 Poynter Legislative Research Library, contracts for professional services, mileage and per
19 diem expenses of the interim activities of joint legislative committees created by statute or
20 by the presiding officers of the Senate and the House of Representatives to which no specific
21 allocation of funds is made in this Act, as approved by the council or, jointly, by the co-
22 chairmen of the council, the cost of construction, maintenance, repair, improvements,
23 renovations, and access to the capitol building, capitol annex building, building for
24 legislative use, pentagon courts, and arsenal building, and adjacent grounds, and purchase,
25 maintenance, and repair of furniture and equipment, audio-visual systems, information
26 networks, technological enhancements, technical support, and computer equipment and
27 services, as jointly approved by the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of
28 Representatives, the cost of equipment, dues to legislative associations, to pay costs to
29 maintain actuarial integrity of the state retirement system affected by the inclusion of certain
30 legislative employees, and all other expenses incurred by said council in connection with the
31 operation thereof during the 2017-2018 Fiscal Year.
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1 (B) The co-chairmen of the Legislative Budgetary Control Council shall jointly
2 warrant on the state treasurer for the monies appropriated and allocated by this Section, and
3 the state treasurer shall pay their warrants by preference over all other warrants, except
4 warrants for the salaries of constitutional officers of the state, which shall be concurrent with
5 warrants provided for by this Act.
6 (C) The funds drawn as provided herein shall be deposited in the name of the
7 Legislative Budgetary Control Council in an approved bank located in this state selected by
8 the presiding co-chairmen of the council. Payment of per diem and mileage, salaries of the
9 officers and employees, and other expenses of the Legislative Budgetary Control Council
10 shall be made by individual check, payable to the person or firm entitled thereto, signed by
11 the presiding co-chairmen of the council. Facsimile signatures may be used; such payment
12 also may be made by electronic funds transfer through the automated clearing house and
13 deposited into the account of the person or firm entitled to such payment.
14 (D) Any portion of the funds herein allocated to the Legislative Budgetary Control
15 Council, any portion of the funds previously appropriated, or interest earnings on any such
16 appropriations, and self-generated revenues are hereby appropriated and may be used to pay
17 any expenses of the Legislative Budgetary Control Council during the 2017-2018 Fiscal
18 Year; however, all funds remaining unexpended and/or unencumbered shall be returnable
19 to the state general fund on or before October 1, 2018.
20 Section 7. The appropriations, and the allocations of such appropriations, from the
21 State General Fund (Direct) contained in Section 1 of this Act shall be reduced by a total
22 amount of Ten Million Nine Hundred Fifty-Eight Thousand Eight Hundred Seventy and
23 No/100 ($10,958,870.00) Dollars, pursuant to a plan adopted by the Legislative Budgetary
24 Control Council.
25 Section 8. The expenses of the legislature, including the House of Representatives
26 and the Senate, the staffs of the House of Representatives and of the Senate, the Legislative
27 Fiscal Office, and the Legislative Budgetary Control Council, resulting from any
28 extraordinary session of the legislature during the 2017-2018 Fiscal Year shall be paid
29 pursuant to a plan adopted by the Legislative Budgetary Control Council.
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1 Section 9. In accordance with R.S. 39:51(D), a comparative statement of the existing
2 operating budget for FY 2015-2016 and FY 2016-2017 and the appropriation for FY 2017-
3 2018 from the state general fund is as follows:
4 Entity FY 2015-2016 FY 2016-2017 FY 2017-2018
5 (Act 76 of 2015) (Act 77 of 2016)
6 House of Representatives $28,998,300 $26,098,470 $28,998,300
7 Senate $21,764,498 $19,588,048 $21,764,498
8 Legislative Auditor $10,014,823 $9,013,341 $9,093,838
9 Legislative Fiscal Office $2,886,664 $2,597,998 $2,886,664
10 La. State Law Institute $1,131,401 $1,018,261 $1,131,401
11 Legislative Budgetary
12 Control Council $8,557,125 $7,701,412 $9,557,125
13 Total state general fund $73,352,811 $66,017,530 $73,431,826
14 The Legislative Auditor for FY 2015-2016 was appropriated self-generated funds in
15 the amount of $24,954,064, for FY 2016-2017 was appropriated self-generated funds in the
16 amount of $22,584,095, and for FY 2017-2018 is appropriated self-generated funds in the
17 amount of $22,373,567. The Legislative Budgetary Control Council for FY 2015-2016 was
18 appropriated the balance of the technology fund on July 2, 2015, for FY 2016-2017 was
19 appropriated the balance on July 2, 2016, and for FY 2017-2018 is appropriated the balance
20 on July 2, 2017 of said fund.
21 Act 1 of the 2017 First Extraordinary Session of the Legislature of Louisiana reduced
22 the State General Fund (Direct appropriation) for FY 2016-2017 for the legislature in the
23 amount of $3,544,574 and further required the legislative auditor to remit $2,000,000 from
24 the Legislative Auditor Ancillary Enterprise Fund to the state treasurer for deposit into the
25 state general fund.
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1 Section 10. This Act shall become effective on July 1, 2017; if vetoed by the
2 governor and subsequently approved by the legislature, this Act shall become effective on
3 July 1, 2017, or on the day following such approval by the legislature, whichever is later.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA
APPROVED:
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