ENROLLED
ACT No. 278
2022 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 166
BY REPRESENTATIVE GREGORY MILLER
1 A JOINT RESOLUTION
2 Proposing to amend Article III, Section 18 of the Constitution of Louisiana, to provide
3 relative to gubernatorial action on a bill and matters related thereto; to provide
4 relative to veto sessions; to provide for submission of the proposed amendment to
5 the electors; and to provide for related matters.
6 Section 1. Be it resolved by the Legislature of Louisiana, two-thirds of the members
7 elected to each house concurring, that there shall be submitted to the electors of the state of
8 Louisiana, for their approval or rejection in the manner provided by law, a proposal to
9 amend Article III, Section 18 of the Constitution of Louisiana, to read as follows:
10 ยง18. Gubernatorial Action on Bills; Sign, Failure to Sign, Veto; Veto Session
11 Section 18.(A) Gubernatorial Action. If the governor does not approve a
12 bill, he may veto it. A bill, except a joint resolution, shall become law if the
13 governor signs it or if he fails to sign or veto it within ten days after delivery to him
14 if the legislature is in the session in which the bill passed on the tenth day after such
15 delivery, or within twenty days after delivery if the tenth day after delivery occurs
16 after the legislature legislative session in which the bill passed is adjourned.
17 (B) Veto Message. If the governor vetoes a bill, he shall return it to the
18 legislature, with his veto message, within twelve days after delivery to him if the
19 legislature is in the session in which the bill passed. If the governor returns a vetoed
20 bill after the legislature adjourns legislative session in which the bill passed is
21 adjourned, he shall return it, with his veto message, as provided by law.
22 (C) Veto Session. (1) A bill vetoed and returned and subsequently approved
23 by two-thirds of the elected members of each house shall become law. The
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1 legislature shall meet in veto session in the state capital at noon on the fortieth day
2 following final adjournment of the most recent each session in which a bill that
3 finally passed was vetoed, to consider all bills passed during that session that were
4 vetoed by the governor and that were not reconsidered by the house of origin during
5 the session in which the bill passed. If the fortieth day falls on Sunday, the session
6 shall convene at noon on the succeeding Monday. No veto session shall exceed five
7 calendar days, and any veto session may be finally adjourned prior to the end of the
8 fifth day upon a vote of two-thirds of the elected members of each house.
9 (2) No veto session shall be held if a majority of the elected members of
10 either house declare in writing that a veto session is unnecessary. The declaration
11 must be received by the presiding officer of the respective houses at least five days
12 prior to the day on which the veto session is to convene.
13 (3) If a veto session is to be held and the time period for the conduct of the
14 veto session occurs during a regular or extraordinary session of the legislature, the
15 legislature may reconsider all bills vetoed by the governor and not previously
16 reconsidered by the legislature as part of the business of the regular or extraordinary
17 session during the time period set forth in Subparagraph (1) of this Paragraph
18 without the necessity of convening or adjourning a separate veto session.
19 Section 2. Be it further resolved that if this proposed amendment is approved by a
20 majority of the voters voting thereon in the state, it shall become effective on January 8,
21 2024.
22 Section 3. Be it further resolved that this proposed amendment shall be submitted
23 to the electors of the state of Louisiana at the statewide election to be held on November 18,
24 2023.
25 Section 4. Be it further resolved that on the official ballot to be used at the election,
26 there shall be printed a proposition, upon which the electors of the state shall be permitted
27 to vote YES or NO, to amend the Constitution of Louisiana, which proposition shall read as
28 follows:
29 Do you support an amendment to clarify that the timing of gubernatorial
30 action on a bill and his return of a vetoed bill to the legislature is based upon
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1 the legislative session in which the bill passed and to authorize the
2 legislature, if it is in session, to reconsider vetoed bills without convening a
3 separate veto session? (Effective January 8, 2024)(Amends Article III,
4 Section 18)
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
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