With two weeks left in the legislative session, several bills dealing with the soaring cost of auto insurance in Louisiana have made their way to Governor Landry’s desk; and Wednesday morning, he signed six of them into law in a ceremony in the governor’s mansion. Among them is one that grants the insurance commissioner the authority to reject rate increases regardless of market conditions. It’s a bill that the state’s current insurance commissioner, Tim Temple, opposed.

Cut 4 (12) “…break their promises.”

Another bill that Landry signed is the one that bars drivers who are at least 51-percent at fault for a crash from collecting damages to cover the cost of their injuries. It’s something that the business community has been screaming for for years.

Cut 5 (09) “…fulfill that promise.”

A person who infects another person with an STD without their knowledge of the disease could face criminal charges under a bill approved by the House Criminal Justice Committee. It calls for felony charges for infecting someone with an incurable STD; for a curable disease, the charge would be a misdemeanor. Meghan Garvey from the Louisiana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers testified against it.

Cut 11 (11) “…someone’s word.” 

A warning for all left-lane hogs – soon, it will be illegal to take up the left lane without passing another vehicle, regardless of the speed. Hogging the left lane is against the law, but Tioga Republican Jason DeWitt says Senate Bill 11 makes an important change.

Cut 13 (08)  “…penalties to apply.” 

The bill passed the House 78-to-15 and now heads to the governor’s desk.