After numerous stories of rape kits getting lost and the backlog of processing Franklinton Senator Beth Mizell decided to make the system more accountable with legislation to create a tracking system for the kits. 40 other states already have protocols in place to track rape kits.
The bill has passed in the Senate and heads to the full House for final passage.
Legislation to provide families adopting a child under the age of three with a $5 thousand tax credit passed in the House. Baton Rouge Representative Rick Edmond’s bill prohibits the tax credit from applying to the adoption of a child from foster care and a taxpayer from claiming the credit and claiming the deduction.
The bill heads to the Senate.
The House unanimously approves a bill to symbolically abolish slavery in Louisiana. Louisiana voters rejected a similar proposal last year but Baton Rouge Representative Edmond Jordan asked them to reject it because the amendment’s language was confusing. He says the language is clearer this year.
Slavery was abolished in the US in 1865. But more than 150 years later, states are banning involuntary servitude and slavery in their state constitutions.
Legislation to provide free breakfast and lunch for K-12 students who are eligible for reduced-priced meals advances in House Appropriations. Marrero Representative Kyle Green says students who qualify for reduced-priced meals have to pay $14 per month, the bill removes the copay. If approved, it would go into effect for the 2023-2024 school year.