The Louisiana State Police Commission voted Aug. 14 to reauthorize 87 WAE trooper positions for the period Oct. 1, 2025, through Sept. 30, 2026, and separately approved one additional WAE trooper position for the agency firearms unit for the same period.

A department representative described the WAE trooper program as composed of retired troopers who return in limited status to provide institutional knowledge, mentoring and training across patrol, investigations, special operations and support. The representative told commissioners the program helps sustain mission capabilities while the agency continues to recruit and train new cadets; the transcript records that an academy class of 47 cadets is scheduled to graduate on Dec. 5.

Commissioners voted by voice to reauthorize the 87 positions after a motion and second. The firearms-unit position had been approved on an interim basis earlier and was presented as a separate agenda item to align its authorization date with the other positions. The firearms WAE will serve statewide, providing quarterly handgun and rifle training, an annual multi-day in-service, and cadet training; the transcript indicates the position will be assigned to the agency’s GESTEC firearms facility in Baton Rouge.

No dollar amounts, job descriptions beyond training duties, or names of the individual WAE troopers were provided in the public discussion. The motions to reauthorize and to add the firearms position passed by voice vote; no roll-call tallies were read into the record.