Cash Management Board approves bank and escrow accounts for agency payments, SNAP transition and a specialty license plate

The Cash Management Board approved a series of routine account actions at a meeting that included opening zero-balancing operating accounts, establishing escrow accounts and adding payment functions to existing accounts.

Board members approved requests from the Department of Agriculture and Forestry to open two zero-balancing JPMorgan Chase accounts to accept online credit-card payments related to agency invoicing and to accept payments tied to poultry and egg fees and assessments. They also approved a new regional bank account at Franklin State Bank and Trust in Winsborough for Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, District 58, to receive ferry toll deposits; the Community Bank account currently used for that purpose will be closed.

The board approved a request from the Department of Health, Office of Management and Finance, to open four new zero-balance accounts and lockboxes at JPMorgan Chase to transition certain Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, functions from the Department of Children and Family Services as part of Louisiana’s "1 Door" legislation. Separately, the Louisiana Workforce Commission was authorized to add issuance of STEP participant payments to an existing zero-balancing JPMorgan Chase account as part of the same "1 Door" transition.

The Department of Public Safety and Corrections, Public Safety Services, received approval to establish an escrow account in the state treasury tied to a special registration plate authorized by state law for the sickle cell disease association. Louisiana Economic Development was authorized to establish a new escrow account required by Act 372 of the 2025 session for fees related to independent certified public accountant or tax-attorney verification reports for the High Impact Jobs program.

Discussion during the meeting was brief and largely procedural. A board member asked whether the new ferry toll account would "interface" with existing systems; a staff member replied, "They don't interface." Aside from that exchange the items were moved, seconded and approved without extended debate. For one item the transcript records the chair saying, "Motion approved." For the other items, motions were made and seconded and carried as recorded in the meeting minutes.

The actions affect how several state agencies accept and process payments, move certain SNAP-related cash-management functions between agencies under the 1 Door legislation, and create escrow arrangements required by statute and recent legislation. The board took no additional policy actions and had no further business on the agenda when it adjourned.

Meeting attendees included designees for the State Treasurer and the Commissioner of Administration, the legislative auditor and legislative designees; the transcript does not show roll-call vote tallies for each item in the excerpt provided.