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House committee backs optional $100 parish supplement for election commissioners amid staffing concerns
Summary
The House Appropriations Committee advanced HB205 to let local clerks supplement election commissioners up to $100 per election, after clerks and the secretary of state warned decades‑long pay stagnation and training burdens have caused staffing shortages. The bill was reported favorable.
The House Committee on Appropriations on April 21 advanced legislation (HB205) giving parish clerks the option to supplement pay for election commissioners by up to $100 per election to help address recruitment and training shortfalls. Proponents said the increase is voluntary for local governments and was designed to avoid creating a new statewide fiscal obligation.
Bridget Hannah, Ascension Parish clerk of court, told the committee that "election commissioners have not received a pay increase in 19 years" and that commissioners now face expanded duties including mandatory trainings and long election days. She warned that many certified commissioners skip training and that several parishes are currently understaffed, saying the shortfalls are statewide and threaten local precinct staffing.
Secretary of State Nancy Landry supported the measure as a local tool but told members the bill does not authorize the secretary’s office to pay the supplement; she said decisions on funding would rest with local governing authorities or the legislature. Landry said early voting shifts when people vote and reduces peak precinct lines, but it does not reduce election-day duties and staffing requirements.
Committee members pressed on potential fiscal exposure for small parishes. Representative Louis Perrette and other parish clerks argued the proposal is a targeted, voluntary response to recruitment problems that have worsened with more complex elections and new closed-party primary procedures. Proponents noted that the bill was drafted to permit local supplementation only and thus would not automatically increase state spending.
Representative Freiburg moved the bill favorably after a series of public‑comment witnesses from multiple clerks of court and election supervisors. Seeing no objection, the committee reported HB205 favorable.
What happens next: HB205 was reported favorable by the committee and will move to the next step in the legislative process.
Sources and provenance: testimony and committee discussion on HB205 (presentation and multiple parish clerks), including testimony from Bridget Hannah (Ascension Parish Clerk of Court) and Secretary of State Nancy Landry.
