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Senate panel advances package to expand "critical infrastructure" for aerospace development and a new temporary protection zone power
Summary
A Judiciary C committee advanced bills to add aerospace facilities to the state's critical-infrastructure list and to authorize short-term "temporary protection zones" for public-safety events; supporters said the changes will help attract aerospace investment, while ACLU and environmental groups warned of broadness and possible effects on public access and speech.
A Senate Judiciary C committee on March 5 reported favorably a pair of bills the sponsor described as part of an "aerospace and defense" package.
The first measure expands the statutory list of "critical infrastructure" to include airports, heliports, spaceports and aerospace facilities as well as certain government and military sites and oil-and-gas platforms. A sponsor explained the text does not create new criminal prohibitions but simply enlarges the enumerated list in existing law. Susan Bourgeois, secretary of Louisiana Economic Development, told the committee the change is intended to position the state to win aerospace and defense investment and noted a recent increase in sector funding.
The companion measure would authorize a local chief executive—parish president, mayor or sheriff—to proclaim a temporary protection zone for public safety when necessary, initially for 72 hours with the option to extend. The sponsor said the bill is modeled on practices in other Southern states and is intended for public-safety situations such as a space launch.
Opponents urged tighter guardrails. Sarah Whittington of the ACLU testified in opposition to the temporary-protection-zone bill, saying the authority in the draft is broad, lacks clear notice and coordination requirements with agencies such as the Department of Transportation and could have consequences for Fourth and Second Amendment protections. Peter Robbins Brown of the Sierra Club warned against "just stuffing stuff into this critical infrastructure law" and said overly broad definitions could chill protest and First Amendment activity; he also flagged inclusion of wireless communications as a possible slippery slope.
Committee members pressed sponsors about notice and enforcement. The sponsor and Secretary Bourgeois said the proclamation must be publicly disseminated and filed with the clerk of court, and that enforcement generally applies only after an individual has been "advised" of the zone. They said local officials would be responsible for choosing the most effective public-notice mechanisms for their community. Supporters emphasized the bills include warnings and notification steps and characterized them as tools for public safety, not punitive statutes.
The committee moved the critical-infrastructure bill favorable and reported the temporary-protection-zone bill favorably after discussion and cards for and against were entered into the record. Several members said they expect to refine statutory language on the floor or in further drafting to narrow some terms and clarify interagency notice procedures.
The committee hearing is administrative in pace: the bills were reported favorably with no recorded roll-call defeat; floor amendments were signaled as possible next steps.
