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Bill would require adult residential care providers to have emergency power plans; LDH and providers negotiate flexibility
Summary
Senate Bill 145 would require licensed adult residential care providers to have plans for backup power or contracts for alternative electrical sources; LDH would annually review plans. Industry witnesses warned of high installation costs and urged options for contracted provision and phased timelines.
Senate Bill 145, introduced by Senator Womack, would require licensed adult residential care providers (assisted living centers/residential care providers) to prepare plans for generators or alternative electrical power sources so facilities can maintain essential operations during outages. The Louisiana Department of Health would review plans annually and may grant extensions or waivers under specified hardship criteria.
Sen. Womack told the committee the bill grew out of failures observed during a January ice storm in northern Louisiana and is intended to extend protections required of nursing homes to assisted living centers that are licensed as adult residential care providers. He said the measure focuses on preparedness and annual plan review rather than immediate, universal installation of equipment.
Kevin Hayes, president of the Louisiana Assisted Living Association, said association members worked with the senator and LDH to narrow the bill’s scope to licensed ARCPs and to avoid unintentionally capturing federally funded housing. He urged the committee to allow contracted backup services as an acceptable option, noting that installing permanent generators for very large complexes can cost millions of dollars — he cited an industry estimate of about $3,000,000 for a large installation — and that many operators would prefer a contractual arrangement that guarantees power when needed rather than immediate capital installation.
Natasha Seals of the LDH emergency preparedness team told the committee the bill was deliberately limited to assisted living centers for this session and that the proposal aims to prevent repeat failures like past nursing‑home incidents. Seals said LDH and stakeholders agreed to language that permits alternatives to permanently installed generators, allows time for compliance and provides avenues for hardship relief.
Representative Stagney moved to report SB 145 favorably with the sponsor’s technical amendments; with no opposition raised, the committee reported the bill favorably with amendments.
The bill as reported requires LDH plan review and includes sponsor‑preferred amendments that: clarify the covered provider types (licensed ARCPs), permit contracted backup services in specified circumstances, allow phased compliance timelines and create a process for seeking extensions where financial hardship or supply constraints apply. The committee record shows support from the industry group and LDH; no recorded roll‑call vote was required for the committee report.
