The Time is Now to Meet Your Legislators
By Joe Mapes
Louisiana Farm Bureau Federation
It's time to prepare for the 2024 regular session of the Louisiana legislature that begins March 11th at the Capitol in Baton Rouge and ends June 3rd. It's an 85-day session with no restrictions on what types, or how many, pieces of legislation can be filed for the session. It's what's referred to as a, "Katy bar the door" session where anything goes.
The new year begins with a new legislative scenario, i.e. of the 144 legislators in the legislature, 46 will be new with a new governor, as well. Louisiana will have a new speaker of the house, a new president of the senate, and new chairpersons for both the house and senate committees. A super-majority of republicans now exists in both the house and the senate, along with a strong republican Governor who just took the reins of the state at the same time. Because of this, one might think that we're good to go when it comes to issues that affect Farm Bureau and agribusiness at the legislature this year. That would be a huge assumption because issues come from all different places. National issues come raining down on our state all the time, along with other issues that slip in sideways from other states with similar issues that affect our state.
There is also a courtship phase between this new legislative body and the new governor, and we'll get to see how they get along on their first date which will be the coming special session called by the governor beginning January 15th and ending on the 23rd dealilng with congressional redistricting, which is an issue that can get politically intense and test the bonds between everyone involved in the process. This special session should be a proving ground for future relationships between all interested parties that participate in the legislative process, not just between the new governor and legislature.
In preparation for the session, the Louisiana Association of Conservation Districts recently met to discuss its agenda for the 2024 legislative session, and I was honored that they invited me to speak to the group about tactics and strategies that they could pursue to be successful down at the Capitol. The association is seeking higher levels of funding in order to address the soil erosion issues that exist in our 64 parishes. That means the group has to participate in the legislative process to get an amendment to the appropriatons bill. This doesn't mean contributions, long dinners and golf games between the legislators and the members. It means knowing who their state representatives and senators are and establishing themselves as a resource of information for their industry. If an association's membership actively engages in the legislative process, then that association will probably be successful with its goals. Regardless, it would be very tough to beat, if the membership participated.
The process of being successful at the legislature begins and ends with developing and maintaining relationships with your state legislators. To get started, you need to know who your legislators are. Here's a finder tool at www.legis.la.gov to find your legislators. Once you've got this information, it's time to go to work and reach out to them. You can do this by email, but the best approach is to go by your legislators' district offices and at least leave a business card, even if the legislator is not at the office when you stop by. Give your card to the legislator's assistant, and they will put your card on file regarding future issues of interest to agriculture to the legislator. There's a strong possibility that you will get a call one day seeking your advice on an issue that you should be able to answer or at least find them an answer. Don't be intimidated by this process. The legislators want to hear from their voting constituents because they genuinely want to help, and they also want to get reelected.
These are just some of the basics that is takes to be successful in the Louisiana legislative process. If an association puts in place these simple tenants, a path to success can be developed for their legislative agenda, if an association does not plan ahead, it's like Sun Tzu said, "The general who wins the battle makes many calculations in his temple before the battle is fought. The general who loses makes but few calculations beforehand".
So, make calculations ahead of the coming legislative session. Find out who your legislators are. Make yourself an available resource for your legislative delegation. You'll be pleasantly surprised at how effective you can be in helping to promote and protect this great industry of ours that we call agribusiness. If you do this, you will be helping to create a spot for agriculture at "The Table" in Baton Rouge. If you don't get involved, help, and participate, the agriculture industry just might end up on the menu.
P.S. Don't forget the legislative appreciation dinner in your area that Farm Bureau is hosting before the session. We'll be there to make connections with your legislators. Check with your parish office for the date.
Joe and Sandy Mapes