Gov. Landry might get the insurance laws he wants, but not without ruffling some Republican feathers

Yahoo

04-05-2025

Rep. Dixon McMakin, R-Baton Rouge, left, greets Gov. Jeff Landry as Landry leaves the House Chamber with his son, JT Landry, right, after speaking on opening day of legislative session, Monday, April 14, 2025, at the State Capitol in Baton Rouge. (Hilary Scheinuk/The Advocate-Pool)
A surprise amendment to what was a simple bill caused an appreciable rift among Republicans in the Louisiana Legislature this past week, but it might have helped advance Gov. Jeff Landry's signature legislation to address the state's insurance crisis.
House Bill 148, sponsored by Rep. Jeff Wiley, R-Maurepas, began as a measure to require insurance companies to tell customers what their previous billing amount was whenever sending out a coverage renewal notice. Wiley said it would simply let customers quickly see whether their insurance rates have gone up or down.
However, the legislation underwent significant changes Wednesday on the House floor.
Wiley accepted an amendment from Rep. Brian Glorioso, R-Slidell, that effectively combined his bill with some of the major provisions from a separate proposal from Democrats Robby Carter of Amite and Chad Brown of Plaquemine. Their measure, which has the governor's backing, would give the state insurance commissioner the power to strike down any insurance rate increase considered 'excessive' or unreasonably high.
Currently, the commissioner can only exercise that power after holding a public hearing in which someone proves the state insurance market lacks competition.
The amalgamated bill was advanced to the Senate on a 68-34,
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The Carter-Brown bill had opposition from several Republican lawmakers and Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple, who some speculate could become the governor's scapegoat if the latest efforts to reduce coverage prices fail.
The proposal would have also backed the commissioner into a corner, forcing him to choose between rates based on real market conditions and rates that are lowered as a form of political favors, Temple has said in previous interviews.
Some Republican lawmakers made similar arguments Wednesday and challenged whether Glorioso's amendment was germane to Wiley's original legislation. Legislative rules forbid members from hijacking a colleague's bill with changes that differ dramatically from the purpose of the original proposal.
One opponent, Rep. Raymond Crews, R-Bossier City, asked House Speaker Phillip DeVillier, R-Eunice, to decide whether the Glorioso amendment departed radically from the Wiley bill. After consulting with the chamber's parliamentarian, DeVillier said both proposals are related to the cost of insurance premiums.
Rep. John Wyble, R-Franklinton, criticized the amendment for its lack of specificity in how the commissioner is supposed to determine whether a rate is unreasonable.
'So what's an unreasonable profit — a 6% profit, a 4.5% profit, a 20% profit, a 100% profit?' Wyble asked.
Republicans Jay Gallé of Mandeville, Josh Carlson of Lafayette, Paula Davis of Baton Rouge and Chance Henry of Crowley also argued against the proposal, voting against the Glorioso amendment and the updated bill.
Rep. Gabe Firment, R-Pollock, who chairs the House Insurance Committee, also voted against both measures. He said he believes Glorioso's amendment helped ensure the passage of the key provisions the governor wanted.
Landry turned heads last month when he sat shoulder to shoulder with Brown at a committee hearing in support of the Democrat's bill. The governor even drew praise from some of the state's most liberal politicians after he railed against large corporations and called for stricter regulations on the insurance industry.
The Carter-Brown bill 'was problematic for some Republican representatives,' Firment said in a phone interview Friday.
Moving the major provisions from that bill into a Republican-backed proposal was a way to try to ease the 'heartburn' some conservatives were having, Firment said.
The insurance commissioner is still lobbying against the revised bill.
'I can't speak to anyone's motivation, but the only additional power this legislation gives me is the authority to deny rates for political, personal and other subjective reasons,' Temple said. 'I've made that clear to the legislature and will continue working to help them understand what the bill does and why it is harmful to our insurance market.'
Wiley said he supported the amendment because of the special circumstances of the state's insurance crisis.
'I can just tell you that tough times call for tough decisions,' Wiley said.
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