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BATON ROUGE, La. —Following the conclusion of the 2022 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature earlier this week, Louisiana Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin issues the following update on the Department of State’s legislative package:

“I am grateful to the legislature for passing legislation included in our agency’s legislative package, and I am especially thankful to the members who carried these bills and worked so hard to ensure their passage. I call on Governor Edwards to swiftly sign these bills into law so that we can continue to improve upon our stellar election integrity measures,” Ardoin said.

Bills that were part of the department’s package include:

• HB 178 by Representative Debbie Villio—A proposed constitutional amendment to prohibit individuals other than American and Louisiana citizens from voting in state and local elections (as a proposed constitutional amendment, this instrument does not require the signature of the governor and will be placed on the statewide ballot on December 10, 2022).
• HB 35 by Representative Les Farnum—A bill to provide for a supplemental annual canvass.
• HB 671 by Representative Rick Edmonds—A bill to provide for additional requirements in the voting machine testing process (this bill is part of a package of recommendations from the Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s March 9, 2022 report on election integrity procedures within the Department of State).
• HB 924 by Representative Rick Edmonds—A bill to provide for the post-election tabulation audits of paper records, including absentee ballots (this bill is part of a package of recommendations from the Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s March 9, 2022 report on election integrity procedures within the Department of State).
• HB 1074 by Representative Rick Edmonds—A bill to require the Secretary of State to promulgate rules related to the curing of absentee ballots (this bill is part of a package of recommendations from the Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s March 9, 2022 report on election integrity procedures within the Department of State).
• HB 357 by Representative Sam Jenkins—A bill that clarifies rules informing voters about changes to polling places.
• HB 423 by Representative Buddy Mincey—A bill that requires public school governing authorities to provide high school seniors the opportunity to register to vote.
• SB 369 by Senator Jimmy Harris—A bill that provides for a pay raise for election commissioners and members of parish boards of election supervisors.
• SB 144 by Senator Robert Mills—A bill that clarifies rules related to the hand-delivery of absentee ballots.