State Representative Josh Carlson of Lafayette had a productive legislative session, successfully passing four bills, including HB 466, which focuses on teacher pay raises. Carlson joins the show to explain that the bill repurposes underutilized constitutionally protected education funds—totaling around $2 billion—to pay down a significant portion of the state’s $8 billion teacher retirement system debt. This move would free up approximately $300 million annually, allowing school systems to redirect those savings toward a permanent $2,250 pay raise for teachers. The initiative is part of a broader effort to bring Louisiana teacher salaries closer to the Southern average. The proposal will appear as a standalone constitutional amendment on the April 2026 ballot, aiming to avoid the confusion of previous, more complex amendments.
Carlson also highlighted HB 137, which allows clinical and medical psychologists to conduct emergency mental health evaluations via telehealth. This bill corrects an oversight from earlier legislation during the COVID-19 pandemic, ensuring that psychologists can issue Physicians Emergency Certificates (PECs) remotely. These certificates authorize temporary psychiatric holds for individuals deemed a danger to themselves or others. Carlson emphasized the real-world impact of this bill, citing a personal story where a PEC helped save someone’s life. The bill maintains safeguards, requiring a nurse or other professional to be physically present during the telehealth evaluation to ensure accountability…