Louisiana lawmakers take up auto insurance, fail to advance St. Bernard port road bill

BATON ROUGE, La. (WVUE) - Louisiana lawmakers delved into weighty legislation Tuesday (April 22) as they returned to the capitol from Easter break.

A bill related to the planned Louisiana International Terminal and related proposed roadway in St. Bernard Parish had opponents voicing concerns at a committee hearing.

“You see ‘St. Bernard’ written all over this bill, but there’s no ‘St. Bernard’ running the bill. There’s no ‘St. Bernard’ running the project,” Rep. Michael Bayham (R-Chalmette) said.

House Bill 616 says the Port of New Orleans’ board of commissioners would develop, construct, operate and maintain the St. Bernard Transportation Corridor, a roadway that would connect the shipping terminal to the interstate system. And the port would have authority to utilize public-private partnerships.

“This is a solution to make sure that when the Louisiana International Terminal is built, we have a road,” said Chris Kane, who represented the port at the meeting.

But opponents pushed back.

“If all of the 18-wheeler traffic is dumped on Paris Road and there is no rail variation, that rail completely blocks our other exits. We will be trapped and there’s multiple solutions that can be made. That rail can go all the way to Florida Avenue and keep all of the 18-wheeler traffic completely out of St. Bernard Parish,” St. Bernard Parish councilman Ryan Randall said.

In the end, the bill failed to get out of committee. It could be brought up again.

In the House Civil Law and Procedure Committee, insurance reform bills were considered. One of the bills was HB 439 by Rep. Troy Hebert (R-Lafayette).

“This bill would limit an attorney’s contingency fee to 10 percent for the first $15,000 of recovery,” Hebert said.

Hebert said he thinks the bill will help the auto insurance crisis. Gov. Jeff Landry says attorneys and insurance companies are to blame for high premiums.

“This bill provides a substantial consumer protection by limiting an attorney’s contingency fee for the first $15,000 recovered, and therefore keeping more money in the claimants’ pocket when the case settles for a small sum,” Hebert said.

He said the change would apply to attorneys on both sides.

“Let me make sure that I understand: For the first $15,000, an attorney can only receive 10 percent, is that correct?” asked Rep. Ed Larvadain (D-Alexandria).

“Yes, sir,” Hebert answered.

Larvadain continued, “OK, what happens if an attorney settles a case for $100,000?”

Hebert said, “The first $15,000 would get 10 percent, and then if you’re on a contingency basis. It’s for whatever you settle for your fee on the remainder.”

Lavardain said attorneys do not immediately realize compensation in such cases,

“Understand, when you get an accident case, you’ve got to deal with the vehicle. You’ve got to deal with doctor visits. You got to deal with a whole lot of stuff,” he said.

“You got clients calling you every day, ‘I want my check, I want my money.’ So, you don’t just get a client, sign them up and get a check the next week. It doesn’t work that way.”

In the end, the bill advanced to the full house for consideration on a 10-2 vote.

Another insurance-related bill also advanced out of the Civil Law committee. It says that people in the country illegally would not be entitled to a personal injury award for general damages and for past and future wages.

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