PUBLIC PRINTING: Provides for the cost of publishing official proceedings and public notices

Education

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Neil Riser
Last action: 2026-05-27
Official status: Sent to Governor
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill text specifies three cents per character, not one and a half or two cents as initially stated.

Setting Costs for Official Publications

This bill sets rules about how much it costs to publish official meetings and public notices in Louisiana.

What This Bill Does

Sets a limit on the cost of publishing official proceedings at three cents per character for parishes without large cities.
Sets a higher limit on the cost of publishing official proceedings at three cents per character for parishes with large cities, but specifies that if notices are in tabular form or prebuilt, they will be charged based on square inches instead of characters.
Limits the total cost to either the new rates set by this bill or the rate from January 1, 2026, whichever is lower.

Who It Names or Affects

Parishes and municipalities in Louisiana
Publishers who print official proceedings and public notices

Terms To Know

Official Proceedings: The formal record of meetings held by government bodies like parishes, cities, or school boards.
Public Notices: Information that must be made public and available to everyone, often about legal requirements or important decisions.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify what happens if the new rates are lower than the existing ones.
It is unclear how this will affect publishers who charge differently now.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

House Floor Amendment #4557 Riser Adopted

Adopted

Plain English: HFAHB481 4024 4557 FOR OFFICE USE ONLY HOUSE FLOOR AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by Representative Riser to Engrossed House Bill No.

HFAHB481 4024 4557 FOR OFFICE USE ONLY HOUSE FLOOR AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by Representative Riser to Engrossed House Bill No.
481 by Representative Riser 1 AMENDMENT NO.
1 2 On page 1, line 2, after "reenact" delete "R.S.
43:147.1(A) and (B)(1) and (2)," and insert 3 "R.S.

Bill History

2026-05-27 H
Sent to the Governor for executive approval.
2026-05-27 S
Signed by the President of the Senate.
2026-05-26 H
Enrolled and signed by the Speaker of the House.
2026-05-26 H
Received from the Senate without amendments.
2026-05-26 S
Rules suspended. Read by title, passed by a vote of 33 yeas and 0 nays, and ordered returned to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.
2026-05-20 S
Reported without Legislative Bureau amendments. Read by title and passed to third reading and final passage.
2026-05-19 S
Read by title and referred to the Legislative Bureau.
2026-05-18 S
Reported favorably.
2026-05-05 S
Read by title. Recommitted to the Committee on Local and Municipal Affairs.
2026-05-05 S
Rules suspended. Recalled from Committee.
2026-04-29 S
Read second time by title and referred to the Committee on Senate and Governmental Affairs.
2026-04-28 S
Received in the Senate. Read first time by title and placed on the Calendar for a second reading.
2026-04-27 H
Read third time by title, amended, roll called on final passage, yeas 77, nays 18. Finally passed, title adopted, ordered to the Senate.
2026-04-27 H
Called from the calendar.
2026-04-22 H
Scheduled for floor debate on 04/27/2026.
2026-04-22 H
Notice given.
2026-04-22 H
Read by title, returned to the calendar.
2026-04-21 H
Scheduled for floor debate on 04/22/2026.
2026-04-20 H
Read by title, ordered engrossed, passed to 3rd reading.
2026-04-16 H
Reported favorably (10-5).
2026-03-09 H
Read by title, under the rules, referred to the Committee on Municipal, Parochial and Cultural Affairs.
2026-02-27 H
First appeared in the Interim Calendar on 2/27/2026.
2026-02-26 H
Under the rules, provisionally referred to the Committee on Municipal, Parochial and Cultural Affairs.
2026-02-26 H
Prefiled.

Official Summary Text

PUBLIC PRINTING: Provides for the cost of publishing official proceedings and public notices

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

ENROLLED
2026 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 481
BY REPRESENTATIVE RISER
1 AN ACT
2 To amend and reenact R.S. 43:147.1(B)(1) and (2) and to enact R.S. 43:147.1(D), relative
3 to official journals of parishes, municipalities, and school boards; to provide relative
4 to the publication of public notices and proceedings; to provide with respect to
5 compensation for printing; to provide for exceptions; and to provide for related
6 matters.
7 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
8 Section 1. R.S. 43:147.1(B)(1) and (2) are hereby amended and reenacted and R.S.
9 43:147.1(D) is hereby enacted to read as follows:
10 §147.1. Compensation for printing; per character
11 * * *
12 B.(1) In all parishes that do not contain a city with a population of more than
13 one hundred thousand, the cost of publishing official proceedings and public notices
14 shall not exceed the rate of one and one-half three cents per character. When the
15 insertion contains material to be set in tabular form or is submitted prebuilt, the rate
16 will be computed at two dollars seventy-six cents per square inch based on six-point
17 type and six-point font. If the notice is set in larger type or font, the rate shall be
18 prorated. Regardless of the size of type the notice is set in, the rates specified in this
19 Paragraph are based on a printable space of one-inch-high and one-inch-wide
20 column. If the page width is either wider or narrower for a single column, the rate
21 per column shall be prorated.
22 (2) In all parishes that contain a city with a population of more than one
23 hundred thousand, the cost of publishing official proceedings and public notices shall
24 not exceed the rate of two three cents per character. When the insertion contains
25 material to be set in tabular form or is submitted prebuilt, the rate will be computed
26 at three dollars ninety-six cents per square inch based on six-point type and six-point
Page 1 of 2
CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
are additions.
HB NO. 481 ENROLLED
1 font. If the notice is set in larger type or font, the rate shall be prorated. Regardless
2 of the size of type the notice is set in, the rates specified in this Paragraph are based
3 on a printable space of one-inch-high and one-inch-wide column. If the page width
4 is either wider or narrower for a single column, the rate per column shall be prorated.
5 * * *
6 D. Notwithstanding the provisions of Paragraphs (B)(1) and (B)(2) of this
7 Section, the cost of publishing official proceedings and public notices shall not
8 exceed the lesser of the rates provided for in Paragraphs (B)(1) and (B)(2) of this
9 Section or the rate in effect on January 1, 2026.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA
APPROVED:
Page 2 of 2
CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
are additions.