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HB802 • 2026

WATER/RESOURCES: Provides with respect to the management of watershed restoration (EN DECREASE GF RV See Note)

WATER/RESOURCES: Provides with respect to the management of watershed restoration (EN DECREASE GF RV See Note)

Budget Taxes Water
Passed Legislature

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

Sponsor
Paul Sawyer
Last action
2026-05-29
Official status
Sent to Governor
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide specific details on how much money will be in the fund or what activities will be funded by the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority, leaving these points as unknowns.

Watershed Restoration and Conservation Act

This act establishes a fund to support the restoration and long-term care of lands and watersheds in the Amite River Basin damaged by sand and gravel mining, funded through severance taxes and other sources.

What This Bill Does

  • Establishes the Watershed Restoration and Conservation Fund within the state treasury.
  • Deposits severance tax revenues from sand mining into the fund, along with donations and grants.
  • Allocates funds to the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority for use in the Amite River Basin.
  • Requires an annual report on the fund's activities to be submitted by March 1st each year.

Who It Names or Affects

  • People living near the Amite River Basin who benefit from restored watersheds.
  • The Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority, which manages the funds.
  • Sand mining companies that pay severance taxes contributing to the fund.

Terms To Know

severance tax
A tax on natural resources removed from the ground or water in a state.
watershed
An area of land where all the water drains into the same place, like a river or lake.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify how much money will be in the fund.
  • It is unclear what specific activities will be funded by the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority.

Amendments

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

Adopted

Plain English: HCAHB802 2549 5016 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on Appropriations to Engrossed House Bill No.

  • HCAHB802 2549 5016 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on Appropriations to Engrossed House Bill No.
  • 802 by Representative Sawyer 1 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 1 2 On page 2, delete lines 9 and 10 in their entirety and insert the following: 3 "E.
  • Monies in the fund shall be appropriated to the Coastal Protection and 4 Restoration Authority for use by the board of commissioners for the Amite River 5 Basin Drainage and Water Conservation District for use as provided in Subsection 6 B of this Section." Page 1 of 1 CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored are additions.
Draft

Plain English: HCAHB802 2549 4753 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on Appropriations to Engrossed House Bill No.

  • HCAHB802 2549 4753 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on Appropriations to Engrossed House Bill No.
  • 802 by Representative Sawyer 1 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 1 2 On page 2, delete lines 9 and 10 in their entirety and insert the following: 3 "E.
  • Monies in the fund shall be appropriated to the Coastal Protection and 4 Restoration Authority for use by the board of commissioners for the Amite River 5 Basin Drainage and Water Conservation District for use as provided in Subsection 6 B of this Section." Page 1 of 1 CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored are additions.
Adopted

Plain English: HCAHB802 3209 4384 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on Natural Resources and Environment to Original House Bill No.

  • HCAHB802 3209 4384 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on Natural Resources and Environment to Original House Bill No.
  • 802 by Representative McMakin 1 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 1 2 Change the author of the bill from Representative McMakin to Representative Sawyer 3 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 2 4 On page 1, delete line 2 in its entirety and at the beginning of line 3, delete "of R.S.
Draft

Plain English: HCAHB802 3209 3963 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on Natural Resources and Environment to Original House Bill No.

  • HCAHB802 3209 3963 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on Natural Resources and Environment to Original House Bill No.
  • 802 by Representative McMakin 1 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 1 2 On page 1, delete line 2 in its entirety and at the beginning of line 3, delete "of R.S.
  • 30:971 3 through 975," and insert "To enact R.S.
Draft

Plain English: HCAHB802 3209 2703 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on Natural Resources and Environment to Original House Bill No.

  • HCAHB802 3209 2703 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on Natural Resources and Environment to Original House Bill No.
  • 802 by Representative McMakin 1 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 1 2 Change the author of the bill from Representative McMakin to Representative Sawyer Page 1 of 1 CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored are additions.

Bill History

  1. 2026-05-29 H

    Sent to the Governor for executive approval.

  2. 2026-05-28 S

    Signed by the President of the Senate.

  3. 2026-05-28 H

    Enrolled and signed by the Speaker of the House.

  4. 2026-05-28 H

    Received from the Senate without amendments.

  5. 2026-05-27 S

    Read by title, passed by a vote of 35 yeas and 0 nays, and ordered returned to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.

  6. 2026-05-26 S

    Reported without Legislative Bureau amendments. Read by title and passed to third reading and final passage.

  7. 2026-05-25 S

    Read by title and referred to the Legislative Bureau.

  8. 2026-05-21 S

    Rules suspended. Reported favorably.

  9. 2026-05-12 S

    Read second time by title and referred to the Committee on Natural Resources.

  10. 2026-05-11 S

    Received in the Senate. Read first time by title and placed on the Calendar for a second reading.

  11. 2026-05-07 H

    Read third time by title, roll called on final passage, yeas 100, nays 0. Finally passed, title adopted, ordered to the Senate.

  12. 2026-05-06 H

    Scheduled for floor debate on 05/07/2026.

  13. 2026-05-06 H

    Read by title, amended, ordered reengrossed, passed to 3rd reading.

  14. 2026-05-05 H

    Reported with amendments (20-0).

  15. 2026-04-27 H

    Read by title, amended, ordered engrossed, recommitted to the Committee on Appropriations.

  16. 2026-04-23 H

    Reported with amendments (14-0).

  17. 2026-03-09 H

    Read by title, under the rules, referred to the Committee on Natural Resources and Environment.

  18. 2026-02-27 H

    First appeared in the Interim Calendar on 2/27/2026.

  19. 2026-02-27 H

    Under the rules, provisionally referred to the Committee on Natural Resources and Environment.

  20. 2026-02-27 H

    Prefiled.

Official Summary Text

WATER/RESOURCES: Provides with respect to the management of watershed restoration (EN DECREASE GF RV See Note)

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
ENROLLED
2026 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 802
BY REPRESENTATIVES SAWYER AND MCMAKIN
1 AN ACT
2 To enact R.S. 38:3310, relative to watershed restoration and conservation; to create the
3 Watershed Restoration and Conservation Fund and establish its mechanism for
4 funding; to provide for the expenditures, administration, and reporting of the fund;
5 to provide for an effective date; and to provide for related matters.
6 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
7 Section 1. R.S. 38:3310 is hereby enacted to read as follows:
8 §3310. Watershed Restoration and Conservation Fund
9 A. There is hereby established in the state treasury as a special fund the
10 Watershed Restoration and Conservation Fund, hereafter referred to in this Section
11 as "the fund".
12 B. The purpose of the fund shall be to support the reclamation, restoration,
13 and long-term stewardship of lands and watersheds within the Amite River Basin
14 impacted by sand and gravel mining operations, with priority given to flood-prone
15 areas and impaired watersheds.
16 C. After allocation of money to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund as
17 provided in Article VII, Section 9(B) of the Constitution of Louisiana, the treasurer
18 shall deposit into the fund one hundred percent of the portion of recurring severance
19 tax revenues collected on sand severed from within the geographic boundaries of the
20 district that would have been deposited into the state general fund after allocations
21 of such revenues otherwise required by the Constitution of Louisiana and the
22 Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950. Monies designated for the fund and received
23 by the state treasurer from donations, gifts, grants, or other revenue shall be
24 deposited into the fund.
25 D. Monies in the fund shall be invested in the same manner as monies in the
26 state general fund. Interest earned on investment of monies in the fund shall be
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are additions.
HB NO. 802 ENROLLED
1 credited to the fund. Unexpended and unencumbered monies in the fund at the end
2 of the fiscal year shall remain in the fund.
3 E. Monies in the fund shall be appropriated to the Coastal Protection and
4 Restoration Authority for use by the board of commissioners for the Amite River
5 Basin Drainage and Water Conservation District for use as provided in Subsection
6 B of this Section.
7 F. An annual report detailing the receipts, expenditures, and funded activities
8 of the Watershed Restoration and Conservation Fund shall be submitted by the board
9 to the House Committee on Natural Resources and Environment and the Senate
10 Committee on Natural Resources by March first of each calendar year.
11 Section 2. This Act shall become effective on July 1, 2026.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA
APPROVED:
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are additions.