HB889 • 2026

FISHING/OYSTERS: Provides relative to bulk tagging of oysters

Agriculture

Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor: Joseph Orgeron
Last action: 2026-05-22
Official status: Signed by the Governor - Act 324
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The term 'alternative oyster cultivation' was removed as it was not defined or elaborated upon in the official source material.

Bulk Tagging for Oysters

This act changes the rules about tagging oysters to allow a new bulk tagging process for alternative oyster farming.

What This Bill Does

Changes the law on how oysters are tagged when they're taken from Louisiana waters and sold.
Creates a new way to tag large amounts of oysters at once, which is called 'bulk tagging'.
Requires that all information needed by health and wildlife departments must be included on these tags.

Who It Names or Affects

Fishermen who harvest and sell oysters in Louisiana.
The Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and the Office of Public Health in Louisiana.

Terms To Know

Bulk tagging: A process where a single tag represents many oysters from when they're harvested until they reach a dockside facility.

Limits and Unknowns

The act does not specify how the bulk tagging process will work in detail.
It is unclear what specific information must be included on the tags beyond it being required by health and wildlife departments.

Bill History

2026-05-22 H
Effective date: 08/01/2026.
2026-05-22 H
Signed by the Governor. Becomes Act No. 324.
2026-05-19 H
Sent to the Governor for executive approval.
2026-05-18 S
Signed by the President of the Senate.
2026-05-18 H
Enrolled and signed by the Speaker of the House.
2026-05-13 H
Received from the Senate without amendments.
2026-05-13 S
Rules suspended. Read by title, passed by a vote of 37 yeas and 0 nays, and ordered returned to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.
2026-05-05 S
Reported without Legislative Bureau amendments. Read by title and passed to third reading and final passage.
2026-05-04 S
Read by title and referred to the Legislative Bureau.
2026-04-29 S
Reported favorably.
2026-04-07 S
Read second time by title and referred to the Committee on Natural Resources.
2026-04-01 S
Received in the Senate. Read first time by title and placed on the Calendar for a second reading.
2026-04-01 H
Read third time by title, roll called on final passage, yeas 96, nays 0. Finally passed, title adopted, ordered to the Senate.
2026-03-30 H
Scheduled for floor debate on 04/01/2026.
2026-03-26 H
Read by title, ordered engrossed, passed to 3rd reading.
2026-03-25 H
Reported favorably (15-0-1).
2026-03-09 H
Read by title, under the rules, referred to the Committee on Natural Resources and Environment.
2026-02-27 H
First appeared in the Interim Calendar on 2/27/2026.
2026-02-27 H
Under the rules, provisionally referred to the Committee on Natural Resources and Environment.
2026-02-27 H
Prefiled.

Official Summary Text

FISHING/OYSTERS: Provides relative to bulk tagging of oysters

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

ENROLLED
2026 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 889
BY REPRESENTATIVE ORGERON
1 AN ACT
2 To amend and reenact R.S. 56:449(C), relative to tagging of oysters; to establish a tag for
3 bulk harvesting for alternative oyster cultivation; and to provide for related matters.
4 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
5 Section 1. R.S. 56:449(C) is hereby amended and reenacted to read as follows:
6 §449. Tags; distribution; use; containers; penalties
7 * * *
8 C.(1) All oysters and other molluscan species taken from Louisiana waters
9 for sale which are sacked or otherwise containerized while in the shell and on board
10 a fisherman's vessel shall be tagged prior to removal from the vessel. The tag shall
11 include all information required by the Louisiana Department of Health, office of
12 public health, and the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. All oysters and other
13 molluscan species which are to be sacked or otherwise containerized while in the
14 shell at dockside shall be containerized and tagged immediately upon arrival at the
15 dock prior to shipment.
16 (2) The department shall establish a bulk tagging process to be utilized for
17 alternative oyster cultivation. The bulk tag may be utilized to represent all oysters
18 on board the vessel between the harvest area and the dockside facility. The tag shall
Page 1 of 2
CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
are additions.
HB NO. 889 ENROLLED
1 include all information required by the Louisiana Department of Health, office of
2 public health, and the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.
3 * * *
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA
APPROVED:
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CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
are additions.