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ENROLLED
2026 Regular Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 4
BY REPRESENTATIVES DEVILLIER, ADAMS, AMEDEE, BACALA, BAGLEY,
BAMBURG, BAYHAM, BEAULLIEU, BERAULT, BILLINGS, BOUDREAUX,
BOURRIAQUE, BOYD, BOYER, BRASS, BRAUD, BROUSSARD, BRYANT,
BUTLER, CARLSON, CARPENTER, CARRIER, ROBBY CARTER, WILFORD
CARTER, CARVER, CHASSION, CHENEVERT, COATES, COX, CREWS,
DESHOTEL, DEWITT, DICKERSON, DOMANGUE, ECHOLS, EDMONSTON,
EGAN, FARNUM, FIRMENT, FISHER, FONTENOT, FREEMAN, FREIBERG,
GADBERRY, GALLE, GEYMANN, GLORIOSO, GREEN, HEBERT, HENRY,
HILFERTY, HORTON, ILLG, JACKSON, MIKE JOHNSON, TRAVIS JOHNSON,
JORDAN, KERNER, KNOX, LACOMBE, LAFLEUR, JACOB LANDRY,
MANDIE LANDRY, TERRY LANDRY, LARVADAIN, LYONS, MACK,
MARCELLE, MARTINEZ, MCCORMICK, MCFARLAND, MCMAHEN,
MCMAKIN, MELERINE, MENA, MILLER, MOORE, MURRAY,
MUSCARELLO, NEWELL, ORGERON, OWEN, PHELPS, RISER,
SCHAMERHORN, SCHLEGEL, SPELL, ST. BLANC, STAGNI, TARVER,
TAYLOR, THOMAS, THOMPSON, TURNER, VENTRELLA, VILLIO,
WALTERS, WILDER, WILEY, WRIGHT, WYBLE, YOUNG, AND ZERINGUE
A RESOLUTION
To express sincere and heartfelt condolences upon the death of the Honorable Joe R. Salter,
former Speaker of the House.
WHEREAS, it was with deep regret and profound sorrow that the members of the
Louisiana House of Representatives learned of the death of the Honorable Joe R. Salter,
former Speaker of the House, on Saturday, August 16, 2025, at the age of eighty-two; and
WHEREAS, it is fitting to express enduring gratitude for Speaker Salter's outstanding
contributions to this state, particularly during his term of service as a distinguished member
and Speaker of the Louisiana House of Representatives; and
WHEREAS, born in Many, Louisiana, Joe Salter grew up in Redland, and he and his
wife, Bettye, put down deep roots and raised their family in Florien, where he served as a
deacon and Sunday school teacher at First Baptist Church; and
WHEREAS, Joe Salter was a public servant whose excellence as a state
representative merited his consistent reelection from 1986 until 2008, when he termed out
of office, and during his legislative tenure, he fully used every opportunity to serve the
citizens of his district and the state in an honorable and dedicated manner; and
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WHEREAS, on January 12, 2004, Joe Salter was elected as the sixty-second Speaker
of the House, a role in which he served with great distinction; when nominating Mr. Salter
for election as Speaker of the House, the late Representative Billy Wayne Montgomery
captured him well when saying, "He never says he's wise, but he is. He never says he's fair,
but he is fair. He never says he's honest, but he is honest. He never says he has skills, but
he does have skills. He never says he's knowledgeable, but he is knowledgeable. And above
all, he never says he's a leader, but he is a leader ... he never promotes himself. He just lives
a life that reflects these things ... members, we have a good man here"; and
WHEREAS, in the period following the historic storms of 2005, Speaker Salter
demonstrated his outstanding leadership skills when helping to guide the House of
Representatives and the state through the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita;
as Louisiana rebuilt after these storms, the House and the state benefitted tremendously from
the leadership of Speaker Salter, who lent strength, dignity, and determination to this
unprecedented recovery process; and
WHEREAS, after the end of his House service, Mr. Salter continued his state public
service as the director of governmental affairs for the state Department of Education, chief
of staff for the Louisiana Secretary of State, and a member of the Board of Supervisors for
the University of Louisiana System; he retired in January of 2024 after a highly productive
fifty-nine-year career spent in service to his fellow citizens; and
WHEREAS, Speaker Salter's blend of intelligence and sincerity was a vital asset to
the state of Louisiana, and all who worked with him over the course of his long career in
public service appreciated his graciousness, integrity, and quiet wisdom and knew him as
a trustworthy man of faith; and
WHEREAS, above all, Joe Salter was a family man who loved spending time with
his wife, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren; he is survived by Bettye Lilly
Salter, his childhood sweetheart and wife of sixty years; their children and children's
spouses, Mandy and Billy Gibbs and Brantley and Tammy Salter; grandchildren, Hannah
Gibbs Fontenot and her husband Gage, Haylee Salter, Tyler Gibbs, and Riley Salter; and
great-grandchildren, Kendall Fontenot and Axel Fontenot; he will be missed profoundly by
his beloved family and the many other individuals whose lives he touched with his strength
of character and generosity of spirit; and
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WHEREAS, with the death of Joe Salter, the state has lost one of her finest sons, a
man who will be remembered by all who were lucky enough to know him, including the
members of the House family, all of whom mourn the loss of this wonderful man who served
this institution and this state so long and so well.
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
Legislature of Louisiana does hereby express sincere and heartfelt condolences upon the
death of the Honorable Joe R. Salter, former Speaker of the House; does hereby recognize
and record for posterity his notable accomplishments and singular contributions during more
than two decades as a distinguished member of the Louisiana House of Representatives and
as the sixty-second Speaker of the House; and does hereby extend enduring appreciation for
the pride and honor that he will forever bring to his family and friends, to the Florien
community, to Sabine Parish, to the House, and to the state of Louisiana.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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