CONGRESS: Memorializes Congress to implement legislation to require candidates for the United States House of Representatives to reside within the congressional district they seek to represent.

SLS 26RS-337 ORIGINAL
2026 Regular Session
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 9
BY SENATOR CATHEY
CONGRESS. Memorializes Congress to implement legislation to require candidates for the
United States House of Representatives to reside within the congressional district they seek
to represent.
1 A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
2 To memorialize the Congress of the United States to immediately address the growing
3 practice of congressional "carpetbagging" by proposing and enacting legislation, or
4 a constitutional amendment if necessary, to require candidates for the United States
5 House of Representatives to reside within the congressional district they seek to
6 represent.
7 WHEREAS, the United States Constitution establishes minimum
8 qualifications for service in the United States House of Representatives but does not
9 require residency within the congressional district a candidate seeks to represent; and
10 WHEREAS, this omission has increasingly been exploited by political
11 opportunists who seek office in districts where they do not live, have not invested
12 their lives, and to which they have little or no genuine connection; and
13 WHEREAS, these practices undermine the foundational principle of
14 representative government by allowing individuals to seek election to represent
15 communities they neither reside in nor meaningfully understand; and
16 WHEREAS, residents of Louisiana's congressional districts rightly expect
17 that those who seek to represent them in Congress live among them, share their daily
18 challenges, and are accountable to the same local conditions, schools, infrastructure,
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1 and economies as the people they serve; and
2 WHEREAS, the practice of candidates shopping for congressional districts
3 erodes public trust, diminishes voter confidence, and weakens the legitimacy of
4 federal representation; and
5 WHEREAS, Louisiana law requires residency for numerous state and local
6 offices, recognizing that true representation demands proximity, familiarity, and
7 shared community interests; and
8 WHEREAS, congressional representation should be no less accountable to
9 the people than representation at the state or local level; and
10 WHEREAS, failure to address this issue invites continued abuse of the
11 electoral process and a further disconnect between the governed and those who seek
12 to govern them.
13 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana hereby
14 memorializes the Congress of the United States to immediately propose and enact
15 legislation, or pursue a constitutional amendment if required, establishing a
16 mandatory residency requirement for candidates seeking election to the United States
17 House of Representatives, requiring these candidates to reside within the
18 congressional district they seek to represent for a defined and reasonable period prior
19 to qualifying for office.
20 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana urges
21 Congress to act without delay to assure congressional representation involves
22 common sense residency requirements employing the same clearly mapped
23 geographical borders utilized in nearly all other local and state public offices
24 throughout the United States of America.
25 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this Resolution be transmitted
26 to the President of the United States, the Speaker of the United States House of
27 Representatives, the President of the United States Senate, and each member of the
28 Louisiana congressional delegation.
29 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution shall be
30 transmitted to the secretary of the United States Senate and the clerk of the United
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SLS 26RS-337 ORIGINAL
1 States House of Representatives.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Senate Legislative Services.
The keyword, summary, and digest do not constitute part of the law or proof
or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
DIGEST
SCR 9 Original 2026 Regular Session Cathey
Memorializes Congress to pass legislation to require candidates for election to the U.S.
House of Representatives to reside in the congressional district they seek to represent.
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