Committee reports several civil-law measures favorably, from remote notary study to aerospace liability limits

The Louisiana House Civil Law Committee on May 11 advanced a group of bills and a study resolution, reporting most measures favorably to the House floor after sponsors’ explanations and brief testimony.

Senate Bill 466 was presented as a narrow clarification of the state's expropriation authority: presenters said the bill confirms that an entity designated as a "foreign adversary" under federal law cannot use state expropriation powers, and it creates a very specific category to permit expropriation only for very large aerospace or aviation-related projects. The sponsor described the operative threshold as "not less than 20,000 contiguous acres and containing no residential structures," emphasizing the measure would not affect individual residences.

House Bill 986 by Representative Kerner would require persons convicted of vehicular homicide to make child support payments for children who lose a parent due to that crime; the committee reported the bill favorably with no recorded opposition.

Senate Concurrent Resolution 35 asks the Louisiana State Law Institute to study remote online notarization for certain authentic acts. David Bonino of the Louisiana Bankers Association testified in support, saying the decline in available notaries — especially in rural areas — "makes it difficult to conduct commerce and it's a hardship on residents in rural areas" and asking that stakeholders (notaries, clerks, bankers, bar) participate in the study. The committee reported SCR 35 favorably.

Chairman McFarland's House Bill 1098, a narrow limitation of liability for FAA-licensed aerospace flight entities, was described by the sponsor as mirroring similar provisions in other states and applying only to entities holding valid FAA licenses or federal experimental permits; the committee reported that bill favorably as well. The committee voluntarily deferred House Bill 375 and then adjourned.

Most bills advanced on voice votes or by unanimous consent; formal roll-call tallies were recorded for the two constitutional amendments in separate items.