We’re back to school again, kicking off the fall semester. There are plenty of the same repetitive things to start looking forward to — classes, studying, football games, tailgating and binge drinking.
This semester also comes with a little lagniappe, arriving in the form of 233 new state laws, which took effect Aug. 15. For the most part, the laws aren’t exactly noteworthy, but some stand out — in good, bad and funny ways.
Here are the few bad highlights.
According to The Times-Picayune, traffic tickets in New Orleans will cost up to $20 more — just another reason to be more livid when pulled over by a member of the nation’s most corrupt police department.
Also, a former six-month residency requirement before someone can receive a concealed handgun permit is now gone, allowing anyone who moves into the state to apply for the permit thanks to House Bill 489. For some reason, this law just sounds like bad news considering Louisiana is the most violent state in the country.
On the flip side, many positive laws were passed.
First, a person convicted of a repeat offense of a crime against nature will not have to register as a sex offender unless the person solicited is younger than 17. So if you’re into less conventional sex, it doesn’t make you a sex offender. It just makes you weird.
House Bill 636 requires abortion clinics to display information about abortion alternatives and to inform patients that the father of the child must provide monetary support. I hope this law will appease those of both sides of the abortion argument in some way.
Two new laws will also help out nonviolent criminals, keeping many out of prison. House Bill 415 will offer “administrative sanctions” instead of jail time to nonviolent offenders who violate parole. Also, House Bill 416 will allow nonviolent offenders to be eligible for parole after serving 25 percent of their sentence instead of 33 percent. We’re in a budget crisis, and it costs a significant amount of money to incarcerate people — let’s save it for the ones who really deserve it.
Another two laws touched on illegal immigration.
House Bill 342 will require contractors working on public works to verify the legal status of all their workers in attempt to bar illegal immigrants from working on public projects.
House Bill 646 requires all employers to verify that each worker is in the state legally and imposes stiff fines on violators. While both of these laws are certainly controversial, one can only hope they will help free up many jobs previously held by illegal immigrants.
And finally, here are some funny, strange and out-there laws.
House Bill 55 will bar registered sex offenders who have been convicted of indecent behavior with a juvenile from access to Facebook and other social media sites. First-time offenders can receive a $10,000 fine and up to 10 years in jail. It sounds like a good idea, but I have no idea how they’re going to control this — thus, I’m still telling my 12-year-old sister to avoid Facebook like an ultra-deadly mortal sin.
Another law will allow car dealers to sells cars with front-seat passenger DVD screens so the passenger can watch movies. Maybe it’s just me, but I can imagine I would be leaning across the console to watch, assuming I had this feature in my car.
And lastly, if you’re a crawfish farmer or pond owner, feel free to fire at will at the cute little otters and muskrats from your boat without a kill limit thanks to House Bill 64. Also, with the passage of House Bill 294, feel free to trap and kill feral hogs at any time with your choice of firearm — just give the police 24-hour notice before you open fire.
And now my favorite — House Bill 169 now gives Louisiana residents the right to kill those damned nutria and similar “outlaw quadrupeds” with their favorite suppressed firearm.
Overall, these new laws probably won’t affect the majority, but they may cause subtle, positive change in the state, and if nothing else, it’s good to know our politicians are focusing on what’s important — sodomy and wild hogs.
 
Chris Grillot is a 20-year-old English and mass communication junior from New Orleans. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_CGrillot.
 
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Contact Chris Grillot at [email protected]