The 2023 regular legislative session is over, but lawmakers could return for a veto override session.
Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards says he expects he’ll veto three bills that target the LGBTQ+ community. Gov. Edwards says the legislation is mean-spirited and wrong.
“The judgment of history I believe will be very clear,” Gov. Edwards said during his post-session media briefing. “It will be clear as the judgment of history has been on those who didn’t want civil rights in the 50s, for example.”
This bills include a measure that would prohibit public school teachers from discussing gender and sexual identity in a classroom setting and legislation that would allow teachers to ignore students’ preferred pronouns. Gov. Edwards says he also disapproves of a bill that bans gender-affirming care for transgender minors.
“Some of these bills affect a couple of three dozen people in our entire state of 4.65 million, and all of a sudden, I mean, these are just things we have to do,” Gov. Edwards says.
Republican House Delegation chairman Blake Miguez supported the bills, saying he’s passionate about protecting kids from life-altering procedures they may regret later in life.
“I can see the possibility of a veto override session to address that singular issue,” Rep. Miguez (R-Erath) said.
If the governor vetoes these bills, a veto session is automatically called, unless a majority of the House or Senate votes not to have a veto session. It will take a two-thirds vote in the House and Senate to override a veto. These three pieces of legislation received enough votes in the House and Senate to make them veto-proof. However, Gov. Edwards could use his threat of the line-item veto to whip some lawmakers into voting against a veto.
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