BATON ROUGE - The Louisiana Association of Business and Industry (LABI) and its legal reform partners sent more than 1,100 letters to auto insurance companies who currently do not operate in Louisiana, marketing the potential of bringing business back to the state after the passage of legal reform legislation during the first special session of 2020.
"Louisiana is open for business, and we want to invite you back," the letter states. "Our Legal Reform Coalition has spent the last two years working to bring real changes to the state that will improve our business and legal climates. We invite you to take a fresh look at doing business in Louisiana. For decades, Louisiana has been a poster child for lawsuit abuse. Louisianians knew something had to be done."
According to a release from the LABI, the message goes on to describe the substantive changes that were made to Louisiana's civil justice system by HB 57, the landmark legal reform bill authored by Speaker Clay Schexnayder (R-Gonzales). The measure, which passed in both chambers with an overwhelming majority, was signed into law by Gov. John Bel Edwards (D-Amite) at the end of the special session.
Schexnayder said the reforms will help bring the state's legal system more in line with the rest of the country.
“It’s far past time to rebuild a competitive auto insurance marketplace for our citizens, and we’re proud to be a part of this effort to show the nation that Louisiana is once again open for businesses," he said.
In addition to explaining HB 57 in detail, the letter itself also touches on recent changes made to make Louisiana's judiciary more transparent and the continuing push to make the court system more fair, honest, and efficient.
The letter concludes, "Louisiana is rethinking our status quo; we have started to rebuild our economy and we are ready to welcome new business. This is something we would like you to be a part of."
LABI president and CEO Stephen Waguespack said the initiative is designed to help recruit more auto insurers to the state and lower rates for consumers via a competitive market.
"We encourage other stakeholders, such as elected officials, the Louisiana Department of Insurance and Louisiana Economic Development to join us in this work to bring both more business to our state and real financial relief to our working families and job creators in this struggling economy," he said.
In addition to LABI, the letter was signed by the state chapter of the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) of Louisiana, the Pelican Institute for Public Policy, the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of Louisiana (IIABL), the American Sugar Cane League, the Louisiana Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association (LMOGA), the Louisiana Home Builders Association (LHBA), the Louisiana Bankers Association (LBA), and the Louisiana Oil & Gas Association (LOGA).