Tuesday, November 2, 2004

To guarantee the right of every citizen to hunt, fish and trap, subject to regulation, restriction, or prohibition as provided by law. (Adds Article I, Section 27)

To provide that homestead exempt property is limited to property owned and occupied by the owners; to provide for land classified and assessed at use value; to provide that a field which qualifies for a homestead exemption may have timber on it; to prohibit granting the homestead exemption to bond for deed property unless granted before June 20, 2003; to explicitly prohibit more than one homestead exemption applying to any person; and to require the homestead exemption to extend to the following: (1) The surviving spouse when the homestead is occupied by the surviving spouse and title to it is in the surviving spouse's name as owner of any interest or an usufructuary, or in the name of a testamentary trust established for the benefit of the surviving spouse or the descendants, or to the former spouse when the homestead is occupied by the former spouse and title to it is in the name of either or both of the former spouses. (2) Property owned by an irrevocable trust when the principal beneficiary or beneficiaries are the settlor or settlors of the trust and were the immediate prior owners of the homestead, and the homestead is occupied as such by a principal beneficiary. (3) Property where the usufruct has been granted to no more than two usufructuaries who occupy the homestead and who were the immediate prior owners of the homestead. (4) A natural person or persons and to an irrevocable trust created by a natural person or persons in which the beneficiaries of the trust are a natural person or persons if the criteria above is otherwise satisfied. (5) Property owned, limited to the prorata ownership interest of the person occupying the homestead unless provided otherwise above. (Amends Article VII, Section 20(A))

To provide that persons who served honorably in the armed forces of the United States for at least ninety days after September 11, 2001, for reasons other than training are eligible for the veterans' five-point preference for original state police service employment or original civil service employment by the state, by the city of New Orleans, or by any other civil service system governed by the same provisions of the constitution; to provide that persons who served honorably in the armed forces of the United States during a war declared by the United States Congress are eligible for the veterans' five-point preference for original state police service employment; and to permit the legislature to provide for the addition of war periods or armed conflicts for such eligibility by state law enacted by a two-thirds vote. (Amends Article X, Sections 10(A)(2) and 48(A)(2))

To authorize the legislature to provide by law for programs to assist Louisiana farmers and fishermen with support and expansion of their industries; to establish the Agricultural and Seafood Products Support Fund as a special fund in the state treasury; to provide for the sources of monies in the fund to be from the licensing of trademarks or labels for use in promoting Louisiana agricultural and seafood products, grants, gifts, donations received by the state, any other revenues as provided for by law, and monies appropriated by the legislature to the fund; and to provide for sources of monies in the fund and use of monies appropriated from the fund for assistance to Louisiana farmers and fishermen. (Adds Article VII, Section 10.12)