Bill Overview: Senate Bill 2 creates new law to designate a specific portion of Louisiana Highway 977 in Pointe Coupee Parish as "The Falcons Band Highway." This legislation adds a commemorative highway designation to the Louisiana Revised Statutes, which is a common legislative practice used to honor individuals, groups, or organizations by officially naming roadways in their recognition. The bill serves the ceremonial purpose of providing official recognition to the Falcons Band through permanent highway signage, while having no impact on the road's functionality or traffic regulations.
Potential Impact: The primary beneficiaries of this legislation are the members and supporters of the Falcons Band, who will receive official state recognition through permanent highway signage along the designated portion of Highway 977. The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) will be responsible for manufacturing, installing, and maintaining the commemorative highway signs, which will require a modest expenditure of state funds for materials and labor. Local residents and travelers using Highway 977 in Pointe Coupee Parish will encounter the new signage identifying this section as "The Falcons Band Highway." Parish government and local tourism interests may benefit from the enhanced recognition of local cultural heritage. The legislation creates no regulatory burden on businesses or individuals, as commemorative highway designations do not alter traffic patterns, speed limits, or roadway usage. The bill's failure to pass would simply maintain the current unnamed status of this highway section, while passage creates a permanent memorial that will require ongoing state maintenance costs.
Affected Legislation: This bill creates entirely new law within Louisiana's highway designation statutory scheme, most likely adding a new section to Title 48 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes, which governs roads, bridges, and ferries. The new provision will be codified alongside other commemorative highway designations that have been enacted in previous legislative sessions. Since no existing statutory citations are provided in the available bill text, this represents the creation of fresh statutory language rather than an amendment to existing law, filling a gap in the current commemorative highway designation system by providing official recognition for the Falcons Band through permanent roadway nomenclature.