Makes supplemental appropriations for Fiscal Year 2025-2026

House Bill 312 appropriates a total of $144,268,468 in supplemental funding for Fiscal Year 2025-2026 drawn from the State General Fund surplus carried over from Fiscal Year 2024-2025. The bill allocates these funds to four state retirement systems for the specific purpose of reducing the unfunded accrued liability in each system. The four recipient systems are the Louisiana School Employees' Retirement System, which receives $4,784,189; the Louisiana State Police Retirement System, which receives $1,796,271; the Louisiana State Employees' Retirement System, which receives $59,986,989; and the Teachers' Retirement System of Louisiana, which receives $77,701,019. The legislation operates in compliance with Constitutional Article VII, Section 10(D)(2)(b)(iii), which governs the funding mechanism for reducing unfunded accrued liabilities in these systems.

The practical effect of this appropriation reaches all members and beneficiaries of the four state retirement systems, as well as the employing state agencies that participate in these systems. By directing surplus revenue to reduce unfunded accrued liabilities, the bill addresses long-term pension obligations and may reduce future contribution requirements for participating employers and members. The retirement systems themselves become the direct recipients of these funds and are responsible for applying the appropriations to the oldest portions of their respective unfunded accrued liabilities. The funding source is certified nonrecurring revenue from the prior fiscal year's surplus, meaning these funds are available one-time rather than as ongoing appropriations.

The statutory context for this bill operates within Louisiana's constitutional framework governing state retirement systems and fiscal appropriations. The appropriations derive authority from Constitutional Article VII, Section 10(D)(2)(b)(iii), which establishes parameters for funding unfunded accrued liabilities in state retirement systems. The bill follows the standard legislative process for supplemental appropriations and specifies that the means of finance were certified by the commissioner of administration and recognized by the Revenue Estimating Conference at the January 23, 2026, meeting of the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget. The effective date provision allows the bill to take effect upon gubernatorial signature, lapse of the veto period, or legislative override of a veto, with such timing governed by Louisiana Constitution Article III, Section 18.