Establishes a notice of voting restriction and a restriction code applicable to persons who are not United States citizens and aliens lawfully present in the United States but have not attained United States citizenship (EN SEE FISC NOTE SG EX)
HB 554 creates a new law requiring the Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles to use a restriction code on driver’s licenses and state identification cards issued to noncitizens who are lawfully present in the United States but have not become U.S. citizens. The bill also bars the OMV from issuing a Louisiana driver’s license or ID card to anyone who is neither a U.S. citizen nor an alien lawfully present in the country, and it directs the office to determine citizenship and immigration status for purposes of assigning the code.
In addition to the restriction code, the bill requires the OMV to send an official notice of voting restrictions to noncitizens and lawful permanent or other lawfully present noncitizens who have not naturalized. The notice states that noncitizens may not register or vote in Louisiana and warns that attempting to do so is a felony under state law. The notice must be provided in multiple languages, including French, Hindi, Mandarin, Spanish, Tagalog, and Vietnamese, plus any other translation required by federal law. The OMV must also keep records of persons given the notice and transmit that information monthly to the Secretary of State for voter list maintenance under an agreement between the agencies.
The bill also requires the OMV to adopt rules and regulations to implement the new notice and restriction-code system, including procedures for mailing notices and determining citizenship and immigration status. If the agency’s current system cannot support the new codes, any future system upgrade must include that capability. The act includes a severability clause and directs the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, through the OMV, to imprint the restriction code on applicable credentials once the system is upgraded.
The bill’s impact is to add a new administrative and data-sharing framework linking driver licensing records with voter eligibility enforcement. It affects the Office of Motor Vehicles, the Secretary of State, and noncitizen applicants for Louisiana licenses or identification cards, while reinforcing existing state restrictions on noncitizen voting and creating a formal notice process tied to credential issuance.
The bill appears to have had generally favorable support in both chambers, passing the House 74-21 and the Senate 28-11. The recorded votes suggest broad majority backing, but not unanimity, indicating some concern about the policy’s scope and implementation. The main points of contention are likely the use of driver’s license and ID records to identify noncitizens, the mandatory transmission of those records for voter list maintenance, and the felony warning language directed at noncitizens, along with privacy, immigration-status verification, and election-administration concerns.
HB 554 enacts R.S. 32:414.6 to require the Office of Motor Vehicles to place a restriction code on licenses and ID cards issued to lawful noncitizens who have not become U.S. citizens, to prohibit issuance to persons who are neither U.S. citizens nor lawfully present aliens, and to send multilingual notices explaining Louisiana’s noncitizen voting restrictions. It also requires recordkeeping and monthly data transmission to the Secretary of State for voter list maintenance, mandates rulemaking by the OMV, and requires system upgrades to support the new code. The act primarily affects OMV procedures, noncitizen credential holders, and election-related list maintenance practices.
The bill’s sentiment appears generally supportive in the Legislature, as reflected by passage in both chambers with comfortable majorities. The House and Senate votes indicate that the measure had enough bipartisan or cross-faction support to advance, though the negative votes show that a meaningful minority opposed it. No committee transcript was provided, so the available record suggests support was stronger than opposition overall, with debate likely centered on implementation and policy concerns rather than outright disagreement about the bill’s purpose.
The main contention points are likely the bill’s use of driver’s license and ID records to identify and label noncitizens, the requirement that the OMV share notice records with the Secretary of State for voter list maintenance, and the warning that noncitizen registration or voting attempts are felony offenses. Opponents may view the measure as burdensome, intrusive, or potentially chilling to lawful immigrants, while supporters likely see it as a voter-integrity and election-enforcement tool. The multilingual notice requirement and the need for citizenship/immigration-status verification also raise administrative and privacy concerns.