Louisiana Senate Bill SB431

Louisiana 2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 3/30/26
• Refer: 3/31/26
• Report Pass: 4/15/26
• Engrossed: 5/7/26
• Refer: 5/11/26
• Report Pass: 5/18/26
• Enrolled: 5/28/26

Caption

MOTOR VEHICLES: Requires tow truck companies to be open seven days a week. (8/1/26)

Summary

SB 431 amends Louisiana law governing gate fees and other charges related to nonconsensual towing from private property. The bill requires towing and storage companies engaged in these operations to make themselves available outside normal business hours, excluding legal holidays and certain exempted hours, so vehicle owners can retrieve personal property or the vehicle itself. It also directs that if a facility is closed or otherwise unavailable to the public for timely release, the company may not charge a storage fee for the day of closure and must suspend future storage charges until the next normal business day. The bill further authorizes the Office of State Police to adopt rules and regulations to implement these requirements, including defining the exempted hours. It also assigns the Public Service Commission responsibility for determining administrative and mailing fees associated with filing the Official Report of Stored Vehicles for in-state and out-of-state notifications. In practical terms, the measure adds operational and fee-related requirements for tow and storage businesses and gives state agencies authority over implementation and related filing charges.

Impact

SB 431 changes R.S. 32:1734 by expanding the obligations of towing and storage companies that perform nonconsensual tows from private property. It affects how and when such companies must be available to release vehicles or personal property, limits storage charges during periods when the facility is closed or inaccessible, and shifts fee-setting authority for certain stored-vehicle reporting costs to the Public Service Commission. The bill primarily impacts towing operators, storage facilities, vehicle owners, and state agencies responsible for enforcement and regulation.

Sentiment

The bill appears to have been broadly supported and noncontroversial. It passed the Senate 37-0, the House 87-0, and the Senate concurrence vote 30-0, indicating unanimous approval in both chambers. The available context suggests lawmakers generally favored the consumer-protection and access provisions without recorded opposition.

Contention

No committee transcript or recorded debate is available in the provided materials, and the voting history shows no dissenting votes. Based on the bill text, the most likely area of concern would be the operational burden on towing and storage companies, which must remain available for releases outside normal business hours and may lose storage revenue during closures. However, no specific opposition or amendments are documented in the supplied context.