LADDC and LaCAN Celebrate 2025 Legislative Wins in Louisiana

People with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD), their families, and other advocates worked really hard to speak up for their needs during the 2025 Louisiana Legislative Session. The Council and LaCAN want to say a big thank you to everyone who helped support and speak out for people with disabilities this year. Your voices made a big difference!

Key Goals for the 2025 Louisiana Legislative Session

This year, the Council and LaCAN focused on three big goals:

1. Protecting services for people with disabilities,
2. Getting money back for Families Helping Families Centers, and
3. Making policies better for how schools handle seclusion and restraint

Thanks to your help, all of these goals were reached!

Here’s what happened:

• No disability services were cut from the state budget (HB1).
• $500,000 was added back to the Council’s budget to fund Families Helping Families Centers across Louisiana. Half of the money was put in HB1 and the other half in HB460.
• The Council and LaCAN helped write a new law (HB684) to make sure seclusion and restraint in schools are used safely and only when needed.

What the new law (HB684) says:

• Schools must put cameras in special education classrooms, even if parents don’t ask for them.
• It clearly explains what “seclusion” (putting a student alone in a room) and “physical restraint” (holding a student still) mean and when they can be used.
• Teachers will be trained to handle tough situations and behaviors (crisis intervention) as part of becoming a teacher.
• Only trained staff can use physical restraint, unless there’s an emergency.
• If a student is secluded or restrained, they must be checked by the school nurse or another health staff person on the same day it happens.
• Parents must be told during IEP meetings that they can say no to seclusion and restraint for their child.
• If there is a video of seclusion or restraint, it will be watched to make sure rules were followed.
• Parents must be told the same day if their child was secluded or restrained.
• If a student is secluded or restrained more than 2 times in a year, their behavior plan must be updated (used to be 5 times).
• If a student is held for more than 3 minutes in one hour, it can be called physical restraint.
• Schools must include clear rules about reporting when seclusion or restraint happens in all of their policies.
• Schools must share their rules every year with Special Education Advisory Councils and give copies to parents.

2025 Legislative Session Impacts

A big thank you to Representative Shane Mack and the 25 co-authors for helping us create this new law. We also want to thank all the advocates who wrote letters to their legislators and came to Yellow Shirt Days. And a special thanks to our partners who worked hard to make these changes for students with disabilities:

• The Arc of Louisiana
• Disability Rights Louisiana
• Louisiana Association of Public Charter Schools
• Louisiana Department of Education
• Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE)

All the bills are now going to the Governor so he can decide whether to sign them into law

Other Issues of Interest

You can find a full list of all the issues the Council followed during the 2025 Legislative Session by clicking here.

We also think it’s a great idea to thank your lawmakers or tell them what you think about the things that matter to you and your family. Here’s how you can do that:

• Click here to find contact info for State Representatives.
• Click here to find contact info for State Senators.
• Not sure who your State Representative or Senator is? Click here, type in your home address, and the first name that shows up is your State Representative. The second is your State Senator.