2026 Legislative Policy Fact Sheets
Applied Behavior Analysis
Fact Sheet»
In 2024, HB 872 was signed into law expanding access to Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) in public schools. Some schools are not allowing ABA to take place in the classroom, stating that the law does not specifically mention that ABA could be conducted in the classroom. Our goal for the 2026 Legislative session is to add “classroom” into the law.
Bryan’s Call
Fact Sheet»
There is no dedicated alert designed to focus on helping locate missing individuals with disabilities or quickly notifying those most at risk during emergencies. The Bryan Call is a proposed statewide emergency alert system modeled after the AMBER Alert and designed to be inclusive for people with disabilities.
LRS Funding
Fact Sheet»
Last year, the Legislature appropriated $4 million of the $11 million requested. As a result, LRS applications increased by 22% and new authorizations increased by 35%, showing the strong demand for services when funding is available. We have been informed that the $4 million added last year has been included in this year’s budget, leaving the remaining $7 million needed to fully fund LRS.
People First of Louisiana Reinstatement of Funds
Fact Sheet»
In 2024, we met with the legislature, and they fully funded our request for People First. However, this year we learned that funding for People First was not annualized in this upcoming budget. People First of Louisiana is part of a national coalition of organizations for people with disabilities. As a statewide organization, it supports people with disabilities in empowering themselves to become effective decision-makers, gain independence, enjoy life as equal citizens, and actively support one another in participating in and contributing to their local communities.
Rate Methodology Project
Fact Sheet»
Due to state budget constraints and the lack of sound, reliable rate-setting methodologies, Louisiana’s HCBS reimbursement rates have not kept pace with inflation and rising regulatory and program expectations. In fact, the rates were cut regularly until 2020, when the legislature restored them to the 2008 reimbursement levels. The goal of the project is to develop sound payment and rate-setting methodologies by analyzing the reasonable and necessary costs incurred by providers who serve participants in Louisiana’s ICFs and HCBS programs. We wanted to build a sound rate methodology that starts with a target wage for DSPs as the base and then builds from there to include all other expenses providers incur, such as nursing, transportation, clinical services, and administrative costs.