The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate has published a letter from our hero, Penny Freistadt, opposing HB 804.
House Bill 804, currently before the Louisiana Legislature, provides immunity to oil and gas companies from lawsuits for climate-related damages, while forcing taxpayers to cover costs for disasters and coastal damage.
This bill mirrors efforts at the federal level, which reflect success by gun manufacturers in passing the despicable Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA).
It is important that this Louisiana bill not succeed. The sooner consequences are enacted for the shameful way the fossil fuel industry has polluted the planet, the fewer severe catastrophic effects will occur. Salutary reversals still have a chance of allowing us to evade extreme heat, weather, fires, sea level rise and more that will be inevitable otherwise.
According to data from the Louisiana Ethics Administration website, state Rep. Brett Geymann, who sponsored the Louisiana bill, has received at least $28,000 from oil and gas companies and their PACs in campaign donations from 2002-2025. While this hardly ranks as high corruption, it confirms the suspicion that campaign donations direct egregious legislation.
MARION FREISTADT
New Orleans
