House Bill No. 608, titled the "Louisiana Atmospheric Protection Act," establishes comprehensive regulations for atmospheric and weather modification activities in Louisiana. The bill introduces Chapter 24 of Subtitle II of Title 30 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes, defining key terms such as "cloud-seeding," "geoengineering," and "weather modification." It prohibits any person or entity from engaging in solar radiation modification, weather modification, or cloud-seeding, imposing a civil penalty of $200,000 for violations. The Department of Agriculture and Forestry is designated as the oversight authority, ensuring compliance with these regulations, which also apply to government and armed forces projects.

The legislation creates the "Atmospheric Protection Fund" for collecting fines from violations and mandates independent testing to ensure adherence to established standards. It repeals Chapter 25 of Title 37, which previously governed atmospheric and weather modification, thereby streamlining the regulatory framework. Notably, amendments made by the House Committee on Natural Resources and Environment shift the enforcement of these regulations from state police to the Department of Agriculture and Forestry and change the penalty for violations from criminal to civil. Additionally, the requirement for a radiation evaluation report is now directed to the Department of Environmental Quality instead of local law enforcement.

Statutes affected:
HB608 Original:
HB608 Engrossed: