The House Committee on Appropriations moved House Bill 528 favorable as amended on April 28 after discussion about departmental reform, funding treatment and implementation oversight.

Chairman Boriak, the bill’s sponsor, said the measure is one of a four‑bill package intended to improve project delivery at the Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD). The bill creates an Office of Transformation, an assistant secretary for project delivery, clarifies duties and establishes key performance indicators (KPIs) and reporting requirements to the legislature. The sponsor referenced prior studies and reports, including a Boston Consulting Group review and the Onward Louisiana transition advisory material, as informing why the changes are needed.

Committee amendments clarified duties, removed language about unclassified civil service positions, adjusted references (including renaming the Louisiana Highway Construction Authority to the Office of Louisiana Highway Construction), added language on elimination of positions in accordance with civil service rules, and refined budget- and personnel-related language. Sponsors described a “means of finance” shift discussed in the hearing: language in the bill is intended to limit use of Transportation Trust Fund (TTF) money for ongoing personnel service costs and move more TTF dollars toward capital outlay and construction projects over time; sponsors described the first year as a transition and said the department will seek appropriations for positions in HB2 moving forward.

Members questioned fiscal implications. Vice Chairman Hughes and Representative Lyons pressed the chair on the fiscal-note language and whether the measure would increase state general funds and affect federal match opportunities. The sponsor and department representatives said the amendment clarifies positions and duties and that the measure is intended to reallocate administrative charges away from the TTF to capital spending over time. The committee offered and adopted a set of amendments developed with DOTD and the transportation committee, and the bill was moved favorable as amended by voice vote.

The committee did not record a roll-call vote in the transcript; the bill was advanced to subsequent legislative consideration.