Bossier City council calendar extends beyond July as chambers work and new voting law take effect
Ask Interactive NewsLook for updates to this storyFind out what has changed since this story was published.
Bossier City’s 2026 council calendar was reorganized after construction in the council chambers affected the regular schedule, while a new Louisiana law changed how individual electronic votes can satisfy the Open Meetings Law’s viva voce requirement.
The City Council’s June 23, 2026, record approved a schedule for the remainder of the year. The original 2026 calendar ran only through July because of work in the council chambers, so residents should rely on each later city posting rather than assume the earlier calendar covers the rest of 2026.
The calendar now extends beyond July
The city’s verified Agenda Center trail shows City Council meetings posted through July 21, 2026. The June 23 record is the key city action for the remainder-of-year schedule, but the record does not establish a final completion date for the chambers construction.
Residents, workers and anyone planning to attend or speak should check the city’s current Agenda Center for each meeting’s date, time, location, agenda and participation instructions. Construction-related logistics can make the location or procedure listed for one meeting different from another.
Act 220 took effect Aug. 1
Senate Bill 1 became Act 220 and took effect Aug. 1, 2026. The law amends Louisiana’s Open Meetings Law to address viva voce voting and electronic voting.
The enrolled text says all votes by members of a public body must be viva voce and recorded in the body’s minutes, journal or other official written proceedings. It also says that an individual member’s vote displayed and recorded using electronic machines satisfies the Open Meetings Law’s viva voce requirement. The Act further provides that its provisions apply retroactively.
That language describes the statutory treatment of displayed and recorded electronic votes. It does not, by itself, establish that every earlier Bossier City vote complied with the law or resolve every legal question involving past meetings.
Merriott case is a separate public-comment dispute
The voting-law change should not be conflated with Merriott v. City of Bossier City, a separate federal case involving public-comment rules and related claims.
In a June 25, 2026, opinion, the Fifth Circuit reviewed claims brought by an online journalist who alleged that Bossier City Council rules restricting remarks and conduct during meetings violated the First Amendment and Louisiana law. The court held that the challenged prohibitions on “personal, impertinent or slanderous remarks” were facially overbroad and unconstitutionally vague, and that the policy raised viewpoint- and content-discrimination concerns. The court treated the “boisterous” provision differently, finding it viewpoint neutral.
The Fifth Circuit also concluded that some First Amendment retaliation and Louisiana Open Meetings Law claims were plausibly stated, while other claims or requested remedies could not proceed. The court therefore affirmed the district court’s dismissal in part, reversed some dismissal rulings and remanded the case for further proceedings.
The ruling concerns speech and public participation at council meetings. It does not automatically halt Bossier City council meetings, suspend Act 220 or decide every issue that may arise after remand.
What residents should check
- Confirm the meeting date and time in the city’s current Agenda Center posting.
- Check the listed location while council-chambers construction affects scheduling.
- Review the agenda before attending or planning to speak.
- Read the current public-comment and meeting-participation instructions.
- Distinguish Act 220’s electronic-voting language from the separate Merriott public-comment litigation.
For Bossier City residents, the immediate practical change is that the council calendar was approved to continue beyond July instead of ending with the original construction-affected schedule. The city’s later postings—not the earlier calendar alone—will determine the details residents need before each meeting.
Sources
- June 23 Bossier City Council agenda and record
- Louisiana Act 220 bill record and enrolled text
- Fifth Circuit Merriott opinion
Ask Interactive NewsLook for updates to this storyFind out what has changed since this story was published.
Discover more from Interactive News
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.