The beginning of the new year marks the first anniversary of the merger of the Committee of 100 with the Council for a Better Louisiana to form a dynamic new organization, Leaders for a Better Louisiana. After our first full year, we believe this is an anniversary to celebrate!
First and foremost, we would like to thank all of our members and supporters whose continued participation and involvement told us very clearly that Louisiana was ready to support a new organization with the single-minded intent of moving our state forward. In fact, our goal from the outset was not simply to merge two organizations, but to leverage the resources of both to create something bigger for the betterment of Louisiana.
While there is still much work to do, we have a lot of good news to report. Among the highlights of 2025 we:
- Hosted successful policy and informational events during Washington Mardi Gras including our first annual Leadership Louisiana D.C. Mardi Gras Reunion.
- Welcomed the 37th class of Leadership Louisiana, growing our alumni base to more than 1,600 participants.
- Partnered to support LED’s efforts to create a new statewide strategic plan for economic development for Louisiana, called Positioning Louisiana to Win.
- Hosted Louisiana’s first statewide Apprenticeship Summit in partnership with LABI.
- Continued our comprehensive analysis of constitutional amendments including a close look at the proposed rewrite of Article VII of the Louisiana Constitution.
- Introduced our First Annual Better Louisiana “Legislative Policy Summit,” featuring presentations by the governor and top legislative and cabinet officials on the major state issues of the day.
- Played a leadership role in the development and legislative passage of two bills expanding tax credits for early childhood education and work-based learning.
- Successfully supported key legislation dealing with enhancements to Louisiana Economic Development, reorganization of the Louisiana Workforce Commission and the Department of Transportation and Development, auto insurance legal reforms, and connecting college students to career opportunities in Louisiana.
- Introduced a new statewide conference, “Future Louisiana: Ideas for Leadership,” featuring national speakers focusing on innovation and the future of the state.
- Published data covering 35 indicators of the state’s wellbeing featured in our Louisiana Fact Book.
- Issued a new RESET Louisiana report in partnership with PAR providing a comprehensive analysis of the impact of recent changes in sales and income taxes on Louisiana taxpayers.
- Introduced a new series of data briefs including quarterly economic updates, reports on the auto insurance market, work-based learning, state mega projects, early childhood education, and other data-focused policy papers.
Though we feel like we accomplished a lot in our first year, we are really only getting started. In 2026 we intend to build on all the work and activities we initiated last year, including some exciting new initiatives.
For too long, we’ve watched our best and brightest leave for opportunities elsewhere. We believe our children deserve a Louisiana worth staying for – a state where economic opportunity reaches every corner, where policy is guided by facts instead of politics, and where leaders are encouraged to build for generations, not just election cycles.
For that reason, as we look at our priorities for the coming year, we know talent and workforce are key factors in improving our state’s economic competitiveness. That is an area where we will place a sharp focus as we seek to continue to support the state’s economic development goals. We will also look to partner with LED to provide access to the deep sector and subject matter expertise of our members.
We will also be unveiling a major update to our Louisiana Fact Book which will establish it as the go-to source for trusted data on where Louisiana stands on the most important indicators of wellbeing. It will include goals for measuring progress, comparisons with the nation and peer states, unique local-level data, and charts showing multi-year trends.
Finally, building on our decades of work with Leadership Louisiana, we will soon be announcing details of an exciting new Leadership Louisiana initiative focused on healthcare, while at the same time building a new, more connected statewide alumni network with regional chapters to connect across class years. As we welcome the 38th class of Leadership Louisiana as the state’s premier statewide leadership program, we’re continuing to build for the future.
In celebrating our first anniversary we again want to thank our many members and supporters and encourage others who might want to be a part of this work to consider contributing.
Better Louisiana was formed with a very clear vision in mind: To transform Louisiana into a dynamic, future-ready economy that offers every citizen and business the opportunity to thrive. As we enter year two that remains our commitment, and our goal.