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SB 51 Louisiana Senate · 2026 Regular Session

CRIME/PUNISHMENT: Creates the crime of fraudulent representation of military service or awards. (8/1/26)

SB 51 creates a new criminal offense for falsely claiming military service or awards to gain benefits. It directly affects individuals who lie about receiving military honors (like medals or service records) to obtain economic advantages, veteran benefits, or privileges. The bill establishes tiered penalties: up to $1,000 or 6 months in jail for basic false claims, up to $5,000 or 1 year for falsely claiming major awards (e.g., Medal of Honor), and up to $10,000, 5 years in prison, or restitution for fraud that secures benefits reserved for veterans or their families. Definitions clarify that "award" includes medals, ribbons, and official service records maintained by military or state forces.
Issues: ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeCreates new criminal offense with tiered penalties, expanding criminalization of false military service claims rather than reforming justice system.90% confidence ✓ VeteransSupports VeteransBill prevents fraud in veteran benefits, protecting legitimate recipients and system integrity by penalizing false claims of military service.90% confidence
Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2026
Committee Review
Apr 2026
Senate Passage
Mar 2026
House Passage
May 2026
Signed into Law
May 2026
Introduced Feb 18, 2026 Signed May 14, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 4 comparisons

What changed between versions

SB51 Original → SB51 Act · 3 edits
MINOR
The bill was finalized and enrolled as Act No. 203, changing its status from a draft proposal to an enacted law. The substantive legal text regarding the crime of fraudulent representation of military service remains largely consistent, though the final version adds specific examples of combat awards (Combat Action Ribbon, Combat Action Badge, and Combat Action Medal) to the list of protected honors. The final version also corrects a grammatical error in the intent clause by adding the word 'with' before 'intent'.
Scope change
The bill's scope was slightly expanded by explicitly including Combat Action Ribbon, Combat Action Badge, and Combat Action Medal in the list of protected military awards.
SCOPE

Added specific references to Combat Action Ribbon, Combat Action Badge, and Combat Action Medal to the list of protected military awards.

TECHNICAL

Corrected a grammatical error in the definition of criminal intent by adding the word 'with' to the phrase 'with the intent to injure'.

Updated the document header to reflect that the bill has been enrolled as Act No. 203 and approved by the Governor, finalizing the legislative process.

Floor votes · Senate Mar 17, 2026 · House May 7, 2026

How they voted

37–0
Passed · 2 other
Total votes 39
Mar 17, 2026
D Democratic11
9 Yea 2
81% Yea
R Republican28
28 Yea
100% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
18
Key actions
4
Committee
4
Amendments
1
May 7, 2026
Lower · Passed
Read third time by title, roll called on final passage, yeas 99, nays 0. Finally passed, ordered to the Senate.
lower
Apr 29, 2026
Introduced
Reported without Legislative Bureau amendments.
lower
Apr 28, 2026
Lower · Passed
Reported favorably (10-0). Referred to the Legislative Bureau.
lower
Mar 23, 2026
Committee
Read by title, under the rules, referred to the Committee on Administration of Criminal Justice.
lower
Mar 17, 2026
Upper · Passed
Senate floor amendments read and adopted. Read by title and passed by a vote of 35 yeas and 0 nays; ordered reengrossed and sent to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.
upper
Mar 10, 2026
Upper · Passed
Reported favorably.
upper
Mar 9, 2026
Committee
Introduced in the Senate; read by title. Rules suspended. Read second time and referred to the Committee on Judiciary C.
upper
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Photo of Caleb Kleinpeter
Caleb Kleinpeter
RRepublican
LA
17