This op-ed by Quin Hillyer was published by NOLA on 04/04/2025.
Perhaps the most important bill in Louisiana’s upcoming legislative session will be one almost everyone can agree on. Designed to make it easier for people to move from society’s economic margins to more comfortable, productive working lives, it should be a “win-win” for everybody.
To be introduced by Stephanie Berault, R-Slidell, in the House and Patrick McMath, R-Covington, in the Senate, the bill would institute the so-called “One Door” approach to public assistance that has worked tremendously well for Utah since 1997.
The basic idea is simple: Those who need public assistance should be able to navigate the system with the equivalent of “one-stop shopping,” with a single caseworker, rather than going to multiple offices, filling out multiple and largely duplicative forms, and waiting for multiple bureaucracies to provide ofttimes conflicting responses.