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Alan Seabaugh

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Alan Seabaugh
Member of the Louisiana Senate
from the 31st district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 8, 2024
Preceded byLouie Bernard
Member of the Louisiana House of Representatives
from the 5th district
In office
October 2010 – January 8, 2024
Preceded byWayne Waddell
Succeeded byDennis Bamburg Jr.
Personal details
Born
Alan Thomas Seabaugh
Political partyRepublican
SpouseLaura McClelland
Children4
EducationLouisiana State University (BA, JD)

Alan Thomas Seabaugh is an American attorney from Shreveport, Louisiana, who is a Republican member of the Louisiana Senate from District 31. He previously served as a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from District 5 in Caddo Parish.

Background

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Alan Seabaugh has been a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives since 2010. He currently serves on the House Ways and Means, Insurance, and Labor Committees as well as the Joint Legislative Committee on the Capital Outlay. In 2012, he was elected Vice Chairman of the Louisiana House Republican delegation.

Seabaugh is the managing partner of Seabaugh, Joffrion, Sepulvado & Victory law firm. The practice includes insurance defense and claims, contracts, real estate law, property law, and all areas of civil and commercial litigation. He also is a member of the Louisiana Supreme Court Committee on Bar Admissions.

Seabaugh was a delegate and vice chairman of the Louisiana delegation to the 2008 Republican National Convention held in St. Paul, Minnesota. He was also a member of the Electoral College that year. He cast his two votes for the unsuccessful McCain/Palin ticket. He was a delegate to the 2010 Southern Republican Leadership Conference which convened in New Orleans.

He has been affiliated with the Christian nationalist legal organization Alliance Defending Freedom, which is noted for its opposition to LGBTQ rights.[1]

Political campaigns

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State senate campaign of 2007

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In 2007, Seabaugh unsuccessfully challenged Republican State Senator Sherri Smith Buffington.[2]

Seabaugh said that Cheek (now Buffington) "runs as a Republican and votes like a Democrat", and that he was disturbed that people from Caddo Parish had left Louisiana to seek economic opportunity elsewhere.[3] Cheek won with fifty-seven percent of the vote.

State legislature

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Seabaugh was elected to the legislature in 2010 to fill a vacancy created by the resignation of Republican Wayne Waddell.[4] In the 2010 election, Seabaugh defeated Republican and Red River Bank president Harold Turner 57-43 percent.[5]

In the primary election held on October 22, 2011, Seabaugh defeated fellow Republican and former Shreveport City Councilwoman Cynthia Norton Robertson, receiving 79.3% of the vote.[6]

In the October 24, 2015 primary election, Seabaugh won reelection to the House 71-29 percent,[7] defeating Democrat Eileen Velez of Shreveport.[8]

U.S. Senate candidacy declined

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In 2013, Seabaugh was strongly encouraged to enter the upcoming 2014 U.S. Senate Race against U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu, a Louisiana Democrat who unsuccessfully sought a fourth term in the office. Another Republican conservative, Rob Maness, a United States Air Force colonel from St. Tammany Parish, also sought the Senate seat.[9] Seabaugh announced that he would not enter the race and strongly endorsed Bill Cassidy,[10] who subsequently unseated Landrieu.

Legislative record

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Seabaugh's first legislative session dealt with redistricting state legislative and congressional districts. Seabaugh took a role in drafting the map of Louisiana's House of Representatives' districts by authoring an amendment which protected the integrity of the Southern Hills area of Shreveport.

Prior to the start of his first full term, Seabaugh was elected vice chairman of the Louisiana House Republican delegation. He was also appointed as vice chairman of the House Civil Law and Procedure Committee, in which he led the fight for tort reform and against lawsuit abuse.[11] Early in the new term, Seabaugh co-authored and was one of the principal floor leaders responsible for the passage of several education reform measures. These bills were passed and signed into law as Acts 1 and 2 of 2012.[12]

Seabaugh also was instrumental in blocking efforts to have Louisiana join the National Popular Vote compact.[13]

Prior to the start of the 2013 session, Seabaugh was appointed to the House Appropriations Committee, which is primarily responsible for drafting the state's budget.

During the 2013 session, Seabaugh authored legislation which would have eliminated personal and corporate state income taxes.[14] He also introduced legislation which would have eliminated all state taxes on retirement benefits.[14] Seabaugh's tax cut legislation failed to pass the Republican controlled House Ways and Means Committee.[15]

Seabaugh authored legislation designed to lessen the influence of public employee unions. His HB 552 sought to strike out language in current law allowing for automatic payroll deductions for "union dues, fees and assessments".[16] The bill failed in committee by one vote when two members switched their votes, allegedly because of lobbying efforts by organized labor, according to a right-wing Louisiana-based politics blog known as the Hayride.[17]

In 2015, Seabaugh was one of a small group of conservative Republicans who opposed tax increases which were passed with the support of Governor Jindal. For this, Seabaugh was named one of seven MVPs by the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry. In 2015, Seabaugh was also named State Representative of the year by the Childcare Association of Louisiana.

On June 9, 2021, Seabaugh accused Malinda Brumfield White of threatening to shoot him with a gun during a dispute over a domestic-abuse bill under consideration. White "later apologized on the House floor for the altercation".[18][19][20][21][22] White withdrew the bill the next day.[20]

Speed traps

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Christmas bill

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In December 2013, Representative Seabaugh announced that he would present a bill in the 2014 legislative session limiting litigation against public schools who celebrated Christmas. Threats of lawsuits by the ACLU and other groups had resulted in many schools canceling Christmas plays and parties and replacing them with "holiday parties" and "winter festivals".[citation needed] Seabaugh said "I want people to know it's perfectly OK to say 'Merry Christmas' and have a Christmas pageant or a Christmas dance." Seabaugh's bill would closely resemble one previously passed in Texas earlier in 2013.[23]

Budget issues

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Long-running disputes over Louisiana's budget issues and the state's use of nonrecurring revenue to balance the budget led several members, including Seabaugh, to form a group known as the "Fiscal Hawks" to oppose budgeting by Governor Bobby Jindal which they viewed as irresponsible. However, in 2013, Seabaugh split with the group when it backed $329 million in revenue enhancements which largely consisted of the expiration of tax credits and exemptions passed by then Governor Jindal.[24]

Seabaugh served as vice chairman of the Louisiana Republican legislative delegation from 2012 to 2016.[25]

Tax votes

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In March 2016, with the election of Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards, Seabaugh emerged as an opponent of tax increases.[26]

In 2017, Seabaugh was appointed to the House Ways and Means Committee which controls state tax policy. Seabaugh has consistently opposed proposed tax increases.

In May 2017, Seabaugh emerged as a strong opponent of Governor John Bel Edwards' proposed increase in the gasoline tax and further called for the abolition of 3,000 of the 4,700 positions in the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development.[27]

Support for prosecuting women who get abortions for murder

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Seabaugh voted for a Louisiana state draft bill that would ban in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments and some forms of birth control and prosecute women who get abortions for murder.[28][29] The draft bill has no exceptions for rape, incest, or the protection of the life of the mother[30] and could also criminalize miscarriages.[31]

Consideration for federal judgeship

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In 2017, U.S. President Donald Trump nominated Seabaugh for the seat held by Dee Drell on the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana. Drell had assumed senior status. Months passed, and the United States Senate did not act on the appointment. Therefore, in January 2019, Seabaugh announced that he was withdrawing from consideration for the judgeship. Instead, he sought reelection to the state House and if successful contest the House Speaker's position vacated by Republican Taylor Barras of New Iberia in January 2020.[32] However, Seabaugh did not run for House Speaker.

Personal life and education

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Seabaugh graduated from Captain Shreve High School in 1985 and received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Louisiana State University in 1990. In 1993, he received his J.D. degree from the Paul M. Hebert Law Center at LSU. Seabaugh is married to Laura (McClelland), and they have four daughters.

References

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  1. ^ "Meet Alan". Alan Seabrough State Representative. Archived from the original on February 2, 2018. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
  2. ^ "Louisiana primary election returns, October 20, 2007". staticresults.sos.la.gov. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  3. ^ "John Andrew Prime, Incumbent Senator Sherri Smith Cheek Faces Attorney Alan Seabaugh". Shreveport Times. October 7, 2007. Archived from the original on October 2, 2011. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  4. ^ "Staff at the Louisiana Exhibit Museum". friendsoflsem.org. Archived from the original on October 26, 2010. Retrieved July 11, 2011.
  5. ^ "Tea Party of Louisiana". teapartyoflouisiana.net. Retrieved July 11, 2011.
  6. ^ "Louisiana Secretary of State - Election Results".
  7. ^ "Results for Election Date: 10/24/2015". Louisiana Secretary of State. Retrieved October 25, 2015.
  8. ^ "Candidates Qualified in Statewide Elections". KEEL (AM). Retrieved September 11, 2015.
  9. ^ "Adam Duvernay, Seabaugh: Cassidy not conservative enough to beat Landrieu". Shreveport Times. October 8, 2013. Retrieved October 10, 2013.
  10. ^ "Politics". Archived from the original on November 6, 2013.
  11. ^ "LABI: Legislators: Representative Alan T. Seabaugh". Archived from the original on 2013-12-17. Retrieved 2013-09-10.
  12. ^ "Louisiana State Legislature".
  13. ^ "Alan Seabaugh's Excellent Speech Defending the Electoral College". 8 May 2012.
  14. ^ a b "Legislators' tax bills to get hearing Monday".
  15. ^ "At the Ways and Means Committee...Not Much". 15 April 2013.
  16. ^ See more at: http://thehayride.com/2013/04/forget-about-the-tax-swap-plan-the-real-action-this-session-is-with-hb-552/#sthash.PnXCkhOO.dpuf
  17. ^ "Here's How the Union Dues Bill Died, and Here's What Can be Done About It". 9 May 2013.
  18. ^ Paterson, Blake (June 9, 2021). "Lawmaker says colleague threatened him with gun violence, sidetracking domestic abuse bill". The Baton Rouge Advocate. Retrieved Jun 10, 2021.
  19. ^ Canicosa, JC (June 10, 2021). "Rep. Malinda White pulls domestic abuse bill after she reportedly threatens colleague". Louisiana Illuminator.
  20. ^ a b Dubose, Adrian (June 11, 2021). "Bill expanding domestic abuse definition withdrawn after Capitol outburst". KTBS.
  21. ^ "In the news". Arkansas Online. June 12, 2021.
  22. ^ Lee, Bernadette (June 10, 2021). "Allegations That One Louisiana Lawmaker Threatened Another With a Gun". KPEL 96.5.
  23. ^ "Bill would allow Christmas to be celebrated in public schools | Home | The Advocate — Baton Rouge, LA". theadvocate.com. Archived from the original on 2013-12-17.
  24. ^ "Budget News: $329 Million in New Revenues, Seabaugh Blasts Tax Increase". 7 May 2013.
  25. ^ "Louisiana House of Representatives - Internet Portal". house.louisiana.gov. Archived from the original on 2007-08-24.
  26. ^ "The Louisiana Senate Just Voted for Five Years of the Nation's Highest Sales Tax". The Hayride. March 2, 2016. Retrieved March 31, 2016.
  27. ^ McCarty, Erin (June 1, 2017). "Alan Seabaugh Advocates Firing 3,000 Louisiana Workers". KEEL Radio. Retrieved June 2, 2017.
  28. ^ Bort, Ryan (2022-05-05). "Louisiana Moves to Charge Women Who Get Abortions With Murder". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
  29. ^ "Bill to make abortion a homicide advances in Louisiana". WRIC ABC 8News. 2022-05-05. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
  30. ^ McGill, Kevin (2022-05-04). "Lawyer: Louisiana abortion bill could subject women to homicide charge". WPMI. Associated Press. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
  31. ^ LaRose, Greg (2022-05-05). "Abortion would be punishable as murder under new Louisiana proposal". Louisiana Illuminator. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
  32. ^ Hilburn, Greg (January 12, 2019). "Seabaugh ends pursuit of federal judgeship; will run for Speaker". The News-Star in Monroe. Retrieved January 17, 2019.
[edit]
Louisiana House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the Louisiana House of Representatives
from the 5th district
2010–2024 		Succeeded by
Louisiana State Senate
Preceded by Member of the Louisiana Senate
from the 31st district
2024–present 		Incumbent
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