Louisiana ballot measure · November 3, 2026
Louisiana Amendment 8, explained
Barring foreign adversaries from expropriating property. A ballot measure is a yes-or-no question put directly to voters — no candidate is involved, and the wording on the ballot is the wording that becomes law. This page shows that wording first, then what it actually changes.
The official wording
Do you support an amendment to prohibit expropriation of property by a foreign adversary or an agent of a foreign adversary? (Amends Article I, Section 4(B)(4))
This is what appears on the ballot. Everything below explains it.
What it actually means
Louisiana lets certain private companies — pipelines and utilities, for example — expropriate land for a public and necessary purpose, with compensation and a court check. This amendment would say that a private entity that is a foreign adversary, or an agent of one, cannot use that power. State law defines foreign adversary by reference to a federal list that includes China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia and Venezuela under Nicolás Maduro.
If you vote YES
- Article I, Section 4(B)(4) would bar any private entity that is a foreign adversary, or an agent of a foreign adversary as defined by law, from expropriating or damaging property in Louisiana.
- The existing requirements on private expropriation would stay: a public and necessary purpose, just compensation, and a judicial determination of whether the purpose is public and necessary.
- "Foreign adversary" would carry the definition in state law, which tracks the federal list at 15 CFR 7.4.
- Because the list is set by law rather than by the amendment, which countries and entities are covered could change without another vote of the people.
If you vote NO
- No new constitutional prohibition would be added; private expropriation would continue to be governed by the public-and-necessary-purpose test, compensation and judicial review.
- Louisiana's post-Kelo restrictions on eminent domain for economic development would remain as they are.
- Nothing in current law expressly addresses whether a foreign-adversary-controlled entity may exercise expropriation power.
Why supporters say YES
We found none published in the sources reviewed.
Why opponents say NO
We found none published in the sources reviewed.
What’s genuinely uncertain
- No committee has registered on either side and Ballotpedia has located no campaign in opposition, so no arguments are presented. The sponsor, Rep. Charles Owen (R-30), said the amendment "would allow citizens, if they want to cordon off their property [to prevent] any possibility of a foreign adversary ever expropriating it."
- The Power Coalition's guide notes that because expropriation by foreign adversaries is uncommon, the practical impact may be limited unless such situations arise, and that the prohibition can reach a company that is only partly foreign-owned or controlled.
- The amendment passed unanimously: 100-0 in the House and 36-0 in the Senate. No fiscal note was located.
The bottom line
Whether to write into the Declaration of Rights that an entity tied to a foreign adversary can never use Louisiana's private expropriation power — a guard against something that has not happened, with the list of covered countries set by ordinary law.
One neutral sentence describing the tradeoff — not a recommendation.
Checking it against the official text
The Louisiana Secretary of State publishes the certified measures and, in most states, an official voter guide with fiscal notes. That is the authoritative version. Everything here is an explanation of it, not a substitute for it.
Confirm this with the official source
Your ballot is determined by your election authority, not by us. Verify your registration, precinct, and sample ballot at Louisiana Secretary of State.
Other measures on the Louisiana ballot
- Amendment 1 — Transferring a disabled veteran's surviving spouse property tax exemption
- Amendment 2 — Letting local governments lower a millage and later restore it
- Amendment 3 — No post-conviction bail for aggravated offenses against a minor
- Amendment 4 — Lifetime two-term limit for governor
- Amendment 5 — Which pension debt one-time state money must pay down first
- Amendment 6 — Additional property tax exemption for homeowners 65 and older
- Amendment 7 — Public money to replace lead and other hazardous water lines on private property
- Amendment 9 — Raising the income limit for the senior assessment freeze to $150,000
- Amendment 10 — Property tax exemption for rehabilitated blighted property
Candidates on the same ballot
- U.S. Senate election in Louisiana
- Louisiana's 1st congressional district
- Louisiana's 2nd congressional district
- Louisiana's 3rd congressional district
- Louisiana's 4th congressional district
- Louisiana's 5th congressional district
- Louisiana's 6th congressional district