Louisiana Governor Signs the Bayou Gold Program Into Law, Creating a State Certification Path for Gold- and Silver-Backed Payment Platforms

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Baton Rouge, LA — Governor Jeff Landry has signed HB 797, creating the Bayou Gold Program, into law. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Raymond Crews (R-Bossier City), was signed on June 8, 2026, becoming Act No. 841, effective the same day.

Unlike legal tender laws such as Florida's HB 999, the Bayou Gold Program does not declare gold and silver to be legal tender in Louisiana; that was already done via bill SB232 during the 2024 session. Instead, it creates a voluntary state certification framework for private "electronic payment platforms" — companies that let account holders transact using gold- and silver-backed accounts rather than fiat currency — and directs the Louisiana Department of the Treasury to run it.

The bill cleared the Legislature with overwhelming support: it passed the House 101–0 on April 27, passed the Senate 26–2 on May 28, and the House concurred in Senate amendments 97–0 on May 29, before heading to the Governor's desk.

What HB 797 / Act 841 Does:

• Establishes the Bayou Gold Program within the Department of the Treasury as a voluntary certification framework — not a mandate — for electronic payment platforms offering gold- and silver-backed transactional accounts.
• Requires certified platforms to hold "allocated precious metals" — gold or silver bullion held on a fully reserved, one-to-one basis, owned by the account holder, and explicitly not subject to lending, pledging, or rehypothecation.
• Requires use of a bullion depository located in Louisiana or a bordering state, meeting London Bullion Market Association or COMEX standards for security, insurance, fraud prevention, and auditing.
• Guarantees customer protections, including that metals remain the customer's sole legal property, do not appear on the platform's balance sheet, are not reachable by the platform's creditors, and can be redeemed in physical form within five business days of notice.
• Requires clear disclosure of fees, spreads, and compensation to customers, and gives the Treasury Department authority to grant, deny, or revoke certification and to penalize platforms that falsely claim it.
• Explicitly limits the state's role: the law bars the Treasury Department from operating, managing, or owning a gold or silver depository or payment processor, and states the program does not create a state guarantee of deposits or state financial liability.

What's Next:

There's an important catch on timing. While Act 841 itself took effect June 8, 2026, the certification program it creates — Section 1 of the Act — does not go live until a separate appropriations act funding its implementation also takes effect. In practical terms, the legal framework for the Bayou Gold Program now exists in Louisiana law, but the Treasury Department cannot begin certifying electronic payment platforms until the Legislature funds the program, likely in a future session.

[Note to editor: no on-the-record quotes from Rep. Crews, Governor Landry, or Treasurer's office staff regarding this specific bill signing could be independently verified for this release. Any attributed quotes should be confirmed directly with those offices before publication.]

About HB 797

HB 797 was authored by Rep. Raymond Crews, who has sponsored several precious-metals bills in recent Louisiana sessions, including HB 386/695 (2025), which added a gold-backed debit instrument to Louisiana's existing legal tender statute. The Bayou Gold Program builds on that groundwork by creating a state certification and consumer-protection layer specifically for gold- and silver-backed electronic payment platforms operating in Louisiana.

Tags: Louisiana, Bayou Gold, Press Release

For press opportunities, contact: press@transactionalgold.com

Sources consulted: Louisiana Legislature bill history, enrolled Act text, and vote records for HB 797 (legis.la.gov); Free Louisiana, "Our priority bill was signed by the governor" (June 23, 2026); KSLA, "New bills introduced by North Louisiana delegation in 2026 session" (Mar. 13, 2026).