Lawmakers in Louisiana are taking a page from their Texas counterparts and going after “rogue” prosecutors who they say refuse to enforce state laws for certain crimes or prosecute certain defendants.

That’s just one of the main themes expected when the regular session begins in the coming weeks, according to state Sen. Jeremy Stine.

Stine, who spoke Tuesday to members of the Kiwanis Club of Lake Charles, said the other focus will be on tax policy and insurance.

“We’re blessed to live in Calcasieu Parish thanks to folks like our sheriff, district attorney and marshal,” he said. “If you look across the state — particularly southeast in New Orleans and Baton Rouge — that’s not the case. We’re just two hours away from those places, yet we have a wonderful parish and a safe community to live in.”

Stine represents District 27, which includes Carlyss, Westlake, Sulphur, Moss Bluff and the majority of Lake Charles.

“I’m expecting to hear the message this session, ‘We’ve got a problem and something needs to be done about it,’ ” Sine said, citing a recent New Orleans case in which 15 were arrested — including LSU starting wide receiver Malik Nabers — for illegally carrying weapons during Mardi Gras celebrations.  The suspects were released when the Orleans District Attorney’s Office refused the charges.

“These kids were illegally carrying guns and they were just let off,” he said. “You either enforce the law or you don’t.”

Another prevalent topic expected during the session will be tax policies.

“There is going to be a lot of legislation addressing tax policies, particularly ending the personal income tax,” Stine said. “I think that would be great, but you’ve got to find a way to pay for it. Today, if you were to end the income tax, that’s going to leave a $4 billion hole in our budget.”

As a state, Louisiana raises $11 billion each year and of that $4 billion is from income taxes.

“If you were to do away with the income tax without any offsets, we wouldn’t be able to survive as a state,” Stine said.

He said raising the sales tax isn’t feasible because Louisiana already has the highest sales tax rate in the nation when you combine the state and local sales tax numbers.

“It would be very hard for that to gain traction, but expect to see a lot of talk around that,” he said. “With that said, there are 191 exemptions, or exclusions, in our tax code. If you were to do away with those 191 exemptions that could raise some revenue right there, close to about $2 billion.”

He said Texas doesn’t have income tax and Arkansas and Mississippi are trying to phase out theirs.

“We will sort of be an island of income tax so I’m expecting this conversation to pop up time and time again as we try to find some movement and compromise,” Stine said.

Stine, who sits on the insurance committee, said he expects insurance to also be a prevalent point of discussion.

“We’re in a crisis right now, but it’s not just a Louisiana problem,” he said. “It’s a Texas problem, it’s everyone along the Gulf Coast. The entire global insurance market is in meltdown.”

He said legislators took a “Band-Aid approach” during the previous special session, finalizing a $45 million incentive program to entice insurers to the market. He said they’ve received nine applicants so far.

Insurers participating in the program are required to match their grant dollar for dollar. Additionally, insurers must write four times the grant amount in new premiums. If all $45 million dollars in grants are awarded, $180 million in new policies will be written.

The regular session is scheduled for April 10-June 8.