Legislators have $70M hole to fill in budget, says state budget director

XGR Hospital Cuts 1 — The joint legislative Committee on the Budget members hear testimony Thursday from the State Office of Planning and Budget (on screen in background). The committee was told the financial shortfall for the current fiscal year would hit $70 million. Photo by Jack Richards.

By Jack Richards

BATON ROUGE — The State Budget Director Barry Dusse Tuesday testified before the joint legislative Committee on the Budget that the state has an approximate $70 million hole in its budget for the current fiscal year, slightly higher state agencies were told a day earlier.

The precise figure is central to the anxiety of leaders of state institutions of higher education and hospitals

Read the story in The News Star