By Samuel Carter Karlin
BATON ROUGE — As legislators deal with a $600 million shortfall for the fiscal year that starts July 1, many are looking toward a special session in June to raise revenue for state government services.
Some lawmakers are targeting tax breaks, and Gov. John Bel Edwards has indicated support for eliminating some of them.
But most exemptions, exclusions, rebates, credits and deductions wouldn’t save the state money for at least a year if the Legislature scrapped them.
By Jack Richards
By Samuel Carter Karlin and Jack Richards
BATON ROUGE — A marathon debate over HB1 and whether the state should fully fund TOPS or safety-net hospitals devolved into loaded and sometimes personal interrogations Friday before the House passed the omnibus budget, 82-17.
The debate spanned more than 13 hours between Thursday and Friday. The often contentious measure now goes to the Senate.
By Jourdan Moschitta
BATON ROUGE — From the time it was built in 1932, the halls of the Louisiana State Capitol have basked in the afterglow of a haunted history, and when the sun sets over the towering Statehouse, a different kind of haunting captivates the imaginations of the living.
By Justin DiCharia
BATON ROUGE — Four safety net hospitals in Bogalusa, Lake Charles, Alexandria and Houma and 30,000 college students are the losers in Gov. John Bel Edwards’ executive budget presented to the House Appropriations Committee Tuesday.
By Samuel Carter Karlin
BATON ROUGE — The non-partisan Revenue Estimating Conference decided to keep its revenue projections the same Thursday, leaving Louisiana with an underscored $600 million shortfall for the upcoming fiscal year.
The committee, however, expressed concern about employment numbers, which have been negative for the past few months.
By Samuel Carter Karlin
BATON ROUGE — A day after House Appropriations chairman Cameron Henry unveiled plans to fund TOPS by shifting money around in the state’s budget, Gov. John Bel Edwards criticized the moves as “irresponsible” and “reckless.”
The two have exchanged indirect barbs in recent weeks. Henry, a Metairie Republican and fiscal conservative, rebutted Edwards’ position that the state needs more revenue by overhauling the approach taken on HB 1, which he is sponsoring.
By Jack Richards
BATON ROUGE — In a rare bipartisan agreement on this type of legislation, the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday unanimously approved bills from Democrat Katrina Jackson and Republican Lance Harris, making it a hate crime to attack a police officer and to make a move with any deadly weapon on an officer aggravated assault.
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By Jack Richards
BATON ROUGE — The House voted unanimously to allow certain victims of domestic violence to get an expedited, temporary concealed carry permit without training if they are under a protective court order.
By Jack Richards and Quint Forgey
BATON ROUGE — Northern Louisiana residents will have to wait for legislative action on dirty water after water companies pressured for the defeat of House Bill 823 this week.
Rep. Marcus Hunter, D-Monroe, pulled his bill after Speaker Taylor Barras, R-New Iberia, deemed amendments to the bill not germane.
LSU Manship School Statehouse Bureau 