LSU Manship School Statehouse Bureau

Kaylee Poche

Members of the House Ways and Means Committee were notably frustrated when they met Wednesday to begin the special session’s budget discussions, a conversation they have been having in some form for over two years.

However, not all of the 18 members were frustrated for the same reason, and the meeting quickly turned into an airing of grievances, some with Gov. John Bel Edwards and others with their own colleagues.

Several of the 11 Republicans on the committee, which must initiate tax and budget bills, told Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne they were upset that Edwards vetoed the budget passed by the Legislature that dealt with a $648 million shortfall solely through budget cuts.

While that budget would have fully funded health care priorities, it would have decimated state agencies with 24 percent cuts across the board, slashed TOPS scholarships by 30 percent and left Louisiana as the only state without a food stamp program.

Read the story in Gambit Weekly.

Drew White and Paul Braun

Some members of the Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus stated their willingness to accept a half-cent increase in the state sales tax proposed Tuesday by Gov. John Bel Edwards, increasing the chance for a compromise with Republicans in a second special session.

Caucus members also said in interviews that they supported other revenue-raising measures that Edwards unveiled Tuesday as the Legislature began a second special session to try to resolve a projected $648 million shortfall in the state budget.

Caucus members were opposed earlier this year to retaining any part of the extra penny of sales tax that expires this summer, and their demands to restructure state income tax brackets or eliminate some itemized deductions for wealthier state residents helped to lead to the collapse of the first special session in March.

Read the story in WWL-TV.

 

Devon Sanders and Kaylee Poche

Gov. John Bel Edwards appealed directly to the public in a speech in Lafayette today for help in passing his plan to solve the state’s $648 budget shortfall.

The governor has proposed a half-cent sales tax, the reduction of some tax exemptions for businesses and the elimination of a provision that lets individuals deduct state income taxes in one year from the next year’s returns.

Edwards spoke at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette three hours before the Legislature began its sixth special session in the last three years to try solve the state’s budget problems.

“My hope is that we can shake the divisive partisanship that’s begun to take root, put aside our differences and put in place the solutions the people of Louisiana deserve,” Edwards said. “Now is the time to be Louisianans first and foremost.”

Read the story in Gambit Weekly.

Kaylee Poche and Devon Sanders

Two bills targeting sexual exploitation passed the Louisiana Legislature Friday.

One would set policies for employers to detect victims of human trafficking, and the other would increase penalties for crimes involving prostitution.

Rep. Julie Stokes, R-Kenner, sponsored House Bill 830 that would relate to the trafficking victims, including employees of sexually oriented businesses like stores selling sexual materials and businesses with live sexual performances.

The businesses would have to verify age and employment status of current and prospective employees and keep those records for three years. They also would need to have potential employees fill out questionnaires aimed at detecting victims of human trafficking.

Read the full story in The Advocate.

Drew White

A bill that would establish requirements for state Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority Board members, which may have sparked the fistfight between two legislators last week, failed 65-18 in a House vote Friday.

Gov. John Bel Edwards and Rep. Stuart Bishop, R-Lafayette, said an argument surrounding the bill led to a physical altercation between Bishop and Sen. Norby Chabert, R-Houma, at a Baton Rouge bar last Tuesday night.

Chabert said the incident did not concern a specific bill, but rather dealt with ongoing arguments on coastal issues between the two legislators. Chabert serves as chairman of the Senate Natural Resources Committee, and Bishop is the chairman for the House Natural Resources and Environment Committee.

A proposed bill authored by Chabert would have altered the makeup of the coastal-protection board. The Senate unanimously approved the bill earlier this month.

Read the story in Houma Today.

Devon Sanders

Breayana Bradley, a Tulane student who went through the state’s foster care system, arrived at the Capitol Friday to speak up for state funding for foster care programs when she had a chance meeting with Rep. Kenny Cox, D-Natchitoches.

She left the State Capitol with an unexpected gift — a pledge from Cox to give her a legislative scholarship to fully fund her $52,960-a-year tuition at Tulane.

The lawmaker also vowed to give the scholarship in the future to other students who had been foster children.

“A smile spread across my face and wrapped around my body,” Bradley said in describing her reaction to the offer.

Read the story in The Advocate.

Paul Braun

Although legislators proposed an array of bills to deal with gun violence and improve school safety, they have passed no major changes in gun laws in a session book-ended by school shootings in Florida and Texas.

The Legislature convened for the first time this year two days before the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, and many of the bills — which would have raised the age to buy an assault rifle, ban bump stocks and arm teachers — were filed in response to that and other shootings around the country.

Even some veteran legislators were surprised by the results and attributed the lack of consensus to the vastly different priorities held by legislators across the state.

“I think it’s reflective of the state we live in,” said Rep. Jack McFarland, R-Jonesboro. “People say we aren’t diverse — we are.”

Read the story in The Daily Advertiser.

Paul Braun and Drew White

Read the full story in The Ouachita Citizen.

Drew White

The Senate overwhelmingly approved a bill Thursday that could help Louisiana attract and host major events like the Super Bowl, the NBA All-Star Game, military gatherings, and national political conventions.

Currently, increases in state taxes generated as a result of certain events held in Louisiana are deposited into a fund to attract more events.

The bill, which passed the Senate 32-4, would streamline the process so Louisiana can provide proof that state funds exist to pay for portions of the projects.

“When it comes to tourism, we know that every dollar that we invest in the tourism industry generates at minimum a $19 return,” said Sen. Norby Chabert, R-Houma.

“We may not have the big bowl games unless we’re competing for them,” he added.

Read the full story in KALB.

Devon Sanders and Kaylee Poche

The House on Thursday voted 61-37 to pass the major changes that the Senate made to the state budget to fund health care services while slashing spending on state agencies and TOPS scholarships.

The budget bill now goes to Gov. John Bel Edwards, who has called a special session that starts Tuesday to try to persuade the Legislature to raise revenue and avoid the cuts.

As a result, some legislators called the bill a “pretend budget” since some of the cuts, which include a 30 percent reduction in TOPS funding, could still be averted.

Edwards has called on legislators to extend some temporary revenue measures to cover a projected $648 million shortfall in next year’s state budget.

Read the full story in The Donaldsonville Chief.