The big deal of the week is the unveiling of the administration’s new version of the fiscal year 2017 budget proposal.
“Make no mistake: the budget presentation on Tuesday is going to be very sobering,” Governor John Bel Edwards says.
“The $750-million revenue shortfall left unfilled makes it impossible to fashion a budget that adequately funds what the overwhelming majority of people in Louisiana believe to be critical priorities.”
Unwilling to go into too much detail before Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne makes his presentation to the House Appropriations Committee tomorrow morning, the governor did give an example of what will not be included
“You are not going to see a proposal from us Tuesday to fully fund TOPS.”
Edwards says he recognizes the popularity of TOPS, but the budget crisis is such that several state universities are already preparing paperwork to file exigency, in order to lay off faculty.
“And it doesn’t make sent to me to give kids a scholarship to a university that can’t hire the professors to teach the classes they need to graduate,” Edwards states.
There’s a lot of hope pinned on having a second special session to raise more revenue and alleviate the cuts that are coming. When asked about the timing of that session, Governor Edwards says:
“You know, hopefully individuals will look at the budget as presented on Tuesday and as they get testimony from all the agency heads and from people around the state of Louisiana, and determine that more revenue is necessary so that we can do it sooner than later.”
Some lawmakers are urging to wait until fall, to see what oil prices do, and see what the new Tax Reform Commission comes up with in its report on September first. Other legislators say wait, because they want a break from lawmaking. The governor? He says that’s not an option.
“I’m not as concerned about having lawmakers do their jobs as I am about visiting pain on the people of Louisiana.”