Tagged: state legislature

BATON ROUGE — Louisiana's colleges are bracing for the newest rounds of budget cuts, with higher education hit with a $25 million cut in the final month of this fiscal year and another $66 million in slashing for the upcoming budget year.

The reductions are lower than lawmakers considered before they wrapped up their work. But they fall on top of years of reductions that campus leaders say are chasing away administration leaders, faculty and students.

BATON ROUGE — Fine and penalty money the state receives because of the Gulf Coast oil spill will be earmarked to Louisiana's coastal protection fund, under a bill that received final legislative passage.

The measure by Jeanerette Rep. Simone Champagne deals with money that could be received by the state for violations of federal pollution standards, a figure that could total billions of dollars. The coastal protection fund, where the money would be placed, is used for coastal restoration projects and hurricane protection efforts.

BATON ROUGE — Louisiana lawmakers have shut down their regular legislative session, ending three months of bitter disputes over budgets, education and retirement. Gov. Bobby Jindal won a big victory for his overhaul of the state education system despite divisions between the GOP governor and some House Republicans.

BATON ROUGE — The Louisiana House has agreed to a $25.6 billion budget for next year that includes hundreds of millions of dollars in spending above the figure sought by a group of conservative Republicans.

Lawmakers voted 62-40 Sunday for the Senate version of the spending plans for the fiscal year that begins July 1. The vote gave final passage to the measure, sending it to GOP Gov. Bobby Jindal. He supports the larger budget, rather than the deeper cuts sought by the conservative bloc.

BATON ROUGE — The Louisiana House will take up a proposal to use $205 million from the state's "rainy day" fund to offset a deficit in this year's budget. The House Appropriations Committee voted yesterday to tap into the Budget Stabilization Fund. The move is overwhelmingly backed by the Senate. A bloc of conservative House Republicans voted against using the money.