The Regular Session of the Louisiana State Legislature ended two weeks ahead of schedule last Friday. The move came days before another special session to resolve the fiscal cliff. In the waning moments of the session, several bills made it out of both Houses and on their way to the governor’s desk. One of the bills; however, has already met a veto.
House Bill 1, which was the state budget, was killed by Governor John Bel Edwards, who called the legislation “catastrophic.”
“It’s obvious now, I think to everyone, there simply isn’t enough revenue forecasted for next fiscal year to fashion a reasonable budget,” Governor Edwards added.
House members of the governor’s party praised the democrat’s actions. “The House GOP pushed an immoral document out of the Legislature, which had to be vetoed. It tried to solve real problems with pretend solutions. On Tuesday, we will reconvene with a set of real options for our constituents, which includes a net tax decrease that fully funds our priorities. It’s time to get real,” said House Democratic Caucus Chair Robert Johnson, of Marksville.
This latest special session, which convened Tuesday of this week, is the sixth since Governor Edwards was sworn into office in 2016. All of the previous five have dealt with budget concerns.
According to The Advocate, “In 2016, legislators agreed to temporary fixes as a ‘bridge’ to a broader structural overhaul from cuts and smarter tax policies, but nothing has been implemented two years and many sessions later.
The most recent special session, held earlier this year before the regular session began, collapsed after two weeks when the House couldn’t agree to any revenue-raising measures.”
A difference now is that some legislators are starting to see how dire the situation is as the state is facing, according to The Advocate, “a nearly $650 million fiscal cliff looming just over a month away that threatens deep cuts to state services.”
“We’re in a place now where I believe that we have a larger number of representatives and senators who acknowledge we’ve got to fix the budget — what fix means is probably different to each of them if you ask,” Governor Edwards said in a recent meeting with The Advocate editorial board.
“This is a challenge, but I really see it as an opportunity to fix things in Louisiana. I really believe that people are focused now. They see how ugly inaction is,” Edwards said after lawmakers wrapped up their 2018 regular session Friday, more than two weeks ahead of schedule to make way for the special session.
The governor, not wanting to cause another fiscal cliff and believing in a compromise, told the Baton Rouge newspaper, “I believe it will be far preferable to accept a portion of the fifth penny than to fail to fix the problem.”
The comments came in support of a proposed measure to have sales taxes as a greater revenue generator for the state. The Advocate reported, “Democrats have generally been critics of sales tax, as it is seen as a more regressive tax that disproportionately affects poor people.
Louisiana exempts groceries, prescription drugs and utilities from sales tax, among other purchases. Edwards said that makes him more comfortable with the tax, though it’s unclear at what point he can get other Democrats to agree with him on accepting that as a solution.”
While the budget bill that won approval of the House and the Senate was vetoed last week, several other bills head to the governor’s desk and wait a different fate.
One of these bills calls for a constitutional amendment that will require unanimous verdicts on all felony trials. Another item that won final passage allows some felons to apply to register to vote if they are on probation or parole. Such felons would have to wait five years from their release date until they can again seek their right of suffrage.
The legislature also passed a bill authorizing stricter penalties for hazing in the wake of an incident last fall on the campus of LSU in Baton Rouge.
Also, in an effort to revamp the criminal justice reform package that was adopted last year, Senate Bill 389 was approved. The Advocate reported that the move will return “some discretion to individual judges and gave the courts the ability to keep an inmate on probation for two more years until requirements like drug treatment and anger management programs are completed.”
Other actions on bills, according to the same newspaper, include the following:
The House and Senate gave final approval to legislation – House Bill 676 – aimed at expanding access to affordable early childhood education from birth to age 4.
Another bid for a constitutional convention – this one a Senate-passed task force to study whether one is needed – failed in the House 28-55.
The House gave final approval to Senate Bill 59, which will allow voters to decide whether to ban using state road and bridge funds for State Police.
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TONY MARKS