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LaPolitics: Following the merger of CABL and C100 to create Leaders for a Better Louisiana, how was the approach to the session different?
Barry Erwin, chief policy officer of Leaders for a Better Louisiana: I think we broadened the scope of work at the state Capitol of both of our previous organizations. We maintained CABL’s focus on education and C100’s emphasis on economic development, but we also got into insurance matters, the reorganization of DOTD, and ethics. We also originated and passed a couple of bills of our own, dealing with tax credits to enhance work-based learning opportunities and encouraging employers to help pay some of their employees’ child care costs.
What makes this session “one of the most productive in recent years,” as your organization put it in a recent statement?
They made sweeping changes in various areas of state law, some good and some bad. But they also approved major reorganizations of several state agencies, invested the most money ever in a new site development fund for LED, put a lot of new money in infrastructure, sent voters a proposal to fund a permanent teacher pay raise and pay off $2 billion in retirement debt, and tapped $1.2 billion from one of our savings accounts to spend on a variety of initiatives. When you look at all of that together, that’s some pretty big stuff.
What is your assessment of how lawmakers approached state spending this year?
In terms of the general fund budget, I think they acted in a pretty fiscally conservative manner. It’s basically a standstill budget, and they were pretty careful not to do much that would add additional ongoing expenses that they will have trouble paying for in future years. That said, when you take into account one of the constitutional amendments that still must be approved by voters, they gave their OK to spending more than $3 billion out of various trust funds. That’s a lot of money. But on the positive side it goes to things we actually need and those expenses are basically nonrecurring.
What are your biggest concerns about what the Legislature did this year?
The changes they made to the ethics laws were significant and I think it’s going to make it harder for the ethics board to do its job and conduct investigations when they get complaints. I also worry about the impact the rewrite of campaign finance laws will have and what that means for transparency and knowing where dollars are being spent on various political activities.
What would you consider the most significant action the Legislature took that seemed to go under the radar?
It got some attention, but I think the reorganization of the Louisiana Workforce Commission and DCFS to create a new “one door” approach for people seeking access to various support services might be one of the quietest major changes of the session. We know we need to get more people in the workforce, because our data reports continue to show we have a very low labor force participation rate compared to other states. If we can make it easier for them to get both the training and the support they need to get them into a job, that could be a game changer for many of our residents and businesses.
What do you see as the biggest issues going into the offseason and into next year’s session?
I think a lot of people are going to be looking at the insurance legislation we passed to see if it’s really making a difference, and how the state will continue to tackle workforce and education improvement. I think there will be some support for trying to address centralized sales tax collections, which continues to linger in the “unfinished business” category of common sense fiscal reform. There’s also a sense that the Legislature has done a lot in the last two years, and to some degree we need to let the dust settle. We need to understand how all the recent tax changes are actually shaking out, especially in light of what’s happening in Washington with the federal dollars. Which is another way of saying concerns about the budget will probably begin to loom larger.
—They said it: “It was early, I was half-awake and clearly not thinking straight. I’ve sang songs about heartbreak and hard times but not about forgetting to check my carry-on for a loaded firearm. That’s a new one!” –Country singer (and two-time candidate for Louisiana lieutenant governor) Sammy Kershaw in a statement after being caught going through airport security in Lafayette with a gun in his luggage
