Despite calling it a bad policy, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards upheld the front-loaded approach to the TOPS program that aims to give college students full tuition funding for the fall semester and only 42% financing for the spring.
The Associated Press reports that Edwards announced his signing of the budget bill today, the first day of the new fiscal year.
Lawmakers had passed the bill during the special session that ended a week ago, raising roughly $263 million through various tax changes.
While he issued two line-item vetoes, Edwards left the TOPS language intact despite his opposition to its inclusion.
He says striking the provision “would likely lead to litigation that would cause significant uncertainty and chaos mere weeks before the fall semester begins.”
But the governor made it clear in a letter to Senate President John Alario, R-Westwego, and House Speaker Taylor Barras, R-New Iberia, that he’s unhappy with the TOPS approach.
“This scheme does not give students the ability to fully prepare for the spring semester and significantly complicates applications for financial aid,” Edwards wrote.
Edwards also pointed out that the front-loading likely still won’t give TOPS students full tuition coverage in the fall, because not enough money was provided in the provision to cover tuition hikes that schools might adopt.
The Associated Press has the full story.
