Gov. John Bel Edwards this afternoon released his plan to eliminate Louisiana’s $304 million budget shortfall for the current fiscal year, which includes tapping the state’s Rainy Day Fund and making cuts across the general fund.
However, the plan does not include any new taxes, and the budget cuts would spare K-12 education, higher education, waiver programs, the Department of Corrections and the Department of Children and Family Services.
“With only four months left in this fiscal year, adjustments of this magnitude are difficult,” says Edwards in a prepared statement. “We have gone line-by-line in the state budget to identify cuts and other state general fund reductions, including identifying funds that could be moved to other areas of the budget. In our view, this is the most responsible approach to solve this shortfall until we can make structural budget changes in the regular session.”
Lawmakers will convene for a 10-day special session on Monday, Feb. 13, to address the current fiscal year budget deficit. Edwards is asking them to approve using $119.6 million of the Rainy Day Fund to help fill the gap.
See the governor’s complete plan for filling the budget hole.
