The legislative leaders tapped by Gov. Jindal won’t start announcing committee chairmanships until after the Nov. 19 runoffs in the House, and likely not until after the Senate president is formally elected on Jan. 9. But Sen. John Alario and Rep. Chuck Kleckley are wading into the delicate task of allocating committee chairmanships and vice chairmanships, in consultation with the governor’s chief of staff, Stephen Waguespack. Senators who have been with Alario this week say he is not talking about his choices, but there is a lot of conjecture among members about the next Finance chairman. Normally, the chairman is chosen from members of that committee, but senators say consideration is being given Sen. John Smith, R-Leesville, provided he can subdue challenger James David Cain in the runoff. Other contenders for the role are Sen. Mike Walsworth, R-West Monroe, who waged a campaign for president, and Sen. Jack Donahue, R-Mandeville, both committee members.
—The two other financial chairmanships appear very open. That is not good news for current Ways & Means Committee Chairman Hunter Greene, R-Baton Rouge. He showed more independence than the governor is looking for on the committee that handles tax bills and capital outlay, the construction budget. Ways & Means could be a more desirable committee to serve on than Appropriations. With tight budgets ahead, members’ amendments, if any, will be very limited. But there will be one-time funds available for new construction projects, after most of the current term was spent working off the commitments made in the Blanco administration.
They said it: “We had millions of people come to Bourbon Street in the last 18 months, and the worst thing that happened to them was a hangover.” —N.O. Police Superintendent Ronal Serpas on the shock of Halloween night shootings, in The Times-Picayune
(John Maginnis publishes LaPolitics Weekly, a newsletter on Louisiana politics, at LaPolitics.com.)
