Thibodaux lawmaker trying to call special session

A Thibodaux lawmaker was attempting to rally support today for a special legislative session to revisit budget decisions made in recent months by Gov. Bobby Jindal’s administration. Rep. Jerome “Dee” Richard, an independent, sent a letter to House members asking them to call themselves into a special session, a long-shot effort to get the Republican-led chambers to challenge the authority of the GOP governor. Richard says lawmakers have been improperly left out of Jindal administration budget cut decisions that are shuttering health care facilities and a state prison. Legislators in the areas where facilities have been targeted for closure say they haven’t been included in the decision-making. “I, as a legislator, feel like I owe it to my constituents that I need to be more involved in terms of some of the cuts that are being made,” Richard says. “People are asking questions, ‘Why is this happening?’ And we can’t answer.” Richard’s task to get lawmakers to call their own special session is a difficult one at best. The Legislature has called itself into session only once since the modern state constitution was enacted nearly four decades ago, for the required task of redistricting and with the support of the governor. Both chambers are led by allies of the governor.