Analysis: Lawmakers load Louisiana budget with pet projects
By MELINDA DESLATTEMay 30, 2021 GMT
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) With a surprising post-pandemic surge in tax collections, Louisiana lawmakers packed the state’s budget with tens of millions of dollars in pet projects decided by legislative leaders in closed-door negotiations.
The budget sent to Gov. John Bel Edwards for the financial year that begins July 1 contains at least $49 million in earmarks for local parks, museums, cities and towns, athletic complexes, nonprofit agencies and parish roadwork. Another $27 million-plus in unspent tax collections from the current budget year also were steered to similar add-ons.
“There were more resources” this year, said Senate President Page Cortez, a Lafayette Republican. “We were able to put more money into some of the needs and wants that are out there.”
New program will provide grants to students heading to high-demand jobs
KATC - MGN ONLINE
and last updated 2021-06-25 21:49:22-04
Louisiana residents will soon have the opportunity to receive grants to pay for education if they are going into certain high-demand career fields.
The program, called the M.J. Foster Promise Program, was signed into law by Governor John Bel Edwards this week. Starting with the 2022-23 academic year, the program will provide an award to students enrolled in qualified programs at a two-year college or technical institute to pursue an associate degree or a shorter certification required for high-demand jobs in one of Louisiana s industry sectors.
Louisiana Illuminator
John Bel Edwards bristles at describing this action as ‘decriminalizing’ marijuana
BERLIN - AUGUST 07: A man smokes licenced medicinal marijuana prior to participating in the annual Hemp Parade, or Hanfparade , in support of the legalization of marijuana in Germany on August 7, 2010 in Berlin, Germany. The consumption of cannabis in Germany is legal, though all other aspects, including growing, importing or selling it, are not. However, since the introduction of a new law in 2009, the sale and possession of marijuana for licenced medicinal use is legal. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)
“This is not a decision I took lightly,” Edwards said in a written statement Tuesday. “In addition to carefully reviewing the bill, I also believe deeply that the state of Louisiana should no longer incarcerate people for minor legal infractions, especially those that are legal in many states, that can ruin lives and destroy families, as well as cost taxpayer