Louisiana lawmakers scuttled a bill last week that would have helped thousands of Louisiana residents wipe out criminal records that can prevent them from getting better-paying jobs.
(The Center Square) â The Louisiana Legislature unanimously approved a $38.3 billion state budget proposal for the fiscal year that begins July 1.
More than half of the spending comes from the federal government, including one-time federal COVID-19 relief and stimulus money.
âThere is a lot of money to appropriate [from] different sources,â said Republican Sen. Bodi White, who chairs the Senate Finance Committee. âProbably the biggest budget, Iâm sure, weâve ever had.â
, which cleared the Legislature on Thursday, now heads to Gov. John Bel Edwardsâ desk well ahead of the June 10 deadline, in contrast to previous years when legislators didnât settle on a state operating budget until the sessionâs closing moments.
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