Executive Budget
February 17, 2023
Executive budget is a good beginning
Louisiana’s financial picture is in surprisingly strong shape after the economic and social upheaval of the Covid-19 pandemic. Gov. John Bel Edwards’ 2023-24 executive budget is a responsible proposal that would make much-needed investments in public education and services for the state’s most vulnerable children, while reaffirming Louisiana’s commitment to building up its financial reserves for an inevitable rainy day. … Read more...
February 15, 2018
The “temporary” 1-cent increase in Louisiana’s state sales tax, approved by lawmakers in 2016, was supposed to serve as a bridge to structural tax reforms. But those reforms never came, as House leaders rejected the recommendations of its own task force and other reform advocates.
Number of the Day
$2 trillion - Projected annual federal deficit in 2027 as a result of President Donald Trump’s 2019 executive budget. (Source: The New York Times via Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget)February 14, 2018
As the Legislature heads toward a long-anticipated special session, some conservatives have tried blaming Louisiana’s Medicaid program - instead of expiring temporary taxes - for the state’s ongoing structural budget deficits.
Number of the Day
$115 billion - Estimated annual cost of the ongoing opioid crisis in 2017. Most of the cost is due to lost earnings and productivity from overdose deaths. (Source: Altarum via Axios)January 24, 2018
Now at 4.6 percent -- its lowest since March 2008 -- the unemployment rate in Louisiana continued to drop for the eighth consecutive month in December.