Time running out on budget deal

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, June 5, 2013

Passage by the Senate of a budget bill radically different than that adopted by the House of Representatives has set up a frenetic finish to the legislative session, which must end Thursday by 6 p.m. With such a wide fiscal chasm separating the parties, however, it appears likely the Legislature is headed toward a special session sometime in July.
The Senate’s $25 million budget plan, which was approved Saturday, is riddled with philosophical differences from the one adopted across the hall, including using nonrecurring revenue for ongoing expenses, erasing many of the spending cuts contained in the House version and adding money for school vouchers and public hospital deals as they move more and more toward privatization.
The 37-1 tally approving the budget belies the feeling of many of the senators, who appear tepid toward the package. They understand that their vote will send more children to private schools and away from public schools, more state workers to the unemployment office and further aid the dismantling of the LSU hospital system.
Yet, they are also cognizant of the financial bubble in which they are operating. For the past few years cuts have obliterated state services and the budget ax is once again sharpened.
Gov. Bobby Jindal, riding a wave of momentum after the Louisiana Supreme Court vacated an early court decision that threw out a portion of his education reform package, praised the Senate’s budget.
Now that the budgetary flanks have been established the real debate begins. House members do not appear to be conciliatory, especially regarding paying ongoing expenses with one-time revenue and spending cuts.  Representatives were vocal in their disappointment regarding the Senate plan, and more than one have suggested a special session is probable.
Fueling talk of a July session is that senators also are not likely to be in a compromising mood, especially considering they already believe they’ve gone too far.
And the power of Jindal’s veto pen is the final act of this political drama.
Time is as scarce as state dollars, but legislators must somehow reach a détente and move forward with a budget plan that will make the most fiscal sense for the struggling state. In the end, no one, likely not even the governor, will leave with a feeling of satisfaction, but perhaps that will be the perfect compromise.