House Speaker Chuck Kleckley vowed Friday to fight a proposal floated by Gov. Bobby Jindal to slash hundreds of millions of dollars from Louisiana colleges next year, setting the stage for a possible financial clash between the lame-duck governor and lawmakers. Kleckley, a Republican typically allied with the governor, said hes heard talk of higher education cuts that could reach up to $370 million in the budget year that begins July 1. He said such a reduction would devastate campuses and state workforce development efforts. ... As the governor reaches his last year in office, the Jindal administration is crafting its final executive budget proposal, which is due to lawmakers by the end of February, while facing a shortfall pegged at $1.4 billion. The financial gap may grow larger to account for the steep drop in oil prices. Target figures of possible cuts for the 2015-16 fiscal year are going out to departments as the Jindal administration looks for ways to slice spending, with a goal of shrinking state financing for each agency by 15 percent. The state health department has been told to prepare for losing as much as $250 million in state money, a reduction that could grow hundreds of millions of dollars larger when federal matching dollars used for health care services are included. ---------------------------------- Gets worse from there... (f)
Posted on: Sat, 10 Jan 2015 23:46:38 +0000
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