Latest news with #LAGATOR
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Louisiana Senate reins in tax cut and school voucher plans
BATON ROUGE, La. (LSU Manship School News Service) — The Louisiana Senate is reining in several major proposals pushed by Gov. Jeff Landry and House conservatives, rejecting additional tax cuts and scaling back spending on private school vouchers amid caution over the state's longer-term financial outlook. Despite clearing the House with little resistance, two key tax bills were effectively shelved by the Senate Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Committee earlier this week. The committee declined to take up a plan to further phase down personal income taxes, and it slashed funding for a Landry plan to expand state funding for parents to send their children to private schools. The moves mark a shift in the session's power dynamics and highlight tension between the governor's office and Senate leaders as the legislative session heads toward a close on June 12. Senate leaders said they did not see any way to offset the revenue losses from further tax cuts. Some lawmakers fear that the state could face hundreds of millions in additional costs if Congress and the Trump administration follow through on proposals to cut federal Medicaid spending and shift much of the responsibility for disaster relief to the states. Two bills by Rep. Julie Emerson, R-Carencro, were at the center of the House's tax-cutting agenda. House Bill 578 would have dropped the state's portion of the sales tax rate from 5% to 4.75%, while House Bill 667 aimed to lower individual income taxes from the 3% flat rate approved in November to 2.75%. The bill also would have doubled the standard deduction for seniors. Legislative analysts estimated that the sales tax bill would have reduced general fund revenue by about $266 million in fiscal 2028. Emerson's income-tax bill would have cut another $378 million in the same year. Emerson said her goal was to eventually eliminate the state income tax altogether. She also had proposed a constitutional amendment to eliminate the Revenue Stabilization Fund and redirect corporate tax surpluses to help pay for the cuts, but legislative economists said that would have offset only a portion of the lost revenue. Senators, led by Revenue & Fiscal Affairs committee chair Sen. Franklin Foil, R-Baton Rouge, said they were not ready to move forward without more data. Referring to tax cuts in 2008 that later led to a $2 billion state funding shortfall, Foil said: 'In hindsight, we moved too quickly in enacting those tax reductions.' He added: 'I'm all for trying to reduce taxes if we have excess revenue, but we have to do it in a responsible way.' National conservative groups have poured money into lobbying for the LA GATOR program and similar school vouchers in other states to help families pay private school tuition. Landry had asked for $93.5 million, and the House had included that amount in its version of the budget for fiscal 2026, which starts July 1. But the Senate Finance Committee slashed that amount to $43.5 million. The increase would have nearly doubled the number of students receiving vouchers to about 11,300. The cut reflects a clear political divide between Landry and Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, who has said since April that the Senate would only fund LA GATOR at the same level as an older voucher program it is replacing, and he has not budged. Some lawmakers also are concerned that there are few private schools in rural areas and that the LA GATOR program could eventually lead to a reduction in funding for public schools The reduced GATOR funding would cover about 6,000 students already receiving state-funded tuition assistance. Earlier this year, State Superintendent of Education Kade Brumley opened applications for the program statewide, assuming the number of available vouchers would grow. Nearly 40,000 families applied. Henry and other senators also voiced concerns about how fast LA GATOR's costs could grow and whether private school vouchers improve student outcomes. The difference in LA GATOR funding levels between the House and the Senate bills will have to be ironed out by a conference committee with members from both parties. The Senate budget also includes several education-related amendments: ● Restores $30 million for high-dosage tutoring. ● Allocates $20 million to pay off the University of New Orleans' debts so it can merge into the LSU System. ● Keeps $198 million for teacher stipends, $2,000 for certified educators and $1,000 for support staff, by offsetting costs elsewhere. Senators also added hundreds of millions in federal funding to increase Medicaid reimbursement rates for hospitals and physicians. The request still needs federal approval, but if approved, it would raise Louisiana's Medicaid funding by $500 million in the budget year starting June 1. Lawmakers are also hoping to get retroactive payments for the current fiscal year. The request comes as President Donald Trump and House Republicans, including House Speaker Mike Johnson and Majority Leader Steve Scalise, push to reduce federal Medicaid spending. State leaders hope those efforts to affect the reimbursement rates they're trying to secure. Trump tax bill would add $2.4 trillion to the deficit over a decade: CBO Ascension Parish Schools investigating teacher's social media comments Judge tosses Democrats' challenge to Trump order's effect on FEC Ahead of the Storm: Outlook for 2025 hurricane season, remembering Hurricane Katrina Bill Clinton reveals why Secret Service gave him an M&M's box Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Louisiana senators trim private education vouchers, expand Medicaid budget
Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, helped lead an effort to reduce funding in the state budget for a new private education voucher program that Gov. Jeff Landry has pushed. (Wes Muller/Louisiana Illuminator) The Republican-led Louisiana Senate Finance Committee has removed public money meant to expand the use of private education vouchers in spite of the initiative being a priority for fellow Republican Gov. Jeff Landry. The committee agreed Sunday to cut $50 million from LA GATOR, Landry's initiative launching in the 2025-26 school year. The reduction will leave $44 million for the program, enough to continue covering private school tuition for 6,000 students who already receive state-funded vouchers. Landry and the Louisiana House wanted to put an additional $50 million into LA GATOR so the state could give out 5,300 new vouchers next school year, for approximately 11,300 overall. The cut was one of the biggest shakeups in the Senate leadership's initial version of the $43 billion state budget unveiled Sunday. The Senate and House must come together to reach a compromise on the spending plan by June 12. Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, has been resolute in his opposition to giving out more vouchers in the coming year. For weeks, he has expressed concern that LA GATOR's cost could grow faster than the state can afford it, and that the state's existing voucher program hasn't resulted in better education outcomes for students enrolled in it. Still, Landry and conservative groups who back LA GATOR have been putting pressure on senators to keep the $50 million in the program. They are running advertisements and recently held a rally next to the Capitol pushing for additional vouchers for the program. Some senators were also reluctant to explain why the money had been removed Sunday. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Glen Womack, R-Harrisonburg, and Sen. Rick Edmonds, who sponsored the bill to set up LA GATOR last year, allowed the state budget bill with the cut to move forward, but they declined to comment after the committee meeting. Louisiana Education Superintendent Cade Brumley, one of LA GATOR's biggest proponents, also refused to comment on the budget change after the committee hearing. Brumley said he had not had a chance to review the adjustment to the program yet. Yet based on the assumption that the number of vouchers offered would grow, Brumley had opened applications for the program across the state earlier this spring. Nearly 40,000 families have applied for the limited slots. At least some of the $50 million taken from LA GATOR is going to be used to restore $30 million to a targeted tutoring program for public elementary school students. Brumley attributed some of Louisiana's success on national math and reading tests to the tutoring program and said he was grateful it had been added back into the budget. Landry, Senate hope for hundreds of millions in federal Medicaid funding The Republican Senate leadership's version of the budget also adds hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding to the state Medicaid budget. The money would be used to pay physicians and hospitals a higher reimbursement rate for treating Medicaid patients. Landry asked the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services earlier this year to allow Louisiana's medical providers to receive a rate for treating Medicaid patients closer to what private insurers provide. The federal government has not agreed pay the new rate yet. But if it does, it will increase Louisiana's federal Medicaid funding by $500 million in the state budget cycle that starts June 1. Hundreds of millions of federal dollars could also be given to Louisiana to retroactively cover payments in the current budget year that ends June 30. Louisiana's request for more Medicaid funding comes at a time when President Donald Trump and U.S. House Republicans, including House Speaker Mike Johnson and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, are pushing for ways to reduce the nation's overall spending on Medicaid. But the reimbursement rates are not expected to be affected by changes Congress is considering. UNO transfer to LSU System comes with debt relief The Senate has added $20 million in its budget proposal for the University of Louisiana System to pay off debt associated with the University of New Orleans, which is likely to move over to the LSU System this summer. The Senate has also included nearly $2 million for the UL System to continue a youth recreation partnership at UNO for another year and $450,000 for LSU to conduct an 'academic and finance' audit of UNO in the next fiscal cycle. Sheriffs will get paid more to hold state inmates The Senate added $11.6 million to the budget in order to give local sheriffs $3 more per day per inmate to house state adult inmates in their local jails. Currently, sheriffs are paid $26.39 per day per inmate to house state prisoners. Louisiana keeps approximately 15,800 inmates in local parish jails instead of state prisons. This includes almost 2,000 state prisoners who are in transitional work programs, where they hold jobs at private businesses in the community while living at the jail. Louisiana DOGE gets money, staff to find efficiencies The Senate has added $1.5 million into the budget to support the so-called 'Louisiana DOGE' initiative Landry set up to search for government efficiencies. The money will support 10 positions in Landry's Division of Administration to perform a financial review of government services statewide.
American Press
5 days ago
- Politics
- American Press
Dozens of advocates urge senators to maintain LA GATOR funding
A coalition of more than two dozen advocacy organizations is urging Louisiana senators to fully fund the newly approved LA GATOR Scholarship Program, a school choice initiative backed by Gov. Jeff Landry and recently passed by the House of Representatives. The groups praised lawmakers for taking what they called a 'monumental step forward' by advancing the program, which aims to give families publicly funded scholarships to send their children to private schools or other educational alternatives. Nearly 40,000 families have already applied, according to the letter, signaling high demand in the first year. While the House kept Landry's originally proposed $93 million budget for the program intact, Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, has said that he plans only to fund $50 million. Even with a budget of $93 million, only one-third of voucher applicants would secure a scholarship. Critics point out that by not funding those students through LA GATOR, they will have to be funded by their public schools. Further, 'dropping down to $50 million means only current voucher students will qualify,' Daniel Erspamer of the Pelican Institute told The Center Square. 'Some voucher students are about to graduate, and this would mean no new students entering kindergarten, which would have happened' in the Louisiana Scholarship Program. LA GATOR replaced the LSP. Among the signatories were national and state groups including the Pelican Institute, Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, ExcelinEd, the Alliance for Educational Freedom, and the American Legislative Exchange Council. They urged senators to maintain funding levels in the governor's budget, saying the program could transform educational access for thousands of Louisiana students. The letter emphasized that by fully funding the program, legislators would fulfill a promise to families seeking more educational choice and opportunity.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Louisiana Senate will reduce funding for Gov. Landry's private school vouchers, chamber leader says
Senate President Cameron Henry, left, speaks with Sen. Pat Connick in the Louisiana Senate on May 27, 2025. (Wes Muller/Louisiana Illuminator) The Louisiana Senate president said his chamber will dramatically scale back funding for the new private school voucher program from what Gov. Jeff Landry and the House of Representatives have pledged. Sen. Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, has said for weeks that the Senate will only fund the new program with $50 million for 2025-26, its first school year. The governor and House lawmakers have allocated considerably more – $94 million – for LA GATOR in their own budget proposals. At $50 million, LA GATOR would only be able to cover the private school tuition costs of 6,000 students in Louisiana's existing school voucher program for the 2025-2025 school year. Landry has pushed to expand private school assistance to 5,300 more children by spending $44 million more. Yet Henry has expressed skepticism about the new voucher initiative and said the Senate voted last year to set up LA GATOR on the condition it would be rolled out cautiously. Senators agreed to cover education expenses for longstanding voucher students in its first year, but no more than that, he said. 'We originally agreed there would be $50 million, and we're going to stick with that,' Henry said in an interview with reporters Tuesday. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX LA GATOR will use state tax dollars to pay for private school student expenses, including tuition, uniforms, after-school tutoring and computers. Those who homeschool could also use LA GATOR to cover their education costs. Eventually, the program is meant to have no income restrictions – meaning students from wealthy, middle-class and poor families could all qualify for the publicly funded private school assistance. In the first year of the program, however, it was expected to be confined mostly to low-income students and children with disabilities because of the limited slots available. Landry touts LA GATOR as one of his signature initiatives and has put public pressure on Henry to dedicate more money to the program. Earlier this month, the governor attended a rally near the State Capitol in support of LA GATOR with more than 100 students from New Orleans-area private schools. Landry led the students in a chant of 'Please support GATOR scholarships!' in the courtyard of the Pentagon Barracks, the dormitory for state lawmakers during the legislative session. Louisiana homeowners might get option to insure their properties for 'stated value' Conservative groups aligned with Landry have also launched advertising campaigns in recent weeks that promote the LA GATOR scholarship and that urge Henry and other senators to 'fully fund' the program. But on Tuesday, Henry appeared unfazed by the political pressure. 'Not all conservative Republicans agree with what the governor wants to do,' he said. Instead of spending an extra $44 million on LA GATOR, Henry said the Senate would put the money toward a tutoring program for kindergarten to third-grade students that launched last year but is currently unfunded in the budget. The extra money could also be used to cover pay increases for public school teachers who work in hard-to-fill positions such as special education, math and science. Some of the money could also go to local sheriffs who house state prisoners, Henry said. The senator's primary concern over LA GATOR is the long-term impact on state finances. He worries the program could potentially become so expensive as it expands that it would become harder for the state to pay for infrastructure projects, higher education and other priorities. Similar private education voucher programs have caused money problems in other states. The Texas voucher program is expected to cost $1 billion per year when it starts in 2026. The Florida program, started in 2023, costs $3.9 billion, or one out of every $13 of that state government's general fund, according to the Associated Press, A large chunk of voucher funding in Florida and Arizona goes to wealthy families. Over two-thirds of the students drawing down the grants in Florida already went to private school before receiving the voucher, according to the Tampa Bay Times. Henry would like to prevent a similar situation in Louisiana, wherein the state finds itself subsidizing private education for families who would pay for it otherwise. He fears LA GATOR would result in the state not only having to pay for public schools, but also private schools it doesn't currently support. 'We also don't want this to turn into where people are just creating schools just for [LA GATOR],' Henry said. 'The point is to have established schools or programs that are helping these kids move from where they are to where they want to be.' University of New Orleans transfer to LSU System expected to cost $23 million this year The same education advocates pushing for LA GATOR also pressed for Louisiana's current voucher program, set up under former Gov. Bobby Jindal in 2012. That initiative, which is focused exclusively on low-income families, has failed to live up to its promises, Henry said. Students enrolled in the Jindal voucher program have performed worse on standardized tests than their peers in public schools, according to The Times-Picayune, despite the state spending a half a billion dollars on their private education over the past decade. Voucher advocates deserve skepticism after they promoted a program that performed poorly, according to Henry. 'If the voucher program was doing so well, we wouldn't be changing it,' he said. The Senate is expected to unveil its markup of the budget next week and will have to reach a compromise with the Louisiana House over the final product by June 12. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
American Press
17-05-2025
- Politics
- American Press
Jim Beam column:School choice has drawbacks
Gov. Jeff Landry and many Republicans in the Legislature are conveniently overlooking some major drawbacks in their proposed LA GATOR school choice program. The program gives tax dollars to eligible families to pay for private and parochial school tuition and other approved education expenses. Landry wants legislators to appropriate $94 million to fund the program's first year. However, a month ago Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, said it would be half that amount because that was the original agreement. The Advocate reported that the $94 million would fund grants for an estimated 12,000 students, or roughly a third of 40,000 eligible applicants. Half of that would give grants to 6,000 students who are already receiving school vouchers. Voucher students will be given top priority for the school choice grants that can range from $7,600 for lower-income families to nearly $15,300 for students with disabilities. OK, here are some of the drawbacks: Only about 11,000 students in the 40,000 families eligible for grants are enrolled in public schools. The others are already enrolled in private and parochial schools or home schools. An official with the Pelican Institute that supports the school choice program said, 'Without a GATOR scholarship, it's very unlikely they're (students) going to be able to stay in private school or afford home-based education. They're going to end up in public schools.' Some might, but the odds are most of those families would continue paying for their children to attend private or home schools. They are already doing it. The superintendent of Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of New Orleans said the $7,600 grants for lower-income families would cover the full cost of elementary school tuition and most of the $12,000 average tuition for grades eight through 12. Another report by The Advocate Monday said families in the state's rural areas have few options for using school grants. A Winn Parish single guardian on a fixed income wants to put her grandson in a new school, but there are no private schools in Winnfield or Winn Parish — or in four of the six surrounding parishes that are participating in LA GATOR. 'There's no opportunities here,' she said. An analysis by The Times Picayune and The Advocate said 16 of Louisiana's 64 parishes do not have a single private school that signed up to enroll students full-time through LA GATOR, and another 18 parishes have just one private school. That leaves only 30 parishes offering more educational opportunities. Only 11% of eligible students who applied for the grants live in rural parishes. Not a single family applied in Winn Parish. State Rep. Jack McFarland, R-Jonesboro, and chair of the House Appropriations Committee that handles the state budget, said, 'In my district, those opportunities just don't exist.' McFarland said he would rather see more funding for public schools, which anchor many rural communities but operate on shoestring budgets. 'They haven't had an increase in years,' he said. Then, there is the question about whether private schools are always the better choice. The Times-Picayune and The Advocate in a February news release said school vouchers were supposed to be an academic lifeline for Louisiana children but voucher students at private schools fared worse on state tests than their public school peers. 'While the new scholarship program will replace vouchers, many of the same private schools already have signed up — including over 20 with D or F ratings,' the news report said. President Donald Trump supports school choice programs, so it's no surprise the U.S. House wants to set aside up to $5 billion a year to help families send their children to private and religious schools. The Associated Press said U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-Baton Rouge, sponsored a similar proposal in the Senate. 'Giving parents the ability to choose the best education for their child makes the (American Dream) possible,' Cassidy said. Don't students in the state's rural areas also deserve to share in the American Dream? Supporters of programs like LA GATOR have clearly forgotten much of their American history. Before public schools were created, only the wealthy in this country could afford tutors to teach their children. Critics say school choice will aid the wealthy at the expense of the public school systems that serve the overwhelming majority of students.. Is that where we are now headed? Jim Beam, the retired editor of the American Press, has covered people and politics for more than six decades. Contact him at 337-515-8871 or Reply Forward Add reaction
