Louisiana state budget (2011-2012)

Note: This article was last updated in 2012. Click here for more recent information on state budgets and finances.

Louisiana faced a $220 million deficit in the last month of fiscal year 2012. The House committee approved using money from the "rainy day fund" on May 31, 2012. A House Appropriations Committee Chairman Jim Fannin said in April 2012 that if lawmakers did not agree to use some of the $647 million in the state's rainy day fund to fill the $211 million deficit, it was possible that the legislature could ignore the deficit, and instead wait until the end of the fiscal year on June 30 and then make midyear budget cuts in the 2012-13 fiscal year. The state legislature passed House Bill 1, a $25 billion state budget for fiscal year 2012, and sent it to Gov. Bobby Jindal on June 21, 2011.

The $25 billion fiscal year 2012 state budget was a compromise between the governor and lawmakers. The budget reduced spending in most state agencies and required them to absorb inflationary costs.

The budget addressed the $2 billion shortfall that State Sen. President Joel Chaisson said the state would face in fiscal year 2012. The budget shortfall stemmed from the rising costs of Medicaid coupled with the expiration of federal economic stimulus financing.

The fiscal year 2012 budget can be accessed here.

On December 16, 2011, the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget approved $251 million in "budget adjustments" to address a shortfall in the budget.

On April 24, 2012, officials announced they were cutting $210.5 million from revenue projections for the year.

Revenue levels and cuts

On December 14, 2011, the Legislative Fiscal Office estimated that revenues were nearly $200 million less than what lawmakers had anticipated when crafting the budget. As a result, the governor had 30 days to realign the state budget with the more recent revenue estimates. The governor's plan also addressed a shortfall of $42.7 million in the fund the state sends to local school districts.

Legislative proposed budget

The Senate approved House Bill 1, the $25 billion fiscal year 2012 state budget, with a vote of 36-2 on June 19, 2011. The Senate's version of the budget spent $200 million more than the budget the House supported.The House approved the budget on June 21, 2011, and sent it to the governor's desk for his signature. The House also passed companion bills: House Bill 477, which shifted money between various state funds, and House Bill 611, which appropriated money in the then-current fiscal year.

The House Appropriations Committee cut $139 million from the fiscal year 2012 budget. The committee also used $82 million from the state economic development "mega fund" to bring the $24.9 billion state budget back into balance.

After making those cuts, the Committee approved House Bill 1, the operating budget, and a companion bill, House Bill 477, which shifted money between various funds in the state treasury. The House Appropriations Committee also approved House Bill 32, which financed "ancillary" state functions such as prison enterprises and the state's risk management office. An amendment added to the bill restored $10 million in spending and 149 jobs that the administration had planned to eliminate by privatizing a health plan for state workers and retirees.

Governor's proposed budget

Gov. Jindal proposed his $24.9 billion budget on March 11, 2011. The budget would be the focus of the legislative session starting April 25, 2011.

The budget addressed a shortfall of approximately $1.5 billion by making cuts and "efficiencies" totaling $1 billion in various programs and relying on $474 million in one-time revenue. It also did not reduce funding to private Medicaid providers.