So far the Democratic agenda includes proposals to expand Medicaid; increase the minimum wage; offer equal pay to women; heighten regulations on predatory lending practices, like payday loans; and add more transparency in the governor's office.
Presenting the lightest administration agenda of his six years in office, Gov. Bobby Jindal opened the regular session Monday by steering clear of the hot-button issues to be debated and asking lawmakers to improve workforce training, crack down on human trafficking and work toward a "fair and predictable legal environment."
Rep. John Bel Edwards of Amite, chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, said the governor's light agenda could allow lawmakers to make headway with their own issues.
"Any time you have a vacuum you are going to have forces that move in to fill that vacuum," he said.
So far the Democratic agenda includes proposals to expand Medicaid; increase the minimum wage; offer equal pay to women; heighten regulations on predatory lending practices, like payday loans; and add more transparency in the governor's office.
Sen. Karen Carter Peterson of New Orleans, chairwoman of the Louisiana Democratic Party, said in a press conference following the governor's speech that the administration's budget proposal was a "farce" and that there shouldn't be millions of dollars in need for workforce development.
But several years of cuts have led the state to this point, she added. "The problem is the investments have not been made by this administration in K through 12, nor have they been made in higher education," Peterson said.