AP Wire

Edwards, Vitter criticize Jindal deficit plan

by Melinda Deslatte, Associated Press

Both men vying to follow Gov. Bobby Jindal into office lambasted the governor's plan for closing the state's $487 million budget deficit, saying it punts the problem to the next governor.

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Both men vying to follow Gov. Bobby Jindal into office lambasted the governor's plan for closing the state's $487 million budget deficit, saying Thursday the proposal papers over the gap in a way that punts the problem to the next governor.

Democrat John Bel Edwards and Republican David Vitter called on state lawmakers to reject the plan when they consider it, though neither candidate outlined a specific set of ideas to replace the proposal Jindal offered. Lawmakers nonetheless approved the plan Friday.

Edwards called the governor's proposal "a disaster" that uses more "smoke and mirrors" to pretend the budget shortfall is addressed.

"This is not a plan. This is no more than pushing the problem down the road," he said.

Vitter called it "more patching, more moving money around, more depending on very speculative money."

"It doesn't address any of the fundamental, core issues that we face as a state," he said.

Jindal replied that if the men seeking to replace him wanted to slam his recommendations, they should offer proposals of their own.

"It's easy to be a critic, but critics are not leaders. Both candidates have been light on details and should outline their solutions in more detail," the term-limited Republican governor said in a statement.

A state lawmaker, Edwards said the Legislature should call itself into an immediate special session to develop its own approach to address the deficit, about $370 million of which will have to be closed within the next month. Vitter, a U.S. senator, said he'd like to bring in an outside businessman to comb through state government and look for budget ideas.

Both men, who have repeatedly criticized the unpopular Jindal in their campaigns, say the emergence of yet another budget gap in Jindal's tenure highlights the need for a budget overhaul and demonstrates the governor's mismanagement of state finances.

Louisiana has struggled with repeated budget shortfalls each year Jindal has been in office. That is partly due to his no-tax-increase approach to budgeting and his use of trust funds, property sales and patchwork financing to pay for state services. Lawmakers have largely gone along with the governor's approach.

Jindal, who leaves office in January and ended his presidential campaign this week, released his latest deficit-closing proposal Wednesday. It includes $150 million in cuts, mainly to the health department; the use of the "rainy day" fund to keep public colleges from being slashed; and short-term fixes to close gaps temporarily.

The plan relies on money that hasn't yet arrived in the treasury. It assumes huge savings from an anti-fraud initiative in the health department and includes patchwork financing that won't be available next year. And it redirects money the health department originally earmarked to close a gap in Louisiana's Medicaid program, leaving the Medicaid problem for Jindal's successor to solve.

"The good news is we didn't cut higher education. The bad news is the next governor's screwed," said Treasurer John Kennedy, a Republican who held a news conference with Vitter to trash Jindal's plan.

Lawmakers on the House and Senate budget committee — who have to approve parts of Jindal's proposal before they can take effect — are expected to vote on the recommendations Friday.

House Appropriations Committee Chairman Jim Fannin, R-Jonesboro, said he likely will support the governor's plan and expects others to do so as well.

"I certainly would have loved to have more options, but I don't know that there are a lot of options on the table at this point," Fannin said. "I think the votes will be there. But you're truly pushing some of the issues forward to be fixed at a later date."

Even though Fannin outlined concerns, he noted lawmakers have limited options without calling themselves into a special session and the governor can make many cuts himself when a midyear deficit emerges.

Edwards said lawmakers should show independence and hold their own special session, to unlock protections that keep parts of the budget off-limits from cuts.

Vitter said if elected, he'd ask Jindal to appoint a transitional commissioner of administration to work on recommendations for rebalancing this year's budget. He named who he wants in the job: William Fenstermaker, a campaign contributor to both Jindal and Vitter.