Community college leader says system needs more funding

Richard Nelson recently transitioned out of his position as the head of the Louisiana Department of Revenue to lead the state’s community and technical colleges. He sat down with The Times-Picayune | Baton Rouge Advocate’s Marie Fazio to discuss his new gig and the challenges the Louisiana Community and Technical College System will face in upcoming years:

We’re getting huge economic development projects — like $80 billion being invested in the state — which means tens of thousands of jobs are going to create additional strain on the system. As a state, we have to make investments so we’re ready to address that on the front end. When you’re bringing in 80,000 new jobs, most of those are going to be graduates of the community technical college system. That’s where these construction workers and operators and welders and electricians come from. 

Nelson said he plans to ask the state for more funding:

When you look at the scope of the problem as far as the demand for people to fill these jobs, it’s going to take money to train them, outfit the facilities to make sure that they have the skills they need. …  I’ve heard concerns that people are going to come from Texas or Tennessee to work on those projects and the answer to that problem is the community technical college system because we can make sure Louisianans have the skills they need to fill those jobs.

Landry at midpoint

Gov. Jeff Landry has used the last two years – and six legislative sessions – to implement many of his preferred conservative policies in Louisiana. The Times-Picayune | Baton Rouge Advocate’s Tyler Bridges recaps the governor’s term as it hits the halfway point and previews fiscal challenges that lay ahead:

Landry has benefited from having plenty of money to spend, inheriting a $325 million budget surplus from Edwards and seeing the surplus grow to $577 million by the end of 2025. But state officials are projecting a $130 million deficit for next year and a $609 million deficit for the year after that. State law requires the Legislature and governor to approve a balanced budget each year. The state’s two reserve accounts — the Budget Stabilization Fund and the Revenue Stabilization Fund — had $3.23 billion two years ago and now have $3.6 billion. Lawmakers face restrictions on how they can spend that money. 

The Legislature, at the urging of Landry, passed permanent tax cuts for corporations and individuals, and a temporary increase in the state sales tax that makes Louisiana’s overall sales-tax rate the highest in the country. Bridges explains what those changes did to the state’s tax system, and the governor’s plan to push for even deeper cuts to state revenues:

Landry said he hopes to convene a special legislative session late in the year to reduce income tax rates even further.  But while reducing the tax rates 14 months ago, Landry and the Legislature offset that by raising the state sales tax from 4.45% to 5%. …  Economist Greg Albrecht found that the changes are making Louisiana’s tax system slightly more regressive by giving tax cuts in percentage terms to the wealthy while the poor are paying slightly more. 

MAHA movement picks up steam in statehouses

Statehouses across the country are at the forefront of President Donald Trump and U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy’s “Make America Healthy Again” movement. Alan Greenblatt of KFF Health News explains how some MAHA policies have received bipartisan support in state legislatures: 

Andy Baker-White, the senior director of state health policy for the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, said the bipartisan support for bills targeting food dyes and ultraprocessed food struck him as unusual. Several red states have proposed legislation modeled on California’s 2023 law, which bans four food additives. “It’s not very often you see states like California and West Virginia at the forefront of an issue together,” Baker-White said.

But partisan disagreements still exist over what foods to target: 

MAHA adherents on the right haven’t focused on sugar and sodium as much as policymakers on the left. The parties have also butted heads over some Republicans’ championing of raw milk, which can spread harmful germs, and the consumption of saturated fat, which contributes to heart disease.

Louisiana has recently implemented MAHA-inspired policies. Act 463 by Sen. Patrick McMath bans a host of artificial colors and additives from being used in school meals. And Louisianans who participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program can no longer use their benefits to buy soda or candy. 

Reduced federal disaster funding looms over state budgets

The Trump administration is working to shift most of the financial responsibility of recovering from natural disasters from the federal government to states. The move comes as states enter a new fiscal era where they must contend with dwindling tax revenue and decreased federal funding for food assistance and health care programs. Pew’s Page Forrest and Jad Maayah report: 

One notable proposal would increase the amount of disaster damage that states must meet before qualifying for federal aid. Doing so would result in state and local governments footing much larger bills for disaster recovery. In fact, an Urban Institute study found that six states—Arizona, Maine, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, and Pennsylvania—would have received no post-disaster public assistance between 2008 and 2024 under this scenario. 

The Department of Homeland Security is planning to reduce the staff of the Federal Emergency Management Agency by half in 2026. 

Number of the Day

66% – Percentage of U.S. adults who say it is the federal government’s responsibility to make sure all Americans have health care coverage. (Source: Pew Research Center)