People who lose their jobs through no fault of their own would face more barriers to obtaining unemployment insurance under legislation that advanced out of the Louisiana House on Monday. House Bill 153 by Rep. Troy Hebert would increase the number of “work search” actions people must take, such as attending interviews and filling out job applications, in order to receive benefits. It would allow the Louisiana Workforce Commission to strip benefits from anyone who misses a scheduled job interview. The Times-Picayune | Baton Rouge Advocate’s Meghan Friedmann reports:
“If you lose a job, and there are limited job opportunities in the community, then it’s going to be difficult to try to get five applications out,” said state Rep. Ed Larvadain III, D-Alexandria, adding that the burden could be especially tough on single parents who might need to drive long distances to complete work search actions. Larvadain also worried the bill could force people to move away from their communities to reenter the workforce..
The unemployment insurance system has been part of the social contract between companies and their workers since the Great Depression. Louisiana’s unemployment benefits are among the most meager in the country. During last year’s legislative session, lawmakers reduced the amount of time people can collect benefits – from 26 weeks to as little as 12 weeks:
During the fourth quarter of 2024, claimants in Louisiana collected $253 a week on average, according to data from the United States Department of Labor. That was less than every state except Mississippi, where the average was $223, the data shows. About 12% of jobless people receive unemployment benefits, the fourth-lowest rate among all 50 states, the data shows. “Nobody is sitting at home eating filet mignon on the unemployment benefits that they are paid by the state of Louisiana,” said Jan Moller, executive director of Invest in Louisiana, an organization that supports state programs that help low-income people.
Shielding campaign spending on ballot proposals
Voters would not be able to see the source of political donations or other spending on ballot propositions under House Bill 596 by Rep. Mark Wright. The legislation comes after state voters’ overwhelming rejection of four constitutional amendments that were supported by Gov. Jeff Landry and his legislative allies. The Louisiana Illuminator’s Julie O’Donoghue:
Steven Procopio with the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana, said his organization opposes the change and believes it would be a “step back” for the state, which has been trying to ditch its reputation for sleazy politics. “I not only think it is a bad idea, I can’t believe the citizens won’t be angry when they find out about it,” Procopio said in an interview Friday. Louisiana’s campaign finance reporting laws for ballot measures are already weak and make it nearly impossible to figure out who is funding the campaigns surrounding those propositions.
The move to shield campaign spending also comes as the Legislature tries to revive elements of Amendment 2, which voters rejected by a nearly 2 – to – 1 margin in March, that rewrites the tax-and-budget article of the state constitution.
[Gov. Jeff] Landry is pushing for the proposal right after he spent weeks trying to blame billionaire philanthropist George Soros for the March amendments’ failure. The governor has repeatedly claimed Soros funded the opposition campaign, though Landry hasn’t provided evidence to support the assertion. … “There was a lot of misinformation and straight-up lies about where the money for the Amendment 3 campaign came from,” Sarah Omojola with the Vera Institute said. “So I find it interesting that this [bill] is coming forward now.”
DOTD makeover would create a massive budget gap
The Louisiana House will vote on bills on Tuesday that would, among other things, privatize elements of the Department of Transportation and Development and create a new office outside of the agency to oversee the state’s nonfederal aid highways. As the Louisiana Illuminator’s Greg LaRose explains, Rep. Ryan Bourriaque’s legislation would block the use of Transportation Trust Fund dollars to pay DOTD staff.
Borriaque’s proposed changes mean compensation for DOTD employees, which comes to $438 million next fiscal year, would have to come out of the state general fund. There’s consensus among lawmakers for limiting the trust fund to actual construction, an objective they’ve discussed for years but never figured out how to achieve. To accomplish it, it means the governor and lawmakers would have to cover DOTD personnel costs while facing a budget deficit that will exceed $570 million in another two years, according to the most recent legislative fiscal staff forecasts. Lawmakers don’t have to tackle this math for another year, as Bourriaque’s measures wouldn’t take effect until July 1, 2026.
Reality check: A recent analysis by the Boston Consulting Group found that the transportation department needs more funding to tackle a $19 billion backlog of infrastructure repairs and tackle much-needed megaprojects.
How did New Orleans spend federal pandemic money?
The American Rescue Plan Act provided $350 billion to help state and local governments navigate the economic turmoil brought about by Covid-19 pandemic. Verite News’ Katie Jane Fernelius reports on how New Orleans spent its federal pandemic aid.
About $187 million, or nearly half of the $388 million the city was allocated, went to “revenue replacement,” a purposely flexible spending category authorized in ARPA, which allowed local governments to shore up departments and services while tax revenues were down. Dave Kamper at the Economic Policy Institute, a progressive think tank in Washington, D.C., said that for cities of New Orleans’ size, spending approximately half of ARPA money on revenue replacement is fairly typical. “One of the great successes of ARPA is that they just let the local authorities make the decisions that made the most sense to them,” Kamper told Verite News.
The Crescent City also used funds to address inequities:
However, the city did fund a number of equity-minded projects across the city, providing funding for community solar panels and batteries, guaranteed income pilot projects, free transit for youth, and medical debt relief, among other projects. City leaders also dedicated at least $5 million to reducing homelessness in the city, providing funding to close encampments, support low-barrier shelters and rapidly re-house individuals. And the City Council made substantial investments in affordable housing. PA.
Number of the Day
50th – Louisiana’s ranking in the U.S. News and World Report “best states” report. This was the second consecutive year that Louisiana was ranked as the worst state in the nation. (Source: U.S. News and World Report)