Cameron Henry’s HB 122 Could Bust LDOE
The Louisiana legislature is in special session in order to confront an almost $1 billion budget shortfall for 2015.
One principal concern is whether K12 education will take a severe hit. As such, HB 122 authored by Rep. Cameron Henry and introduced on February 23, 2016, was cause for consternation for including a $44 million reduction to Minimum Foundation Program (MFP) funding. Though Henry’s bill initially included wording to preserve the MFP from the 2014 regular legislative session, MFP at that time was already being underfunded under the Jindal administration– which still made HB 122 a threat to 2015 MFP.
A Louisiana Federation of Teachers (LFT) action alert email included the following details about Henry’s proposed $44 million MFP cut:
A bill that would cut $44.2 million from public education with just three months left of school was approved by the House Appropriations Committee. If the bill passes, it could mean drastic reductions, pay cuts, layoffs and early closure of school.The bill, which came as a surprise to committee members this morning, could be heard as soon as Thursday, February 25.HB 122 by Rep. Cameron Henry (R-Metairie) would cut $87 million from the budget, with about half of it coming from public K-12 education. …The $44.2 million is money that then-Representative John Bel Edwards convinced lawmakers to add to the education budget last year. It was intended to help make up for the fact that the MFP has not included the usual 2.75% growth factor during much of the Jindal administration.…The money goes toward the $600 pay raise approved for teachers in 2013,Cameron Henry’s HB 122 Could Bust LDOE | deutsch29:
