The Governor’s administration and GOP legislators continue to exchange barbs over the decision to mail program cancellation warnings to 37,000 Medicaid patients. Lafayette Representative, Republican Nancy Landry, blamed the Medicaid budget cuts on John Bel Edwards.
But the Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne pushed back, arguing that the feds require Medicaid recipients to be informed of program cancellations ahead of time. Dardenne says with a real threat from House lawmakers to cut these programs, it would have been wrong to wait any longer.
A special session that could replace the expiring revenue at the heart of these budget cuts is set to be called next Tuesday.
It was called the “Hail Mary” bill when Senator J.P. Morrell filed it back in March, but unanimous jury verdicts are a vote of the people away from becoming reality in Louisiana. The mood shifted rapidly once the legislation was taken up, gathering major support from liberal groups, and neutral opinions from Das. Louisiana is just one of two states that do not require unanimous verdicts.
Louisiana’s deadline for filing your state taxes is today. Those who do not file in time will be subject to a 5% of tax due penalty for each 30 days of delinquence. Department of Revenue spokesperson Byron Henderson says if you need more time to file, the department has an option for you.