Governor John Bel Edwards and Congressman Ralph Abraham painted two very different pictures of the current status of state at the Louisiana Municipal Association convention in Monroe. Edwards touted his hard work over the last four years to pull the state out of its largest deficit and an economy that was deep in the ditch.
Cut 10 (09) “…to a better path.”
Edwards says no other state in the nation has exceeded Louisiana’s rate of decline in unemployment in the last 12 months, adding the economy is the strongest in the history of the state. But Abraham says the state has so much more potential.
Cut 12 (10) “…better than that.”
The third man currently on the ballot in the Governor’s race, Eddie Rispone, was absent from the event.
Three former Louisiana football stars are among the eight that will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday. Former Baltimore Ravens safety Ed Reed went to Destrehan High School. Reed spent 12 years in the NFL and holds the record for interception return yards. His defensive coordinator at Destrehan and current Wildcats head coach Stephen Robicheaux says Reed is an even better person away from the field as he hosts football camps and he’s raised money to build a park in his hometown
The state appears set to run a surplus for the third year in a row, with non-finalized estimates showing Louisiana may have collected 300 million more in taxes than it spent. Legislative Fiscal Office Chief Economist Greg Albrecht says the surplus is mostly due to two things, one of them being the impact of the Congressional tax reform on Louisiana income tax returns.
Cut 3 (09) “…paid”
Albrecht says the other reason is the elimination of many corporate tax deductions over the past four years.