The Senate Finance Committee approved a proposed budget for next fiscal year that does not match Governor John Bel Edwards’ wish list. Edwards has asked the Senate to give teachers a two-thousand dollar pay raise, but House Appropriations Chairman Jerome Zeringue, the author of the budget bill says a 15-hundred dollar raise is more appropriate.
“It’s 148-million additional funding in DOE for pay raises for teachers or $1,500 per teacher and $750 for support staff to bring them closer to the Southern (Regional) Average,” said Zeringue.
The governor is also looking for 500-million dollars for a new Mississippi River Bridge in Baton Rouge. The Senate is proposing to allocate 300-million dollars for a new bridge. There’s also 200-million for I-49 south and 200-million to replace the I-10 Lake Charles bridge.
Senate President Page Cortez says a lot of one-time money investments will go toward higher education needs.
“Faculty recruitment for cancer-related fields at LSU New Orleans and LSU Shreveport, school of dentistry, dental hygiene education program expansion,” said Cortez.
The Senate Finance Committee heard from a couple of members of the public who wanted eight million dollars appropriated to install cameras in special ed classrooms.
White says the money for cameras in special education classrooms is contained in a supplemental funding bill. The Senate plans to vote on the spending bills on Thursday.
Comments