Governor Landry’s legislative priorities are running into resistance in the Senate. A House approved school choice bill that the governor supports has yet to be heard by Senate Education. Landry also backs a major change in the public records law, but the bill awaits a debate on the Senate floor. And Senate President Cameron Henry also does not fully support a proposed constitutional convention.
“It got to be a frustrating for Governor Landry that the Senate has ended up being a back stop, literally killing what he wants,” Pinsonat said.
Pinsonat says Representative Julie Emerson’s Education Savings Account bill passed 72 to 32 in the House on April 8, but measure that would greatly expand the state’s voucher program has stalled in the Senate.
“That’s a huge bill for the governor that’s one of his campaign pledges that’s a lot of his backers, a lot of the Republicans, Education Savings Accounts is a huge deal and as of today it has not had a hearing in a Senate committee,” Pinsonat said.
Pinsonat says a big concern with the ESA bill is the cost. The proposal makes taxpayer dollars available to all families to pay for education expenses, including private school tuition.
Pinsonat says Senate President Cameron Henry is not fully on board with Landry on the ESA bill or the constitutional convention
“There’s nothing out of him that we can pass this, we are going to do what the governor wants, so everything he’s doing has been shutdown by the Senate, which is kind of weird,” Pinsonat said.
Comments