Analysis: Edwards, lawmakers get spending cut suggestions

(AP) — While Gov. John Bel Edwards has focused primarily on tax increases for his budget rebalancing effort, an independent government watchdog group is offering a companion list of ideas for where to cut spending.

The recommendations from the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana, a nonpartisan group, could provide a roadmap for brokering compromise with Republican lawmakers who have shown resistance to filling the state's entire financial gap with boosted taxes.

If some of the recommendations are followed, they also could give cover to lawmakers who don't want to devastate public health services and colleges with cuts, but who also want to say they worked to control government's size as they asked taxpayers to fork over more.

The watchdog group, known as PAR, says Edwards and lawmakers should "submit strong and specific assurances for budget cuts, controls and cost containments prior to approving tax increases."

Among the ideas from the watchdog organization are: changing the process for state worker pay raises; paying down retirement debt; cutting the legislative and judicial budgets; reforming criminal sentencing laws to shrink state prison costs; and controlling the costs of the TOPS free college tuition program.

Among those it recommends for elimination: an income tax deduction for private school tuition and a rebate given to property insurance policy-holders for money paid to help support Louisiana's insurer of last resort.