BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - House members expect a full day of
haggling over the $25 billion budget bill to pay for state
operations next year.
House debate on the budget began Friday morning.
The House and Senate remain in a near-stalemate over financing
plans.
To make the numbers work without using money that is part of a
dispute with the Senate, the House budget panel slashed funding
from colleges and charity hospitals and gave the governor's office
broad discretion to cut even further.
Those moves are among the source of complaints from lawmakers
who want to tap into pools of one-time money to offset some of the
cuts. House leaders, including Appropriations Chairman Jim Fannin,
are resistant to the idea, arguing the state's budget picture isn't
improving and lawmakers must shrink government long-term.

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