Senate Backs Bills To Pay For Construction Work, Judges

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The Louisiana Senate has backed a package of budget bills to finance construction work and pay for the legislative and judicial branches.

The $4 billion construction budget supported by the Senate is about $500 million larger than the version backed by the House.

A nearly $164 million budget would pay for the Louisiana Supreme Court and other parts of the state judiciary. Supreme Court officials say the $16 million cut could damage the drug court program and re-entry services for prisoners.

An $88.6 million budget would finance the House, Senate and other legislative agencies, a $7 million cut.

All the bills cover the financial year beginning July 1. Most of the measures winning Senate support Wednesday must return to the House for final consideration. The judicial budget received final passage.

Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.