Gov. Jindal orders spending freeze

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BATON ROUGE, LA (WAFB) - Gov. Bobby Jindal issued an executive order Friday evening instructing departments, agencies, and budget units of the executive branch to freeze expenditures.

Exemptions include all activities related to declared emergencies, essential travel, and post-secondary education supplies, among other things. The order is effective through June.

Jindal has used the belt-tightening measure in the past as a stopgap measure for mid-year deficits.

Here is the full executive order.

"Today, Governor Bobby Jindal issued an executive order instructing departments, agencies, and/or budget units of the executive branch to freeze expenditures.

EXECUTIVE BRANCH - EXPENDITURE FREEZE

EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. BJ 2014 – 4

WHEREAS, pursuant to the provisions of Article IV, Section 5 of the Louisiana Constitution

of 1974, as amended, and Act 14 of the 2013 Regular Session of the Louisiana

Legislature, the Governor may issue executive orders which limit the expenditure

of funds by the various agencies in the executive branch of State government

(hereafter "expenditure freeze"); and

WHEREAS, underlying assumptions and needs in the development of the current year's state

budget would be altered by a decline in the State's revenues and the interests of

the citizens of our State are best served by implementing fiscal management

practices to ensure that appropriations will not exceed actual revenues; and

WHEREAS, in preparation of the budget challenges in the ensuing year, Executive Order BJ

2014-1 Limited Hiring Freeze issued on January 15, 2014, is updated

periodically, is related to the Expenditure Category of Personal Services,

therefore Personal Services Expenditures will not be addressed in this Executive

Order; and

WHEREAS, to ensure that the State of Louisiana will not suffer a budget deficit due to fiscal

year 2013-2014 appropriations exceeding actual revenues and that the budget

challenges in the ensuing fiscal year are met, prudent money management

practices dictate that the best interests of the citizens of the State of Louisiana

will be served by implementing an expenditure freeze throughout the executive

branch of state government;

NOW THEREFORE, I, BOBBY JINDAL, Governor of the State of Louisiana, by virtue of the authority vested by the Constitution and laws of the State of Louisiana, do hereby

order and direct as follows:

SECTION 1: All departments, agencies, and/or budget units of the executive branch of the

State of Louisiana as described in and/or funded by appropriations through Acts

14 and 44 of the 2013 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature (hereafter

"Acts"), shall freeze expenditures as provided in this Executive Order.

SECTION 2: No department, agency, and/or budget unit of the executive branch of the State of

Louisiana, unless specifically exempted by a provision of this Order or with the

approval of the Commissioner of Administration, shall make any expenditure of

funds related to the Expenditure Categories of Travel, Operating Services,

Supplies, Professional Services, Other Charges, Interagency Transfers,

Acquisitions, and Major Repairs.

SECTION 3: A. The budget activities funded by the Acts which are exempt from the

prohibitions set forth in Section 2 of the Order are as follows:

1. All budget activities directly related to declared emergencies;

2. All budget activities directly necessary for a statewide elected official

to perform his or her constitutional functions;

3. All essential budget activities which are expressly and directly

mandated by the constitution, existing court orders, existing cooperative

endeavor agreements, or existing bona fide obligations;

4. All contracts associated with the transformation of state government

that lead to future savings;

5. All essential budget activities of statewide control agencies;

6. All essential budget activities directly required for collection of state

general fund revenues recognized by the Revenue Estimating

Conference; and

7. All budget activities which are financed by Federal Funds directly.

B. Other budget activities funded by the Acts are exempt from the prohibitions

set forth in Section 2 of this Order to the following degree:

1. Essential field travel, and supplies for incarceration, rehabilitation,

diagnostic and health services, transportation of offenders, and probation

and parole services related to adult corrections as well as positions and

field travel for the Board of Pardons and Parole in the Department of

Public Safety and Corrections, Corrections Services;

2. Essential field travel, and supplies for juvenile secure care facilities

and the Field Services Program in the Department of Public Safety and

Corrections, Youth Services;

3. Essential field travel and supplies related to direct patient care;

4. Essential State Police commissioned trooper expenses and cadet

classes - not including personnel expenses - as well as data processing,

communications, and crime lab positions in Public Safety Services, field

travel for public safety and regulatory activities of the State Police, as

well as automotive, aviation, and forensic supplies for the State Police;

5. Essential Wildlife and Fisheries commissioned agent expenses and

cadet classes - not including personnel expenses - as well as data

processing, and communications, field travel for public safety and

regulatory activities of the Enforcement Division, as well as automotive,

watercraft and aviation, supplies for the Enforcement Division;

6. Essential instructional and residential expenses - not including

personnel expenses - field travel, and supplies deemed to be absolutely

critical for the operations of Special Schools, Recovery School District,

Special School District #1, and Youth Challenge;

7. Essential expenses for the State Military Department - not including

personnel expenses - associated with the deployment for backfilling for

active duty national guard personnel, and installation management and

force protection;

8. Essential expenses related to the housing of state adult and juvenile

offenders in local correctional or detention facilities or work release

programs.

C. The budget activities funded by the Acts which are exempt from the portion of

the provisions of Section 2 of this Order that prohibits the expenditure of funds

for travel are as follows:

1. Essential travel associated with promoting or marketing the state of

Louisiana and/or its products by: a) the Office of Tourism within the

Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism; or b) the Department of

Economic Development;

2. Essential field travel for the Mental Health Advocacy Service and the

Louisiana Public Defender Board;

3. Essential field travel required for the Office of Legal Affairs, district

managers and roving motor vehicle workers in the Office of Motor

Vehicles, and inspectors and arson investigators of the Office of the State

Fire Marshal in the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, Public

Safety Services;

4. Essential field travel for the Municipal Fire and Police Civil Service

and the State Police Commission deemed to be essential;

5. Essential travel for the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education

for board meetings;

6. Essential field travel associated with Minimum Foundation Program

internal auditors and field travel associated with the accountability

initiatives and monitoring local teacher assessments.

D. The budget activities funded by the Acts which are exempt from the portions

of the provisions of Section 2 of this Order that prohibits the expenditure of funds

for supplies are as follows:

1. Essential expenditures of all departments, agencies, offices, boards,

and commissions for supplies that total no more than seventy-five (75)

percent of the initial appropriation for supplies for the department,

agency, office, board or commission from State General Fund (direct) or

State General Fund Equivalent for supplies expenditures;

2. Essential supplies for the Office of State Parks within the Department

of Culture, Recreation and Tourism for maintenance and household

needs to maintain state parks and commemorative areas;

3. Essential instructional supplies for post-secondary education;

4. Essential automotive supplies for travel exempted in Section 3.

SECTION 4: The Commissioner of Administration is authorized to develop additional

guidelines as necessary to facilitate the administration of this Order.

SECTION 5: All departments, commissions, boards, offices, entities, agencies, and officers of

the State of Louisiana, or any political subdivision thereof, are authorized and

directed to cooperate in the implementation of the provisions of this Order.

SECTION 6: This Order is effective upon signature and shall remain in effect through June 30,

2014, unless amended, modified, terminated, or rescinded prior to that date.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have set my hand officially and caused to be affixed the Great Seal of Louisiana, at the Capitol, in the city of Baton Rouge, on this 4th day of April, 2014.