Our Views: Hard reality on La. budget

• Advocate Opinion page staff
• Published: Oct 26, 2008 - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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The onset of reality is never pretty in state government.

Louisiana has been “a little giddy” because of the state’s gushing revenue. Hurricane recovery spending and a sharp rise in oil and gas prices gave the state lots of money. And the Legislature and two liberally spending administrations — the second half of Gov. Kathleen Blanco’s term, and the first year of Gov. Bobby Jindal’s term — have benefited politically.

Having giddy money avoided the necessity of hard choices.

“Giddy” was the word that Barry Erwin, president of the Council for a Better Louisiana, used at the Press Club of Baton Rouge to describe the past few budget cycles. Taxes were cut liberally, including a $300-million-per-year income tax cut that mostly benefits better-off families. Jindal was pushed into backing that in the 2008 Legislature.

At the same time, state spending increased.

The combination is certainly a giddy feeling for the political leadership.

“Now reality is setting in,” Erwin said.

A national recession seems to be coming, and that will have some negative impact on state revenue. A sharp decline in oil prices has the same negative impact on mineral revenue. And the post-hurricane rebuilding since 2006 is sure to subside, even though there has been some impact from hurricanes Gustav and Ike this year.

All told, a perfectly ungiddy storm.

The governor said Oct. 20 he is talking economy to his department heads.

Jindal ruled out tax increases, and earlier noted the state is on the hook for at least $200 million that the federal government is seeking in matching funds for hurricane recovery projects. And the governor earlier this year said he expected to cut taxes at least in some way every year of his term.

We look forward to Jindal’s plan.

He will almost certainly be required in the coming months to prepare a budget reflecting his real priorities, involving hard choices that a giddy administration and Legislature have not been compelled to make.