The Nation : Louisiana to Cut Spending

Louisiana Gov. Edwin W. Edwards ordered most state agencies to reduce annual spending immediately by 10%, an unprecedented cut that will reduce the state’s mounting deficit by about $232 million. Edwards said the cuts would probably require layoffs of state workers and reductions in services, but that it would be up to individual department heads to decide where the cuts will be taken. The state is facing a deficit of $255 million in the current fiscal year and another deficit of about $200 million from last fiscal year, he said. Edwards spared the judiciary and the departments of Corrections and Revenue from any cuts.