§10. Expenditure of State Funds
Section 10.(A) Revenue Estimating Conference. The Revenue Estimating
Conference shall be composed of four members: the governor, or his designee, the president
of the senate, or his designee, the speaker of the house or his designee, and a faculty member
of a university or college in Louisiana who has expertise in forecasting revenues. Changes
to the membership beyond the four members shall be made by law enacted by a favorable
vote of two-thirds of the elected members of each house.
(B) Official Forecast. The conference shall prepare and publish initial and revised
estimates of money to be received by the state general fund and dedicated funds for the
current and next fiscal years which are available for appropriation. In each estimate, the
conference shall designate the money in the estimate which is recurring and which is
nonrecurring. All conference decisions to adopt these estimates shall be by unanimous vote
of its members. Changes to the unanimous vote requirement shall be made by law enacted
by a favorable vote of two-thirds of the elected members of each house. The most recently
adopted estimate of money available for appropriation shall be the official forecast.
(C) Expenditure Limit. (1) The legislature shall provide for the determination of an
expenditure limit for each fiscal year to be established during the first quarter of the calendar
year for the next fiscal year. However, the expenditure limit for the 1991-1992 Fiscal Year
shall be the actual appropriations from the state general fund and dedicated funds for that
year except funds allocated by Article VII, Section 4, Paragraphs (D) and (E). For
subsequent fiscal years, the limit shall not exceed the expenditure limit for the current fiscal
year plus an amount equal to that limit times a positive growth factor. The growth factor is
the average annual percentage rate of change of personal income for Louisiana as defined and
reported by the United States Department of Commerce for the three calendar years prior to
the fiscal year for which the limit is calculated.
(2) The expenditure limit may be changed in any fiscal year by a favorable vote of
two-thirds of the elected members of each house. Any such change in the expenditure limit
shall be approved by passage of a specific legislative instrument which clearly states the
intent to change the limit.
(3) Beginning with the 1995-1996 Fiscal Year, the expenditure limit shall be
determined in accordance with the provisions of Paragraph (J) of this Section. The
redetermination of the expenditure limit for each fiscal year from the 1991-1992 Fiscal Year
through the 1994-1995 Fiscal Year shall only be used in computing the expenditure limit for
the 1995-1996 Fiscal Year and shall not affect the expenditure limit already computed in
accordance with this Paragraph for such fiscal years.
(4) The provisions of this Paragraph shall not apply to or affect funds allocated by
Article VII, Section 4, Paragraphs (D) and (E).
(D) Appropriations. (1) Except as otherwise provided by this constitution, money
shall be drawn from the state treasury only pursuant to an appropriation made in accordance
with law. Appropriations from the state general fund and dedicated funds except funds
allocated by Article VII, Section 4, Paragraphs (D) and (E) shall not exceed the expenditure
limit for the fiscal year.
(2) Except as otherwise provided in this constitution, the appropriation or allocation
of any money designated in the official forecast as nonrecurring shall be made only for the
following purposes:
(a) Retiring or for the defeasance of bonds in advance or in addition to the existing
amortization requirements of the state.
(b)(i) Providing for payments against the unfunded accrued liability of the public
retirement systems which are in addition to any payments required for the annual
amortization of the unfunded accrued liability of the public retirement systems, as required
by Article X, Section 29(E)(2)(c) of this constitution; however, any such payments to the
public retirement systems shall not be used, directly or indirectly, to fund cost-of-living
increases for such systems.
(ii) For Fiscal Year 2015-2016 through Fiscal Year 2023-2024, the legislature shall
appropriate no less than ten percent of any money designated in the official forecast as
nonrecurring to the Louisiana State Employees' Retirement System and the Teachers'
Retirement System of Louisiana for application to the balance of the unfunded accrued
liability of such systems existing as of June 30, 1988, in proportion to the balance of such
unfunded accrued liability of each such system. Any such payments to the public retirement
systems shall not be used, directly or indirectly, to fund cost-of-living increases for such
systems.
(iii) For Fiscal Year 2024-2025 and each fiscal year thereafter, the legislature shall
appropriate no less than twenty-five percent of any money designated in the official forecast
as nonrecurring to the state retirement systems for application to their unfunded accrued
liability. Money appropriated pursuant to this Item shall be applied by the receiving system
to its outstanding positive amortization bases in the order in which they were created, from
oldest to newest. The legislature may provide by law for a formula to distribute the
nonrecurring money between those state retirement systems that have unfunded accrued
liability. If the legislature has not provided by law for a distribution formula, nonrecurring
money shall be appropriated pursuant to this Item to each system in the proportion that the
system's total unfunded accrued liability bears to the total of all state system unfunded
accrued liability, using the most recent system valuations adopted by the Public Retirement
Systems' Actuarial Committee or its successor. Any payment to a state retirement system
made pursuant to the provisions of this Item shall not be used, directly or indirectly, to fund
cost-of-living increases for such system.
(c) Providing funding for capital outlay projects in the comprehensive state capital
budget.
(d) Providing for allocation or appropriation for deposit into the Budget Stabilization
Fund established in Article VII, Section 10.3 of this constitution.
(e) Providing for allocation or appropriation for deposit into the Coastal Protection
and Restoration Fund established in Article VII, Section 10.2 of this constitution.
(f) Providing for new highway construction for which federal matching funds are
available, without excluding highway projects otherwise eligible as capital projects under
other provisions of this constitution.
(3)(a) The legislature shall provide by law for the payment by the state of
supplements to the salaries of full-time local law enforcement and fire protection officers of
the state. No law shall reduce any payments by the state provided as a supplement to the
salaries of full-time local law enforcement and fire protection officers of the state. Beginning
with the fiscal year which begins July 1, 2003, the legislature shall appropriate funds
sufficient to fully fund the cost of such state supplement to the salaries of full-time law
enforcement and fire protection officers.
(b) For the purposes of this Subparagraph, local law enforcement and fire protection
officers shall mean and include the same classes of officers which are eligible for such state
salary supplements under the law as of July 1, 2003.
(c) Full funding as required in Subsubparagraph (a) of this Subparagraph shall be
equal to the amount which is required to meet the requirements of law.
(d) Neither the governor nor the legislature may reduce an appropriation made
pursuant to this Subparagraph except that the governor may reduce such appropriation using
means provided in the Act containing the appropriation, provided that two-thirds of the
elected members of each house of the legislature consent to any such reduction in writing.
(E) Balanced Budget. Appropriations by the legislature from the state general fund
and dedicated funds for any fiscal year except funds allocated by Article VII, Section 4,
Paragraphs (D) and (E) shall not exceed the official forecast in effect at the time the
appropriations are made.
(F) Projected Deficit. (1) The legislature by law shall establish a procedure to
determine if appropriations will exceed the official forecast and an adequate method for
adjusting appropriations in order to eliminate a projected deficit. Any law establishing a
procedure to determine if appropriations will exceed the official forecast and methods for
adjusting appropriations, including any constitutionally protected or mandated allocations
or appropriations, once enacted, shall not be changed except by specific legislative
instrument which receives a favorable vote of two-thirds of the elected members of each
house of the legislature. Notwithstanding the provisions of Article III, Section 2 of this
constitution, such law may be introduced and considered in any regular session of the
legislature.
(2)(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this constitution to the contrary,
adjustments to any constitutionally protected or mandated allocations or appropriations, and
transfer of monies associated with such adjustments, are authorized when state general fund
allocations or appropriations have been reduced in an aggregate amount equal to at least
seven-tenths of one percent of the total of such allocations and appropriations for a fiscal
year. Such adjustments may not exceed five percent of the total appropriation or allocation
from a fund for the fiscal year. For purposes of this Subsubparagraph, reductions to
expenditures required by Article VIII, Section 13(B) of this constitution shall not exceed one
percent and such reductions shall not be applicable to instructional activities included within
the meaning of instruction pursuant to the Minimum Foundation Program formula.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this constitution to the contrary, monies transferred
as a result of such budget adjustments are deemed available for appropriation and
expenditure in the year of the transfer from one fund to another, but in no event shall the
aggregate amount of any transfers exceed the amount of the deficit.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this constitution to the contrary, for the
purposes of the budget estimate and enactment of the budget for the next fiscal year, when
the official forecast of recurring revenues for the next fiscal year is at least one percent less
than the official forecast for the current fiscal year, the following procedure may be employed
to avoid a budget deficit in the next fiscal year. An amount not to exceed five percent of the
total appropriations or allocations for the current fiscal year from any fund established by law
or this constitution shall be available for expenditure in the next fiscal year for a purpose
other than as specifically provided by law or this constitution. For the purposes of this
Subsubparagraph, an amount not to exceed one percent of the current fiscal year
appropriation for expenditures required by Article VIII, Section 13(B) of this constitution
shall be available for expenditures for other purposes in the next fiscal year.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this constitution to the contrary, monies made
available as authorized under this Subsubparagraph may be transferred to a fund for which
revenues have been forecast to be less than the revenues in the current fiscal year for such
fund. Monies transferred as a result of the budget actions authorized by this Subsubparagraph
are deemed available for appropriation and expenditure, but in no event shall the aggregate
amount of any such transfers exceed the amount of the difference between the official
forecast for the current fiscal year and the next fiscal year.
(c) The legislature may provide by law for the implementation of the provisions of
this Subparagraph.
(3) If within thirty days of the determination that appropriations will exceed the
official forecast the necessary adjustments in appropriations are not made to eliminate the
projected deficit, the governor shall call a special session of the legislature for this purpose
unless the legislature is in regular session. This special session shall commence as soon as
possible as allowed by the provisions of this constitution, including but not limited to Article
III, Section 2(B).
(4) The provisions of Subparagraphs (1) and (2) of this Paragraph shall not be
applicable to, nor affect:
(a) The Bond Security and Redemption Fund or any bonds secured thereby, or any
other funds pledged as security for bonds or other evidences of indebtedness.
(b) The allocations provided for by Article VII, Section 4(D) and (E) of this
constitution.
(c) The contributions made in accordance with Article X, Section 29(E) of this
constitution.
(d) The Louisiana Education Quality Trust Fund as defined in Article VII, Section
10.1(A)(1) of this constitution.
(e) The Millennium Trust as provided in Article VII, Section 10.8 of this
constitution, except for appropriations from the trust.
(f) Any monies not required to be deposited in the state treasury as provided in
Article VII, Section 9 of this constitution.
(g) The Medicaid Trust Fund for the Elderly created under the provisions of R.S.
46:2691 et seq.
(h) The Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund, as provided in Article VII, Section 10.15
of this constitution.
(i) The Louisiana Unclaimed Property Permanent Trust Fund, as provided in Article
VII, Section 28 of this Constitution.
(G) Year End Deficit. If a deficit exists in any fund at the end of a fiscal year, that
deficit shall be eliminated no later than the end of the next fiscal year.
(H) Publication. The legislature shall have published a regular statement of receipts
and expenditures of all state money at intervals of not more than one year.
(I) Public Purpose. No appropriation shall be made except for a public purpose.
(J) Definition of Funds. For the purposes of this Article, the state general fund and
dedicated funds shall be all money required to be deposited in the state treasury, except that
money the origin of which is:
(1) The federal government.
(2) Self-generated collections by any entity subject to the policy and management
authority established by Article VIII, Sections 5 through 7.
(3) A transfer from another state agency, board, or commission.
(4) The provisions of this Paragraph shall not apply to or affect funds allocated by
Article VII, Section 4, Paragraphs (D) and (E).
Amended by Acts 1990, No. 1096, §1, approved Oct. 6, 1990, eff. Nov. 8, 1990; Acts
1993, No. 1042, §1, approved, Oct. 16, 1993, eff. Nov. 18, 1993; Acts 1993, No. 1045, §1,
approved Oct. 16, 1993, eff. Nov. 18, 1993; Acts 1997, No. 1501, §1, approved Oct. 3, 1998,
eff. Nov. 5, 1998; Acts 2001, No. 1234, §1, approved Nov. 5, 2002, eff. Dec. 11, 2002; Acts
2001, No. 1236, §1, approved Nov. 5, 2002, eff. Dec. 11, 2002; Acts 2003, No. 1302, §1,
approved Oct. 4, 2003, eff. Nov. 6, 2003; Acts 2005, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 69, §1, approved Sept.
30, 2006, eff. Oct. 31, 2006; Acts 2007, No. 483, §1, approved Oct. 20, 2007, eff. Nov. 19,
2007; Acts 2011, No. 422, §1, approved Oct. 22, 2011, eff. Nov. 21, 2011; Acts 2012, No.
873, §1, approved Nov. 6, 2012, eff. Dec. 10, 2012; Acts 2016, No. 679, approved Nov. 8,
2016, eff. Dec. 13, 2016; Acts 2020, No. 366, §1, Acts 2020 1st Ex. Sess., No. 38, §1,
approved Nov. 3, 2020; Acts 2023, No. 107, §1, approved Oct. 14, 2023, eff. Nov. 20, 2023.