State Treasurer John Kennedy believes Louisiana is overspending with a structural deficit that is not going to improve by “accounting maneuvers or tricks.”

“We’re spending more than we take in,” Kennedy told the American Press editorial board on Friday. “The evidence is pretty overwhelming that we are.”

Before the current fiscal year there were six mid-year budget cuts out of seven years. Last year — when there were no mid-year budget cuts — the state experienced a $41 million deficit.

“We have drained every pot of money that can be drained,” he said.

This fiscal year, which began in July, the administration will make more than $170 million worth of mid-year budget cuts.

“It wreaks havoc on budgeting, and in almost all cases the bulk of the cuts fall on higher education,” he said. “We cannot continue to do this without doing irrefutable damage.”

Despite the increase in tuition, Kennedy pointed out there has been a $700 million net cut to higher education statewide.

“I don’t know how McNeese is doing it,” he said. “I guess it’s because of good leadership.”

He said the responsibility for the problems lies with the governor’s administration and the state legislature.

“We all know the governor plays a very important role in the budgeting process with an executive budget,” he said. “But under the (Louisiana) Constitution, the legislature can totally rewrite or throw it out the window if it wants to.”

In addition, Kennedy said ballooning costs for Medicaid contribute to the deficit.

“There are changes we need to make to the Medicaid program that can make it more affordable,” he said.

The state has more than 900,000 visits to the emergency room per year — paid for by taxpayers, through Medicaid — for non-emergencies, he said. In fact, Kennedy said it costs five times more to treat patients in an ER setting than in a private clinic. Since 2012, Kennedy said the state has spent $900 million more on Medicaid.

“We have people who under the law can take a $700 ambulance ride to an emergency room to get a pregnancy test,” Kennedy said. “I’ve had ER doctors tell me they’ve had people come in who want their eyes examined — not because they have an injury — but because they might need glasses.”

He pinpointed that those are appropriate instances to be funded by Medicaid through community clinics but not at an ER.

“We are doing virtually nothing — unlike other states — to try to curb that ER use,” he said.

Looking forward, Kennedy predicts the fiscal problems in Louisiana will get better.

“The economy in Louisiana is commodity-based. We tend to zig when the national economy zags,” he said. “Our recessions are not as deep as other states, and our recovery is not as steep either.”

He said the state’s economy is currently about a 6 or a 7 out of 10,” he said. “I’m hoping this time next year we’ll be at an 8, but the state government has been spending as if the economy is a 10.”

For example, this fiscal year, the division of administration predicted a 4.4 percent growth in revenue, which hasn’t happened.

“We’re five months into the fiscal year, and we’re down 3 percent — that’s a 7-point swing,” he said. “You can’t spend the money before you get it.”(MGNonline)