Editor’s Note: Michael Lunsford of Citizens for a New Louisiana offered recommendations on the constitutional amendments yesterday, while Jeff Sadow offered his recommendations for the November amendments at the same time he made suggestions for the October ones. See Lunsford’s recommendations here, and Sadow’s here.

There will be four more constitutional amendments on the Nov. 18th ballot, with early voting on candidates and ballot measures opening today.  Please know that there are often credible, principled reasons to view such measures differently.

Below are my respectful recommendations:

CA 1):  Do you support an amendment to clarify that the timing of gubernatorial action on a bill and his return of a vetoed bill to the legislature is based upon the legislative session in which the bill passed and to authorize the legislature, if it is in session, to reconsider vetoed bills without convening a separate veto session?

ROYAL: Yes.  It allows for efficiency if the Legislature is already in session and they want to override a governor’s veto instead of requiring the expense of a separate veto session to do so.

CA 2): Do you support an amendment to remove provisions of the Constitution of Louisiana which created the following inactive special funds within the state treasury: Atchafalaya Basin Conservation Fund, Higher Education Louisiana Partnership Fund, Millennium Leverage Fund, Agricultural and Seafood Products Support Fund, First Use Tax Trust Fund, Louisiana Investment Fund for Enhancement and to provide for the transfer of any remaining monies in such funds to the state general fund?

ROYAL: No.  These so-called inactive funds could be used again in the future even if they are under-utilized now.  (People could also legitimately vote “For” this if they want to clean up these six inactive funds).

CA 3): Do you support an amendment to authorize the local governing authority of a parish to provide an ad valorem tax exemption for qualified first responders?

ROYAL: Yes.  I am always in favor of allowing police, firefighters and other first responders to be afforded an additional property tax exemption given that they are often so underpaid as it is.

CA 4): Do you support an amendment authorizing the legislature, after securing a two-thirds vote of each house, to use up to two hundred fifty million dollars from the Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund to alleviate a budget deficit subject to conditions set forth by law and allowing the legislature to modify such conditions for accessing the monies in the fund, subject to two-thirds vote?

ROYAL Yes.  The Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund was created to bring more certainty to state budgeting and give lawmakers a financing source for needed infrastructure projects.  This would change the existing broad language that currently allows lawmakers to deplete the entire fund for anything they consider an “emergency” and undermines the intent of the savings account, potentially allowing lawmakers to squander billions of dollars.