(The Center Square) — Gov. Jeff Landry vetoed more than $12 million in state construction funding earmarked for New Orleans projects, the latest flashpoint in an increasingly contentious relationship between the governor and city leaders.

Vetoed line items include $1,000,000 for a new city hall, $1.75 million for an early learning center, $3 million for housing projects through Habitat for Humanity, $1 million for the LaSalle Street resilience center, and $6.55 million for an “Integrated Healthcare Hub.”

The veto does not necessarily remove immediately deployable cash.

Most of the funding is tied to Priority 5 bond funding, which is generally lower-priority construction authority for projects meant to be completed in the next 5 years. But it can keep a project in the state pipeline and help provide enough authority to award contracts when paired with other funding.

Mayor Helena Moreno has been adamant about the need for a new city hall. “The current City Hall is not in good condition at all,” she said in an interview with the Times-Picayune.

Moreno and Landry could not immediately be reached for comment.

The cuts come as Landry and New Orleans have repeatedly clashed over city issues, from policing and homelessness to the courts.

During his first months in office, Landry made New Orleans a central example in his crime agenda, telling lawmakers it was time to “secure the entire city” and backing a permanent State Police troop for New Orleans.

The latest clash came with the 2026 legislative session, when Landry backed several very consequential bills related to the city’s court system. One bill permanently reduced the number of judges on the criminal court from twelve to nine, another reduced the number of judges on the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeal from twelve to ten.

The highest-profile law merged the city’s separate civil and criminal court clerk offices, replacing its longstanding dual-clerk structure.

And when the city devolved into a scramble to fix a budget crisis, Landry made clear that any help would not come without a promise of improved fiscal responsibility.