State

(The Center Square) – Louisiana Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne presented a breakdown of the governor’s proposed budget Tuesday to the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget, prompting an array of questions from lawmakers on a variety of issues.
Dardenne laid out how Gov. John Bel Edwards hopes to spend a flood of $2.83 billion in extra revenue for the upcoming fiscal year, money that includes $1.4 billion from the American Rescue Plan (ARP), $700 million in surplus from fiscal year 2021 and an $853 million excess for fiscal year 2022.

LAFAYETTE — United States Attorney Brandon B. Brown announced that Karen Duhon, 67, of Berwick, Louisiana, has been sentenced by Chief United States District Judge S. Maurice Hicks, Jr. to 60 months in prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, on mail fraud charges. Duhon was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $3,391,598.

BATON ROUGE – The Centers for Medicaid and Medicaid Services (CMS) has granted approval for Louisiana Medicaid to launch Act 421 Children’s Medicaid Option, or TEFRA, effective January 1, 2022. This program allows certain children under 19 years of age with disabilities to receive Medicaid coverage, regardless of parental income.
The TEFRA option disregards family income for children with disabilities who meet specific criteria, so they may qualify for Medicaid to cover the services they need to grow and thrive while living at home.