BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - The leader of the Louisiana House is urging lawmakers to continue tax talks and try to break a stalemate that threatens to collapse the third special session this year without a deal.
Republican House Speaker Taylor Barras said Thursday night his chamber is at an "extreme deadlock." He told lawmakers: "What we need is movement from the two corners."
Steep budget cuts across college campuses and state programs loom in July without additional revenue.
Gov. John Bel Edwards and House Democrats want to renew half an expiring 1 percent sales tax, a proposal previously backed by the Senate.
House Republican leaders are backing a 0.4 percent renewal rate.
A sales tax renewal will require a mix of Republican and Democratic votes to reach the two-thirds vote for passage.
The House returns Friday.
Special Session: Louisiana House in 'extreme deadlock’, speaker says
The House returns Friday.