House Approves Alcohol Tax; Still Have Huge Budget Short Fall

Louisiana's House passed an alcohol tax increase late Sunday night, but that still leaves a huge hole in the budget. The alcohol tax will only produce 4 million dollars for the current year and will leave a 147 to 212 million dollar gap.

The Legislature is charged will filling the hole with new tax revenue and cuts by the close of the special session on Wednesday.

Some law makers wanted to increase the new sales tax to as much as 1.75 cents but governor John Bel Edwards said he is opposed to increasing the tax beyond the already approved penny.