How Louisiana Can Get Smart on Crime

By Ben Kilpatrick

03/20/2014

Conservative states like Texas and Georgia have taken steps to steer nonviolent offenders away from prison, emphasize rehabilitation over jail time, and reduce penalties for many drug and property crimes.

TAGS: Criminal Justice Reform, determinate sentencing, mandatory minimums, Right On Crime

Smart on Sentencing, Smart on Crime: An Argument for Reforming Louisiana’s Determinate Sentencing Laws

By Margaret Viator

10/29/2013

A new study details how Louisiana can reduce its prison population and corrections spending without lessening public safety by eliminating mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent offenders and reforming its habitual offender law.

TAGS: Bobby Jindal, Criminal Justice Reform, determinate sentencing, incarceration rate, Louisiana, mandatory minimums, Reason Foundation, Texas Public Policy Foundation

School Board Spending Transparency

HB38 by Representative Rick Edmonds brings sunlight to local school district spending by adding many school districts to the Louisiana Fiscal Transparency Website, LouisianaCheckbook.com, and requiring other smaller entities to post enhanced transparency on their websites. It is modeled after both Louisiana Checkbook and an existing project by the Lafayette Parish School Board to post...

View Report