The chairman of the House budget-writing committee says he's feeling a bit better about coping with the state's more than $1 billion shortfall.
Appropriations Committee Chairman Jim Fannin made the comments Thursday after he got a sneak peek at Gov. Bobby Jindal's spending recommendations for next year.
Fannin says the Jindal administration anticipates significant savings from privatization plans for the LSU charity hospital system, and that will help partially close the budget gap.
He says Jindal proposes state general fund cuts to public colleges, but those reductions will be offset with tuition increases already planned.
Jindal's budget proposal for the 2013-14 fiscal year will be presented to lawmakers Friday. Fannin says he doesn't yet know the details of where cuts will fall.