BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - In what is becoming an annual ritual, Gov. Bobby Jindal on Wednesday again issued a partial hiring freeze on executive branch agencies in state government.
The hiring freeze covers the 2012-13 fiscal year that began July 1. It runs until June 30, 2013.
For most agencies, Commissioner of Administration Paul Rainwater will set a number of vacant positions that the offices can't fill. If they want to add new workers who will shrink the number of vacancies below that benchmark, the agencies will need Rainwater's permission.
The move is similar to what Jindal has done in prior fiscal years, trying to control state government costs in the $25.6 billion annual operating budget. The goal listed in the executive order is to save $13 million in the state's general fund.
The state's elected officials and the Louisiana Legislature aren't covered by the governor's order. Louisiana's higher education commissioner, Jim Purcell, will make decisions on filling jobs at public colleges and the charity hospitals run by LSU.
The hiring freeze comes in a budget that cuts nearly 6,200 jobs this year.
Rainwater's office said that since the governor took office in 2008, more than 16,000 positions have been cut across state government. That includes 2,200 employees laid off through June 30, according to the state civil service department.
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