Busted

The legislature isn't working right now.  That's probably a good thing. I mean, it's usually a good thing when that bunch doesn't have to get together but in this case it's especially so because they would all be freaking out over the budget.

Economists assumed oil prices would average $59 a barrel when compiling the state’s revenue forecast, but state leaders are expected to meet early next month to adopt a new revenue forecast that will determine how much money lawmakers and Gov. John Bel Edwards have to spend. The price of oil has dropped by nearly half ahead of that meeting, trading in the low $30s a barrel in recent days.

For every $1 drop in the price of oil, Albrecht said, Louisiana loses about $11 million to $12 million in direct tax revenues.

Now that doesn't necessarily mean they  will have lost $330 million just like that.  For one thing the revenue estimate is based on the expected price of oil over the course of the entire year. So if the price rebounds later, it could average out to be a negligible difference. 

Of course, that story was from a week ago.  Today we have another look and...

The American oil benchmark West Texas Intermediate dropped 24 percent to just over $21 a barrel, the lowest price since 2003. 

The global Brent benchmark fell to just above $25 a barrel, a level just below January 2016. Oil prices are more than 60 percent below where they were at the beginning of the year.

Aaanyway... just tell the legislators to sit tight for now.  Coming back in to work too soon could be even more dangerous than it already is.