State Representative Jerome “Dee” Richard met with the Student Government Association at their meeting Monday where he discussed what he’s done for higher education in the state legislature this year.

During the meeting, Richard brought up the Louisiana State University Student Government’s legislative report card released this year, along with his failing grade.

In a letter to the editor in the LSU Daily Reveille, Richard said, “Do any of you understand that this state, our state, is last, (that’s 50th out of 50), in government funding of higher education and that is all because of the budget cuts by this administration to higher education over the last six or seven years?”

In the letter, Richard went on to say that his bill was the only piece of reform legislation passed by the legislature with savings going to higher education.

“I stand by my F,” Richard said. “Am I ashamed of doing right by the state of Louisiana? No.”

At the SGA meeting, Richard spoke about the bill he sponsored, House Bill 30, which the governor signed into law this summer as Act 87.

In an interview with the Nicholls Worth earlier this year, Richard explained HB30 in greater detail.

“The bill says any contract that comes up for renewal for $40,000 or more would have to go before the joint committee on the budget. If they didn’t like it, that money would go to higher education,” Richard said.

“There’s a spending problem in this state,” Richard said. “We waste so much in the state of Louisiana.”

Richard asked the group who would be eligible to vote in the gubernatorial election later this month, and after a show of hands, said that he would not tell students who to vote for, but that the current administration did nothing to save higher education.

Early voting has already begun, and the runoff election between Jon Bel Edwards (D) and David Vitter (R) will take place on Nov. 21.