TOPS payments stalled because of La. budget uncertainty

(AP) — Payments to Louisiana's colleges from the TOPS free college tuition program were put on hold Thursday because of uncertainties about the state's budget and questions about whether the popular program could be on the chopping block.

Boutté said her office decided all TOPS reimbursement payments to college campuses should be stalled for now, until the state's financial picture becomes clearer.

"Since we are all waiting for information on the budget cuts and what impact they're going to have, what we did is send a precautionary statement," she said.

The Democratic governor wants tax increases, but Republican lawmakers who make up a majority of the Legislature have shown resistance to tax hikes and said they'd like to cut government spending.