State Budget cuts will affect Abbeville's Louisiana Military Hall of Fame Museum

The decline in the price of oil is now affecting Abbeville’s Louisiana Military and Hall of Fame Museum.
Chrystal Mouton, the museum’s director, received a phone call Wednesday at 11 a.m. informing her of the news that the state is cutting back and reducing the hours of employees.
The last few years, the state was paying Mouton for 14 hours and another part-time worker for six hours a week.
Starting April 13, the state said it will only pay for one person to work six hours a week at the museum.
Mouton said she will let the person who works the Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. shift to be the person who will stay employed. Mouton will no longer be paid to oversee the museum.
“I did not see this coming,” Mouton said four hours after getting the news. “I still want to try and volunteer my services because it is a wonderful cause.”
The museum will still stay open three days a week (Thursday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.) like in the past. However, Mouton said volunteers are now needed to work inside the museum on Thursdays and Fridays. If you want to volunteer you can call the museum at 898-9445.
Secretary of State Tom Schedler announced Wednesday says he will lay off 24 full-time employees and reduce hours at museums under his control to cope with the midyear budget cut assigned to his office by Gov. Bobby Jindal.
Schedler announced the plans Wednesday, saying layoffs would begin in April.
The two largest museums operated by Schedler’s office - the Old State Capitol in Baton Rouge and the Louisiana State Exhibit Museum in Shreveport - will shrink operating hours to only three days a week.
The remaining 14 small, largely rural museums will open one day a week.
Jindal has announced plans to cut $61 million in state spending before the fiscal year ends June 30 to help close a midyear deficit tied to declining oil prices. Lawmakers consider the plans Friday.
Below is a list of the museums and historical sites, and the anticipated state-funded staffing impact on each. For additional information about each site visit http://www.sos.la.gov/HistoricalResources/VisitMuseums/Pages/default.aspx.
• Louisiana’s Old State Capitol (Baton Rouge) 9 full-time layoffs, 1 part-time reduction in hours
• Louisiana State Exhibit Museum (Shreveport) 8 full-time layoffs, 3 part-time reduction in hours
• Louisiana Military Museum (Ruston) 2 full-time layoffs
• Chennault Aviation & Military Museum (Monroe) 1 full-time job appointment reduced to 8 hours/week. 1 part-time elimination
• Delta Music Museum (Ferriday) 2 part-time eliminations and 1 part-time reduction in hours
• Eddie G. Robinson Museum (Grambling) 1 full-time job appointment reduced to 8 hours/week, 1 part-time elimination
• Germantown Colony Museum (Minden) 1 part-time reduction in hours
• Military Hall of Fame (Abbeville) 1 part-time elimination, 1 part-time reduction in hours
• Cotton Museum (Lake Providence) 1 part-time elimination, 1 part-time reduction in hours
• Oil and Gas Museum (Oil City) 1 full-time layoff, 2 part-time eliminations
• Mansfield Female College Museum (Mansfield) 1full-time layoff
• Water Works Museum (Shreveport) 1 part-time elimination, 1 part-time reduction in hours
• Spring Street Historical Museum (Shreveport) 1 part-time reduction in hours
• Tioga Heritage Park and Museum (Tioga) 1 part-time reduction in hours