BATON ROUGE — Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry vetoed a bill on Wednesday that would have given more compensation to people who have been wrongfully convicted of crimes, partially blaming the failure of an amendment that would have given the state's teachers a raise. 

SB 125 passed both the House and Senate unanimously, but was struck down at the Governor's desk. 

Currently, Louisiana law requires the state to pay $40,000 a year for up to 10 years to those found to have been wrongfully convicted or imprisoned, even if they served more years than that. The bill would have raised that cap to 15 years. 

"At a time when working families are struggling with rising costs, our teachers did not receive the permanent pay raise they deserve, and taxpayers expecting government to spend their money responsibly, I cannot support a bill that increases potential payouts by 50% while failing to address serious flaws in the process," Landry said in a letter to legislators.

He points to the failure of Amendment 3 in the May 16 election, which would have given Louisiana public school teachers a permanent pay raise by dissolving the following trust funds: the Louisiana Education Quality Trust Fund, the Louisiana Quality Education Support Fund, and the Education Excellence Fund.

Landry also said SB 125 "lacks important safeguards" to prevent people from abusing the system and submitting multiple or fraudulent claims. He pointed specifically to Orleans Parish as an example. 

"Over the last several years, individuals receiving State compensation under this process have also received millions of dollars through related federal claims funded by local taxpayers through the New Orleans City Council," Landry wrote. 

Jee Park, Executive Director of Innocence and Justice Louisiana, called the veto disappointing, wrong and harmful in a news release. 

"The Governor’s message makes specious assertions about abuse without acknowledging who will suffer because of his veto," Park said. 

Landry also said the bill would have cost taxpayers millions more than expected.

"Lawmakers were told this bill would cost approximately $4.3 million. The true cost could approach $9 million over the next five years," he said.

According to the governor, the bill does not account for 20 to 25 pending petitions that would immediately qualify for increased compensation if passed. 

IJLA says that even if the bill were implemented, Louisiana would still be behind many states when it comes to compensating the wrongfully convicted. According to the organization, 29 states and Washington, D.C., do not cap the number of years someone could claim compensation. 

SB 125 will be returned to the state legislature, which can override Landry's veto with two-thirds of the vote in each house.