BATON ROUGE - A Baton Rouge judge has refused to throw out the Louisiana Chemical Association's lawsuit objecting to a legislative tax change that raised $103 million for this year's budget.

The Louisiana Legislature and the Department of Revenue argued Monday the association didn't have the legal standing to file the lawsuit.

Judge Michael Caldwell disagreed, allowing the lawsuit to continue. He did, however, agree to remove Gov. Bobby Jindal as a defendant, saying the governor didn't have control over enforcing the tax law.

The chemical association lawsuit challenges the temporary suspension of a 1-cent sales tax exemption on business utilities, expected to fall heaviest on chemical plants.

The organization claims the suspension is unconstitutional because it didn't receive support from two-thirds of House lawmakers. House leaders ruled a majority vote was needed.