BATON ROUGE - Louisiana's credit rating has been downgraded, after years of budget instability that leave public colleges and government services wallowing in repeated financial uncertainty.

The decision by Moody's Investors Service to drop the state's credit rating Thursday is another blow to a state teetering on the edge of financial calamity.

And it comes as Gov. John Bel Edwards and lawmakers are grappling in a special legislative session with balancing the budget.

Ratings from the credit agencies help determine interest rates when the state borrows money, through bond sales to investors. A drop in a state's credit rating raises interest costs, making it more expensive to borrow.

Former Gov. Bobby Jindal and lawmakers refused for years to match the state's spending to its annual tax income, continuing cycles of budget gaps.