The Louisiana legislative session is over, but not before lawmakers approved a 47-billion-dollar budget for the fiscal year that begins on July 1st. Legislative leaders say they have allocated money to attract private industry, improve state roads and infrastructure and they continue to invest in K-through-12 education. But Erin Bendily of the Pelican Institute questions the millions of dollars that are known as legislative pet projects.

Cut 10 (09) “…things like that.”

The Advocate’s political reporter, Tyler Bridges, says Democratic Congressman Cleo Fields is one of the big losers of this session, because he will likely lose his seat in the U.S. House because of the newly drawn Congressional map that eliminates one of the majority Black Districts.

Cut 14 (06) “…Baton Rouge area.”

A lawsuit is expected to be filed contesting the map that gives Republicans five safe seats to one Democratic district.

The Louisiana Legislature has approved a bill that would require students who assault a school employee to be automatically expelled for at least two semesters and undergo management classes. The bill is by New Orleans Representative Candace Newell, who during testimony in the House Education Committee said several teachers did not want to testify for the bill over concerns they could face retaliation…

Cut 9 (11) “…the Teacher’s Shield’

A companion bill, which calls for a minimum six-month sentence in prison or juvenile detention for any student convicted of assaulting a teacher, is also awaiting Governor Landry’s signature.

Hurricane Season is underway and Nyka Scott with Entergy urges residents to be prepared…:
Cut 6 (11) “the Entergy App”
She says Entergy is two years into a $1.9 billion plan to strengthen and upgrade Louisiana’s power grid.

The 2026 legislative session ended last night with no major bills making it through on the final day of the session. The bill that created a high amount of tension was the new Congressional map that eliminates a Black majority district. House Governmental Affairs Chairman and New Iberia Republican Beau Beaullieu says race was not a factor in the drawing of the map.

Cut 13 (05)  “…maximizes partisan advantage.”

The map approved by the Republican-led legislature is expected to be challenged in court.

And we’ll see more proposed constitutional amendments as a result of this session, including one that prohibits governors from serving more than two terms during their lifetimes. Political reporter for the Advocate Tyler Bridges says it only impacts three people right now.

Cut 15 (07) “…two terms lifetime.”

Students who attack teachers and other school employees face tougher penalties under a pair of bills awaiting Governor Landry’s signature. House Bill 283 is what New Orleans Representative Candace Newell calls the “Teacher’s Shield Act,” and it creates new mandatory penalties for students who attack teachers and puts additional protections in place for employees. Earlier in the session, Kimberly McDaniel told the House Education Committee about how her father was assaulted by a student.

Cut 7 (12) “…in the face.”

Entergy is two years into executing a 1.9-billion-dollar resilience plan to fortify structures and upgrade distribution and transmission lines. Entergy Vice President of Customer Nyka Scott says the upgrades were put in place after Grand Isle was hit hard by Hurricane Ida.

Cut 5 (08) “…didn’t lose power.”

Scott says similar infrastructure is being built across the state.

One of the biggest stories from Louisiana’s 2026 legislative session, which wrapped up yesterday, was lawmakers approving a new congressional map that removes one of the state’s majority-Black districts. Legislative Black Caucus Chairman Edmond Jordan, had this message for his Republican colleagues:
Cut 12 (12) “a racist act”
Republicans say the map follows traditional redistricting standards and was not drawn to unfairly favor or disadvantage voters based on race.

Other critics of the this session are also pointing to the failure of teacher pay raises and additional funding for private school vouchers. Erin Bendily with the Pelican Institute also questioned what she describes as millions spent on legislative pet projects.
Cut 10 (09) “things like that”
Governor Landry is addressing the teacher pay raise matter today.

Hurricane Season began Monday and Nyka Scott with Entergy urges residents to be prepared…:
Cut 6 (11) “the Entergy App”
She says Entergy is two years into a $1.9 billion plan to strengthen and upgrade Louisiana’s power grid.

The College baseball transfer window opened yesterday and five members of the 2026 LSU roster have already entered their names. Kace Kieschnick has the story:
Cut 3 (33) “I’m Kace Kieschnick”

The legislative session came to an end Monday after lawmakers passed a $47 billion dollar budget. Members say money has been allocated to attract private industry, improve roads and continue to invest in K-12 education. Not included were teacher pay raises and money to fund the school choice voucher program which Erin Bendily of the Pelican Institute says is disappointing…:
Cut 11 (09) “…on different things.”
Governor Landry will address the teacher pay issue during a 10am news conference.

The other big story out of this session was the redrawing of the congressional map that eliminates a majority Black district. The Advocate’s political reporter, Tyler Bridges says Democratic Congressman Cleo Fields came away from this session with some significant setbacks…:
Cut 14 (06) “Baton Rouge area”
The map approved by the Republican-led legislature is expected to be challenged in court.

A pair of bills which establish tougher penalties for attacking teachers and school staff are awaiting Governor Landry’s signature. Andrew Greenstein reports:
Cut 1 (35) “I’m Andrew Greenstein”

The college baseball and softball transfer portal opened yesterday, and five LSU baseball players have already entered, including Mavrick Rizy, DJ Primeaux, Daniel Harden, Trent Caraway, and Jaden Noot after limited roles in 2026.

LSU softball is also losing one of its top arms, as Jayden Heavener, who led the starters in ERA and won 13 games, has entered the portal.

The 2026 legislative session is over, but the fallout is not. Jeff Palermo has the story…:
Cut 2 (29) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

Hurricane Season is officially underway and Entergy Louisiana vice president of customer service Nyka Scott says they are ready…:
Cut 4 (10) “we see something”
She joins state leaders in encouraging residents to be prepared for potential storms.

There are a pair of bills awaiting Governor Landry’s signature that would toughen penalties on students who attack teachers or other school employees. During the House Education Committee meeting on the matter, Nikita Drummond-Clark, a teacher of more than 30 years, said she had to retire after being injured by a student:
CUT 8 (14) “happened to me”
The bills would create mandatory penalties for students who attack teachers and also put additional protections in place for school employees.

The Pointe Coupee Parish Sheriff’s Office says an Uber driver has been arrested for allegedly raping a customer during a ride. They say 56 year old Adolfito Marte Mercedes is charged with first degree rape. Additional details about what happened are being withheld to protect the privacy of the victim. The sheriff’s office issued a statement urging members of the public to be cautious while using a rideshare service.

A pair of bills which establish tougher penalties for attacking teachers and school staff are awaiting Governor Landry’s signature. Andrew Greenstein reports.

Cut 1 (35) “…I’m Andrew Greenstein.”

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The 2026 legislative session is over, but the fallout is not. Jeff Palermo has the story.

Cut 2 (29) “…I’m Jeff Palermo.”

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The College baseball transfer window opened yesterday and five members of the 2026 LSU roster have already entered their names. Kace Kieschnick has the story…

Cut 3 (33) “…I’m Kace Kieschnick.”

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With hurricane season officially underway, Entergy Louisiana is preparing the Bayou State for storm season. Nyka Scott, the vice president of customer service, says the company completed conducting storm drills a few weeks ago.

Cut 4 (10) “…we see something.”

Entergy is two years into executing a 1.9-billion-dollar resilience plan to fortify structures and upgrade distribution and transmission lines across the state. Scott says the upgrades were put in place after Grand Isle was hit by Hurricane Ida.

Cut 5 (08) “…didn’t lose power.”

Scott says similar infrastructure is being built across the state.

Scott urges residents to join Entergy in preparing for storms before they arrive. If power does go out, stay away from downed lines and potentially electrified water, and have a plan in place.

Cut 6 (11) “…the Entergy App.”

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Students who attack teachers and other school employees face tougher penalties under a pair of bills awaiting Governor Landry’s signature. House Bill 283 is what New Orleans Representative Candace Newell calls the “Teacher’s Shield Act,” and it creates new mandatory penalties for students who attack teachers and puts additional protections in place for employees. Earlier in the session, Kimberly McDaniel told the House Education Committee about how her father was assaulted by a student.

Cut 7 (12) “…in the face.”

Nikita Drummond-Clark taught for more than 30 years and told the committee she was forced to retire due to an injury she had suffered at the hands of a student.

Cut 8 (14) “…happened to me.”

Several teachers said they got little to no support from their respective school districts, and that was evident in this exchange between Newell and Rosepine Representative Charles Owen.

Cut 9 (11)  “…the Teacher’s Shield.”

A companion bill, which calls for a minimum six-month sentence in prison or juvenile detention for any student convicted of assaulting a teacher, is also awaiting Governor Landry’s signature.

____________________________________________________

The Louisiana legislative session is over, but not before lawmakers approved a 47-billion-dollar budget for the fiscal year that begins on July 1st. Legislative leaders say they have allocated money to attract private industry, improve state roads and infrastructure and they continue to invest in K-through-12 education. But Erin Bendily of the Pelican Institute questions the millions of dollars that are known as legislative pet projects.

Cut 10 (09) “…things like that.”

Bendily says she’s also disappointed that the Louisiana Senate did not approve additional dollars to expand private school vouchers and teacher pay raises.

Cut 11 (09) “…on different things.”

Governor Landry will address the teacher pay issue during a ten a-m press conference at the state capitol this morning.

___________________________________________________

The big story of the legislative session was the redrawing of the congressional map that eliminates a majority Black district. The chairman of the Legislative Black Caucus, Edmond Jordan, had this message for his Republican colleagues before they voted on a map that will give the GOP the ability to represent five of the state’s six congressional districts.

Cut 12 (12) “…a racist act.”

House Governmental Affairs Chairman and New Iberia Republican Beau Beaullieu says race was not a factor in the drawing of the map.

Cut 13 (05)  “…maximizes partisan advantage.”

The map approved by the Republican-led legislature is expected to be challenged in court.

_______________________________________________

The Advocate’s political reporter, Tyler Bridges, says Democratic Congressman Cleo Fields is one of the big losers of this session, because he will likely lose his seat in the U.S. House.

Cut 14 (06) “…Baton Rouge area.”

And we’ll see more proposed constitutional amendments as a result of this session, including one that prohibits governors from serving more than two terms during their lifetimes. Bridges says it only impacts three people right now.

Cut 15 (07) “…two terms lifetime.”

____________________________________________________

The Saints completed their third day of organized team activities yesterday and will return to the field tomorrow and Thursday. Second year quarterback Tyler Shough says he’s been able to take advantage of an offseason without any rookie responsibilities or an open QB battle.

Cut 16 (17) “…specifically be better.”

New Orleans is missing veterans Cam Jordan, Demario Davis and Tyrann Mathieu, who were all around this time last year. Shough says he’s focused on improving as the leader of the offense on and off the field, especially for a group of rookies in the same position as he was a season ago.

Cut 17 (19)  “…to prepare yourself.”

Veteran wide receiver Chris Olave has been an active participant at voluntary OTAs despite ongoing contract negotiations over a possible extension. The All-Pro missed last year’s season finale with a blood clot found in his lung, but Shough says he hasn’t missed a beat.

Cut 18 (19) “…the whole year.”

Cut 23 (12) “…without objection.” (gavel tap, followed by applause that fades out)

With that, the 2026 legislative session draws to a close, but not before lawmakers approved a 47-billion-dollar budget for the fiscal year that begins on July 1st. Legislative leaders say they have allocated money to attract private industry, improve state roads and infrastructure and they continue to invest in K-through-12 education. But Erin Bendily of the Pelican Institute questions the millions of dollars that are known as legislative pet projects.

Cut 10 (09) “…things like that.”

Bendily says she’s also disappointed that the Louisiana Senate did not approve additional dollars to expand private school vouchers and teacher pay raises.

Cut 11 (09) “…on different things.”

The big story of the legislative session was the redrawing of the congressional map that eliminates a majority Black district. The chairman of the Legislative Black Caucus, Edmond Jordan, had this message for his Republican colleagues before they voted on a map that will give the GOP the ability to represent five of the state’s six congressional districts.

Cut 12 (12) “…a racist act.”

House Governmental Affairs Chairman and New Iberia Republican Beau Beaullieu says race was not a factor in the drawing of the map.

Cut 13 (05)  “…maximizes partisan advantage.”

The Advocate’s political reporter, Tyler Bridges, says Democratic Congressman Cleo Fields is the big loser in this, because he will likely lose his seat in the U.S. House.

Cut 14 (06) “…Baton Rouge area.”

Cut 24 (04) “…It’s all over!”

The 2026 legislative session is all over! The Senate adjourned sine die shortly before four this afternoon, and the House followed suit a short time later. Of course, this year’s session will be forever remembered for how the legislature seemed to stop in its tracks to redraw the congressional district map after the Supreme Court ruled the previous map an unconstitutional gerrymander. Following several lengthy debates, the legislature passed and Governor Landry signed a map that closely resembles the one the state used in 2022.

One year after vetoing a similar bill, Governor Landry allows a bill to ban balloon releases to become law without his signature. Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser is grateful that Landry allowed Harahan Representative John Illg’s balloon release ban to become law this time around, saying it will save wildlife in the long run.

Cut 9 (06)  “…tangled in them.”

Among the bills that didn’t make it onto Governor Landry’s desk was one that would have named a potential new Mississippi River bridge after President Trump. Monroe Representative Michael Echols says naming the bridge after Trump was not absolute; it was contingent on him securing federal funding during his term.

Cut 14 (09) “…dollars to Louisiana.”

While it sailed through the House, Echols says the Senate had no interest in road or bridge-naming bills this year. As such, a bill by Moore Representative Pat Moore to name a one-mile stretch of Highway 15 after President Obama also went nowhere.

Hurricane season is underway. Mike Steele with GOHSEP says the agency has done its part in preparing – now it’s time to do your part.

Cut 5 (13) “…and your property.”