Luminaries from across the state are mourning the death of former Governor Edwin Edwards who passed away at 93. Edwards served four terms in office with his first stint starting in 1971. Biographer Leo Honeycutt says Edwards took advantage of an oil boom in 1974 and changed the severance making Louisiana the most-cash-rich state in the nation. Edwards told Jim Engster in 2011 that he always looked out for the working class…
Cut 4 (11) “….some people are”
Honeycutt says that interest in helping out the average Louisianan meant Edwards remained highly popular even after serving eight years in federal prison on racketeering charges.
Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser says state parks are having their best year yet and that seems to have the system getting closer and closer to being entirely self-funded. State Parks Deputy Assistant Secretary Clifford Melius says about six state parks made more money this year than what it costs to operate them.
Melius says about 70 percent of their traffic is coming from Louisiana residents.
The Louisiana Community and Technical College System saw a 10 percent drop in enrollment during the 2020-2021 school year. LCTCS spokesperson Quintin Taylor says many of their students have children and the chaotic situation in K-12 education during the worst of the pandemic made it hard for parents to pursue their own education.