A House committee has approved a bill that would result in the state sending 250-dollar checks to some front-line employees who were required to work when the coronavirus pandemic hit Louisiana. Shreveport Representative Sam Jenkins expects the program will cost 50-million dollars. Jenkins says front line workers first responders, healthcare, and child care workers who earn less than 50-thousand dollars a year will be eligible and the cash will help stimulate local economies.
Cut 7 (07) “…bills and expenses”
A UL Lafayette economics professor warns our economic recovery from the COVID recession could drag well into 2022. Gary Wagner says if the pandemic had not hit it is likely we would have experienced a minor economic slowdown, but because of COVID-19, we’re now looking at historic long-term job losses.
The report shows the economic damage will be especially severe in Acadiana, Houma, and New Orleans due to the collapse of oil prices and the tourism industry.
A Lake Charles attorney is pushing for the removal of a Confederate monument at the Calcasieu courthouse. Attorney Todd Clemons says when you are black and entering the courthouse, the monument sends a message that you don’t have equal rights, producing a chilling and intimidating effect.
Louisiana has now seen three straight days of increased COVID-19 hospitalizations, the metric used by health officials to track the actual rate of community spread. Assistant Health Secretary Dr. Alex Billioux says the recent upward trend here, and the record spikes in neighboring states are important reminders that the pandemic is not over and we need to continue wearing masks and social distancing.