The state is preparing to roll out GUMBO 2.0 ensuring every community, no matter how small, has high-speed internet. Director of the State Office of Broadband Development Veneeth Iyengar says $1.36 billion in federal funds is dedicated to the project.
Cut 6 (11) “…economic development”
Iyengar says about 88% of GUMBO 1.0 projects have been completed or are under construction. 140,000 locations will benefit from the second round of funding.

Louisiana Agriculture Commissioner Mike Strain says it will be another two to five years before the state’s crawfish industry bounces back from last year’s historic drought. Strain says about 100 thousand acres of crawfish farms in Louisiana were lost to the drought and it took until this past May before federal assistance became available
Cut 4 (10) “…dry up the ponds.”
Crawfish farmers can apply for federal assistance by contacting their Farm Service Agency.

There are several petitions on the website Change-dot-org that are seeking signatures in an effort to reverse the state’s new law that bans students from having their cell phones in the classroom. Mel Brooks spoke with a Walker High School freshman who started one…
cut 2 (34) “….I’m Mel Bridges”