President Barack Obama announced today that the federal government will cover 90-percent of the costs associated with flood relief in south Louisiana, leaving state and local governments to pick up the remaining 10-percent. In a letter to Governor John Bel Edwards, the President says he agrees to increase the feds’ cost share for the “public assistance” projects, which includes debris removal and emergency response expenses.
Four Louisiana universities have been placed on a fiscal watch list. The Board of Regents determined Southern University at New Orleans, LSU Health Shreveport, Grambling State and Southern University at Shreveport are in poor financial standing, and Higher Ed Commissioner Joe Rallo says the schools’ financial challenges are due to a decline in state funding for public universities and low enrollment.
The Department Of Transportation has released a new Louisiana 511 app for smartphones. Rodney Mallet with DOTD says the app offers a variety of features, like live streaming traffic cameras, notifications, and more.
cut 10 (10) “construction sites”
Mallett says motorists can also get personalized traffic updates by creating an account at 511LA.org.
Strawberry farmers are struggling to recover from two historic floods this year. Co-owner of Johndales Farm in Ponchatoula, Heather Robertson, says they’re trying to get their fields ready to plant by late September or early October, but there’s a lot that has to be done.