The 2019 Legislative session wrapped up Thursday at 6pm. Kevin Barnhart looks at what happened in the final moments before adjournment.

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Governor Edwards signs industrial hemp legalization into law, potentially clearing a path for the first crop in Louisiana to be planted early next year. Ag Commissioner Mike Strain.

Cut 13 (10) “40 degrees.”

Edwards celebrated the end of the first legislative season of his tenure to not feature special sessions and says the passage of most of his legislative agenda points the state in the right direction. Edwards says the over 300-million-dollar surplus the state ran last year made for smoother sailing when crafting a budget, as opposed to previous years’ fiscal chaos…

Cut 7 (10) “…session.”

The Democrat touted the fact that that surplus was largely invested into education.

House Republican Chairman Lance Harris feels overall it’s been a great session.  Harris says among the most positive pieces of legislation was the controversial fetal heartbeat abortion ban, which has already been signed into law by Governor Edwards, but he bemoaned the fact that once again, legislation targeting the state’s sky high auto insurance rates crashed and burned…

Cut 11 (10) “…in the country.”

Governor Edwards put a cap on what may have been the least contentious legislative session of his four year tenure. Matt Doyle has more…

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The 2019 Legislative session wrapped up yesterday at 6pm. Kevin Barnhart looks at what happened in the final moments before adjournment.

Cut 2 (30) “…I’m Kevin Barnhart.” 

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Louisiana farmers could be planting hemp by early next year after a legalization effort is signed into law. Matt Doyle has the story.

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The opening of the Morganza Spillway has been pushed back again, this time with no new date set. Army Corps of Engineers spokesperson Ricky Boyett says the river levels are coming in a little lower than originally projected.

Cut 4 (10) “…on a daily basis.”

Boyett says it is possible the opening will still have to take place depending on weather conditions producing a rain event that requires the operation. Officials are monitoring the levels on at the Red River Landing, which is north of the spillway, to make sure the river level does not surpass the 62-foot mark.

Cut 5 (05) “…Morganza control structure.”

Boyett says the Corps is working as a 24/7 operation inspecting the levee to make sure the structure is in good shape.

Cut 6 (09) “…address any issues.”

The postponement is good news for farmers whose crops would have been lost by spillway flooding. Nearly a third of the 112 square miles of the spillway is used as farmland.

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Governor Edwards celebrated the end of the first legislative season of his tenure to not feature special sessions and says the passage of most of his legislative agenda points the state in the right direction.

Edwards says the over 300-million-dollar surplus the state ran last year made for smoother sailing when crafting a budget, as opposed to previous years’ fiscal chaos…

Cut 7 (10) “…session.”

Opponents say the surplus is evidence that the Legislature did not need to pass a .45 percent sales tax renewal last year.

The Governor took a victory lap on his flagship proposal to secure a 1,000 dollar teacher pay raise and 39 million in new K-12 spending. Opponents fought the 39 million, preferring to invest more in early childhood education, but Edwards says in the end they got the best of both worlds…

Cut 8 (06) “…excellent”

Higher ed also received 47.2 million more dollars in this year’s budget than last year’s.

But it wasn’t all wins. Despite making it a campaign pledge in 2015, Edwards failed for the fourth year in a row to win a minimum wage increase, and Louisiana remains one of the few states at the 7.25 an hour federal minimum…

Cut 9 (10) “for it.”

Edwards backed a proposal to raise the minimum to nine dollars an hour.

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The 2019 Legislative session is in the books. House Republican Chairman Lance Harris feels overall it’s been a great session.  Harris says among the most positive pieces of legislation was the controversial fetal heartbeat abortion ban, which has already been signed into law by Governor Edwards.

Cut 10 (09) “…thoughts and beliefs.”

However, Harris says there were some measures that for one reason or another didn’t make it through the session. Among them, the effort to save Louisiana drivers money on their auto insurance rates.

Cut 11 (10) “…in the country.”

Harris was in favor or making an effort to also save Louisiana taxpayers money by lowering the state’s sales tax rate. That effort ultimately failed this session.

Cut 12 (11) “…again next year.”

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Governor Edwards signs industrial hemp legalization into law, potentially clearing a path for the first crop in Louisiana to be planted early next year.

Ag Commissioner Mike Strain says if everything goes according to plan, Louisiana will join dozens of other states for the next planting season.

Cut 13 (10) “40 degrees.”

The feds are expected to release their requirements for hemp regulation later this year.

Strain says even though there was an extensive discussion of what hemp legalization would look like in the legislature, parties involves will still have to sign off on a final plan before the feds can OK it.

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There were some concerns early in the process about a lack of research involving hemp growth in Louisiana. Strain says because the plant is just now becoming legal, it may take a few years for our growers to get access to optimal varieties of the plant.

Cut 15 (10) “grow here”

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LSU and Florida State will meet tomorrow in a best of three Super Regional Series. The winner will advance to the College World Series. The Seminoles shocked college baseball observers by easily winning the Athens Regional. Tigers Coach Paul Mainieri says F-S-U hit .375 and smacked 10 home runs during their three games at Georgia

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LSU center fielder Zach Watson swung a hot bat last weekend as he hit two home runs. Watson says he likes the feel of postseason baseball…

cut 17 (13) “.Omaha” 

A political analyst says Governor Edwards is sitting pretty in the Governor’s race after racking up some big wins in the Legislative session…

Cut 1 (30) “I’m Matt Doyle”

Legislators have until 6 o’ clock tonight to finish their work for the 2019 session. They have to pass a budget, but there are no contentious battles there. There are still discussions occurring behind closed doors regarding fantasy sports tax and regulation bills and whether they should include sports betting legislation.

Many legislators were off to a late start this morning as south Louisiana was swamped today with a severe weather system creating localized flooding and even tornadoes. State climatologist Barry Keim says the system dumped dangerous amounts of water on some communities…

Cut 3 (11) “…region.”

37-year-old William Johnson died during the heavy rain event in Baton Rouge when his car flooded. Keim says the severe amount of rainfall was more than initially predicted, but this whole weather system has been unusual from the start.

Livingston Parish Sheriff’s spokesperson Lori Steele says teams are surveying the wind damage from what is believed to be a tornado outbreak in various areas of the parish.

Cut 10 (10) “…that’s near Taylor.”

Some areas that saw flooding in 2016 are also experiencing issues today.  Steele discourages residents from sightseeing as many roads are impassable due to water and fallen trees.

South Louisiana was swamped today with a severe weather system creating localized flooding and even tornadoes. State climatologist Barry Keim says the system dumped dangerous amounts of water on some communities…

Cut 3 (11) “…region.”

Severe weather impacting southeast Louisiana has produced road flooding and reports of a tornado outbreak.  East Baton Rouge Parish Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome says the flood waters resulted in one death, adding the heaviest rains came today during rush hour traffic.

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37-year-old William Johnson died in Baton Rouge when his car flooded today.

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Political analyst Clancy DuBos says Governor Edwards has terrific momentum heading into the fall governor’s election after a successful legislative session. Dubos says the 1,000-dollar teacher pay raise, the 39 million in new education spending, and tens of millions of dollars in new infrastructure funds for New Orleans may win Edwards a second term.

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New Orleans will get a 50-million-dollar funding injection, with an additional 27 million a year from redirected revenue generated by the hospitality industry.

Two of the biggest names in sports, Peyton Manning and Les Miles, are among the eleven that will be inducted this weekend into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in Natchitoches. Former LSU baseball coach and A-D  Skip Bertman hired Miles after Nick Saban left for the Miami Dolphins

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Severe weather in south Louisiana this morning left one person dead, numerous roads under water and knocked out power for thousands…
voicer 2 (32) “…I’m Kevin Barnhart”

State Climatologist Barry Keim says the high amount of rainfall was more than initially predicted, so how did it happen…
cut 4 (11) “…moisture”

Political analyst Clancy Dubos says the 2019 legislative session was a good one for the governor, because he was able to increase funding for public education, including a one-thousand dollar pay raise for teachers. Edwards’ Republican opponents have indicated they plan on continuing to slam the Governor over tax increases he pushed in his first term, but DuBos says voters seem to be aware that those increases were needed to fix the budget chaos left by the previous administration…
Cut 8 (08) “…administration.”

Some huge names will be inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame on Saturday in Natchitoches. Super Bowl winning quarterback Peyton Manning, former LSU football Coach Les Miles and former La Tech quarterback Matt Dunigan will also be enshrined. CEO of the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Ronnie Rantz says Dunigan is a 2006 Canadian Football League Hall of Fame inductee
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The induction ceremonies can be seen live on C-S-T on Saturday night.

A political analyst says Governor Edwards is sitting pretty in the Governor’s race after racking up some big wins in the Legislative session…
Cut 1 (30) “I’m Matt Doyle”

Legislators have until 6 o’ clock tonight to finish their work for the 2019 session. They have to pass a budget, but there are no contentious battles there. There are still discussions occurring behind closed doors regarding fantasy sports tax and regulation bills and whether they should include sports betting legislation.

It’s been a wild weather day across south Louisiana. Heavy rainfall fell this morning in southwest Louisiana and it arrived just in time for the morning commute in Baton Rouge. The system has also spawned a few suspected tornadoes. Livingston Parish Sheriff’s office spokesperson Lori Steele says they have teams surveying the wind damage…
cut 10 (10) “…that’s near Taylor”
Officials say one person died in Baton Rouge when their car was submerged by flood water.

State Climatologist Barry Keim says another inch of rain could fall tomorrow…
cut 5 (08) “…flash flooding”

The Army Corps of Engineers has canceled Sunday’s planned opening of the Morganza Spillway. A new date has not been set, increasing the possibility that a portion of the Mississippi River will not have to be diverted into the floodway.

East Baton Rouge Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome confirms that one person died today when flood waters from a severe storm overtook the victim’s vehicle. Broome says a torrential downpour left many streets flooded during the morning rush hour…
cut 9 (09) “….one hour time frame”
A possible tornado also flipped over cars at Baton Rouge General Hospital.

State Climatologist Barry Keim says heavy downpours have been recorded across south Louisiana and it was more than anticipated….
cut 4 (11) “….moisture”
The worst of the severe weather seems to be over today, but another round of heavy rainfall is expected for tomorrow.

The Army Corps of Engineers has canceled plans to open the Morganza Spillway and no new date has been set.

The severe weather that rolled south Louisiana produced several suspected tornadoes. Livingston Sheriff’s office spokesperson Lori Steele says their parish has received a lot of wind damage…
cut 11 (10) “…blocking that roadway”
Entergy also reports thousands of people are without power as a result of the storm damage.

In Natchitoches, former LSU coach Les Miles and New Orleans born NFL great Peyton Manning will be among the 11 inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame on Saturday. CEO of the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Foundation Ronnie Rantz says the most deserving member of this class is a Danielle Scott, who is a five-time USA Olympic Volleyball Standout and won two medals
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South Louisiana is getting swamped today with a severe weather system creating localized flooding and even tornadoes across the region. State climatologist Barry Keim says the system is working it’s way across Louisiana, running west to east, and has already dumped dangerous amounts of water on some communities…

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One person died from the event in Baton Rouge when their car flooded.

Political analyst Clancy DuBos says Governor Edwards has terrific momentum heading into the fall governor’s election after a successful legislative session. But Edwards is taking some hits from his left flank as many pro-choice Democrats fume over his signing of one of the nation’s most restrictive abortion bans. DuBos suspects those voters will still turn out for the Democrat.

Cut 7 (12) “….Edwards”

Edwards Is running against Republicans Eddie Rispone and Congressman Ralph Abraham.

Two of the biggest names in sports, Peyton Manning and Les Miles, are among the eleven that will be inducted this weekend into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in Natchitoches. Former LSU baseball coach and A-D  Skip Bertman hired Miles after Nick Saban left for the Miami Dolphins

Cut 12 (12)   “…antytime.”

Miles won 77-percent of his games while at LSU, including a national championship in 2007. Manning led the Colts and Broncos to Super Bowl victories and goes down as one of the NFL’s All-time greats.