Over 50,000 SWEPCO customers in Louisiana are still without power after Thursday’s severe weather. Brooke Thorington has more.
Cut 1 (27) “…I’m Brooke Thorington.”
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The Louisiana Senate Health and Welfare Committee will meet today to discuss the $100 million cut to the Department of Health in the final hours of the legislative session. Teiko Foxx has the story…
Cut 2 (31) “…I’m Teiko Foxx.”
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House Speaker Clay Schexnayder fires back at critics of his leadership in the recent session, and the handling of the state budget. More from Brooke Thorington…:
Cut 3 (29) “….I’m Brooke Thorington.”
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Approximately 3,000 workers have been mobilized in North Louisiana to restore power for the over 50,000 SWEPCO customers who’ve been without since Thursday. It could be as late as the weekend before power is restored in the Shreveport area. Bossier City spokesperson Louis Johnson says the storm was unprecedented with straight-line winds of up to 90 miles per hour…
Cut 4 (09) “…one time.’”
Johnson says they are hopeful the majority of residents will have power restored by Thursday.
And with Heat Advisories in effect and the lengthy outage, Johnson says the city is providing cooling stations primarily for vulnerable individuals; the elderly, and those with health conditions.
Cut 5 (08) “…the day.”
And to add insult to injury, Johnson says every hotel in a 30-mile radius is completely booked. He says the hotels are also having to accommodate line workers.
Cut 6 (08) “…and availability.”
Johnson encourages residents to be as patient as possible. Among the damage from the storms that moved through the southeast last Thursday, Johnson says north Louisiana was among the hardest hit.
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Senate Committee on Health and Welfare will meet today to discuss what impact a $100 million reduction in funding will have on the Louisiana Department of Health. The reduction occurred as the House and Senate finalized a budget in the final hours of the legislative session. Governor John Bel Edwards says revenue was available so many lawmakers were blindsided by the cut.
Cut 7 (13) “…of Health.”
Lawmakers complained they only had 20 minutes to review the final budget before they were asked to vote to approve it. A healthcare reduction of that size had not been discussed for several weeks. AARP Director of Advocacy Andrew Muhl hopes Edwards will restore provider rates and waiver slots for adults with disabilities and seniors.
Cut 8 (13) “…they’re waiting.’”
The $100 million cut would equal around $400-$500 million because the state uses its health care money to draw down more money from the federal government. Edwards may use his line-item veto power to restore the 100 million dollars to LDH.
Cut 9 (12) “…do that”
Edwards would have to take money from other portions of the spending plan to balance the budget.
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House Speaker Clay Schexnayder fires back at critics of his handling of last-minute state budget negotiations in the recent legislative session. The Ascension Parish representative has drawn fire for pushing through a budget bill in the closing minutes; one that lacked desired funding for teacher pay raises, the Department of Health and more. Schexnayder says he stands by what came out of the session…:
Cut 10 (10) “…projects in it.”
He points to effectively investing surplus cash in needed road and bridge projects, replenishing the state’s so-called Rainy Day Fund, and making substantial reductions in state retirement system debt. Some of Schexnayder’s more vocal critics say there was little or no communication on budget matters between members and the Speaker’s office. Schexnayder rejects that idea…:
Cut 11 (11) “…is crazy.”
Schexnayder is being criticized for his part in raising the state’s spending cap; something conservatives wanted to avoid at all costs. Some feel that’s not responsible, and call Schexnayder on it. As for the accusations of waiting until the last minute to pass a budget bill, Schexnayder blames fellow lawmakers who resisted voting up a procedural rules suspension that would have hastened the process…:
Cut 12 (07) “…and dissect it.”
Schexnayder calls his naysayers at the Capitol “a small group of blockers, instead of helpers.” This was Schexnayder’s last session as House Speaker, as he is term-limited. He is running for Secretary of State this fall.
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About half of Natchitoches Parish lost power after straight-line winds and thunderstorms moved through the area Thursday. Assistant Director of the Office of Preparedness in Natchitoches Parish Mary Jones says only a handful of customers remain in the dark. She says fortunately the water systems have not gone down as a result of the power outages.
Cut 13 (10) “…have power.”
Jones says the outages are scattered across the parish and they haven’t had any requests to open cooling stations.
And with a tropical storm in the Atlantic, Jones says last week’s storms and hurricane season serve as a reminder to be prepared for such emergencies in advance.
Cut 14 (11) “…prepared for.”
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Tough, tough loss for the LSU Tigers last night in the College World Series as Wake Forest rallied back from a two to nothing deficit to beat the Bayou Bengals three to two. LSU failed to score with a runner at third base and no outs in the eighth inning, while the Demon Deacons pushed a run across in the bottom of the eighth and held on for the one run win. Tigers Coach Jay Johnson…
Cut 15 (09) “…go tomorrow.”
LSU plays Tennessee tonight at 6 PM in an elimination game. First baseman Tre Morgan says they’ll be ready….
Cut 16 (16) “…together.”
In order to get to the championship series, LSU will have to win tonight and then beat Wake Forest twice. Johnson says it can be done and he’s seen it first hand, once in 2016 and then in 2017 by LSU…
Cut 17 (22) “…good spot”
The play of the game happened in the eight inning. Cade Beloso hit a weak grounder to Wake Forest star third baseman Brock Wilken who threw a one-hopper to the catcher Bennett Lee who tagged out Tre Morgan trying to score the go-ahead run. Morgan could have stayed at third, because there were no outs, but Johnson says Tre made the right decision
Cut 18 (22) “…that tonight.”