Louisiana is the second hungriest state in the nation. Michelle Southern reports…:

Cut 1 (30) “I’m Michelle Southern”

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This is Louisiana Craft Brewers Week, designated to commemorate beers brewed right here in the state, and the people who make it possible. Jeff Palermo reports…:

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A new report from the USDA finds there are over 41 million Americans, including 13 million children, who lived at risk of hunger in 2016. Bread for the World, a movement in the US to end hunger, broke the numbers down by state, and found that Louisiana is the second hungriest in the nation. President David Beckmann says this should be a wake-up call…:

Cut 3 (11) “or eating at all”

Beckmann said the hunger problem in the state is concentrated among African Americans where about 1 out of 3 families may run out of food for the month.

Cut 4  (07) “white families”

Beckmann said there are several ways to reverse this trend such as maintaining funding for Medicaid, SNAP, and providing tax credits for low-income families:

Cut 5  (10)  “roughly”

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Good budget news for the state has been hard to find, but we finally found some. Governor John Bel Edwards says the state ended up with a 143-million dollar surplus for the fiscal year that ended June 30th. Edwards says it’s a sign Louisiana’s economy is improving….

Cut 6 (08) “forecasts”

The Edwards administration had to close two mid-year shortfalls last year, but a higher than anticipated increase in personal income and sales tax collections helped create the surplus. The governor says the state’s constitution limits how the surplus money can be used…

Cut 7 (10)  “debt”

Because of limits on how the surplus money can be spent, it can not be used to help the state close an anticipated one-billion dollar budget gap next fiscal year. Edwards says he’s having positive meetings with legislators and business leaders over how the state can replace the loss of temporary taxes that expire in July….

Cut 8 (12) “many decades”

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This is Louisiana Craft Brewers Week, designated to commemorate beers brewed right here in the state, and the people who make it possible. Cary Koch (COKE), Executive Director of the Louisiana Craft Brewers Guild, says when this designation was made by the State Legislature in 2013, there were just 7 breweries that took part, and three brewpubs…:

Cut 9 (10)  “this industry”

LACBW events include tap takeovers, samplings of cask ales, special beer releases, and opportunities to meet the brewers. Koch says this week is about giving back to Louisiana Craft Beer, and you can log on to la-beer.org to find a brewery near you…:

Cut 10 (12) “far away”

Koch says Louisiana has over 30 breweries and brew pubs — and establishments in every corner of the state are opening up their taps and shevles to carry these locally made beers. He says these brewers make it a priority to use as many Louisiana-made products as possible…:

Cut 11 (08) “so heavily”

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There is a tragic story out of Denham Springs. Police say a 5-year-old child was run over and killed in the street moments after leaving an ice cream truck. Amber Fairburn with Denham Springs PD says officers were dispatched Wednesday evening…:

Cut 12 (09) “to Ochsner” 

No charges are filed in the incident. Fairburn says the child was pronounced dead at a local hospital. She says the driver of the vehicle indicated he did not see the little boy…:

Cut 13 (09) “Toyota Tundra”

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An off-duty Slidell Police Lieutenant was killed last night in a motorcycle accident on Brownswitch Road. Trooper Dustin Dwight says a 29-year-old Gina Marie Groglio of Pearl River was attempting to make a left hand turn into a private drive when she struck the motorcycle driven by 52-year-old Ray Dupuy

Cut 14 (09) “didn’t see”

Dupuy served on the Slidell Police Department for over two decades. Impairment is not suspected to be a contributing factor in the crash, but Dwight says Groglio was cited for improper turning…

Cut 15 (12) “DOT helmet”

Governor John Bel Edwards confirmed on his monthly call in radio show that Amazon is set to build a distribution center in Louisiana. Michael Farrar reports…:

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A report by the Fordham Institute finds public school teachers are absent much more than charter school educators. Emelie Gunn gets reaction from a teacher’s union.

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LSU’s star running back will not play on Saturday night against Syracuse. Jeff Palermo has more…

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Governor John Bel Edwards confirmed on his monthly call in radio show that Amazon is set to build a distribution center somewhere in Louisiana, but details are limited at the time. He says either way, it’s great news that the online retail giant is bringing a part of its operation to the state…:

Cut 4  (08) “from Amazon”

Other states report a single Amazon distribution center has the potential to create hundreds of jobs. Edwards says he doesn’t know where the distribution center will be located, because there is still more than one site under consideration. He says, once it happens, it will be great for brick and mortar retailers as well…:

Cut 5  (10)  “sales tax”

The state has also said they are very interested in being the home of the second Amazon headquarters which the company said would bring an investment of $5 billion dollars and 50,000 jobs. Edwards says the state is still working with Amazon in order to finalize the site selection…:

Cut 6 (07) “to select”

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A Fordham Institute study finds 28-percent of public school teachers missed more than 10 days of work compared to charter school teachers at 10-percent. But Louisiana Federation of Teachers spokesperson Les Landon says Fordham skews data to show public education isn’t doing well. He says the report also claims generous collective bargaining agreements lead to an increase in teacher absences…

Cut 7 (11)  “arguement”

Landon says teachers in charter schools are often much younger than traditional public school teachers. He also says they are extremely mobile, as many educators in charter schools come from the Teach for America Program.

Cut 8 (10) “spouses”

Landon says teachers are entitled to 10 sick days according to state law. He says traditional public school educators and charter schools teachers are not comparable.

Cut 9 (08)  “situation”

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After a long wait, the car-sharing service, Uber, is finally available in Monroe, West Monroe and areas governed by Ouachita Parish. Monroe Mayor Jamie Mayo says his office has spent the last six months working on a contract with Uber and he knows the city is excited it’s finally official…

Cut 10 (08) “with em”

Mayo says he’s also hoping to work out a deal with Lyft as well. Mayo says ride-sharing services are needed because they have many visitors coming into the city, because of businesses like CenturyLink, Chase, Advantage and Gardner Denver Thomas

Cut 11 (07) “accommodate them”

Mayo says he knows Uber has already signed up a lot of drivers who are looking to make some extra money driving people around town. The mayor thanks the city council and the city attorney’s office for helping to make Uber a reality in Monroe…

Cut 12 (08) “our citizens “

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Louisiana Tech University has set an enrollment record for this fall as nearly 13-thousand students are taking classes this fall, which is 17-percent increase since the fall of 2013. Jim King is the Vice President for Student Advancement…

Cut 13 (09) “academically prepared”

King says the average ACT score of 24.71 for first-time freshmen is also a university record….

Cut 14 (09) “have em”

King says they’ve been able to boost enrollment at Louisiana Tech, despite state budget cuts. He says when you are listed on U.S. News and World Report’s 2018 Best Colleges list, it helps attracts students to your school….

Cut 15 (06) “come up here”

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LSU Coach Ed Orgeron says star running back Derrius Guice will not play in Saturday’s home game against Syracuse. Guice reportedly has a knee injury. Tiger Rag Associate Editor James Moran believes LSU is being cautious with its best offensive player. Moran says this gives senior Darrell Williams a chance to start…

Cut 16  (15)  “of carries”

There is some positive injury news. Orgeron says starting defensive end Rashard Lawerence should play against the Orange. Moran says the former Neville star’s return to the field is critical…

Cut 17 (16)  “thin at”

It’s rare that an LSU football team loses by 30 points. Moran expects the Tigers to bounce back this Saturday and they performed well last season after losses with Orgeron at the helm….

Cut 18 (14) “as a coach”