This year’s Atlantic hurricane and tropical storm season has gotten off to an early start. 2015′s first named Sub-tropical storm Ana is now bringing an unusual threat to the east coast. State Climatologist Barry Keim says Ana lies about 170 miles south east of South Carolina and is expected to make landfall on Sunday…:
CUT 6 (09) “the gulf coast”
Hurricane season doesn’t begin until June 1st, but Keim says this May storm just had all of the right ingredients to form. He still thinks the Atlantic Hurricane season will be a quiet one.

State police say two men were killed after a head-on crash in Madison Parish. Authorities say 60-year-old Wayne Kearns of Dothan, Alabama crossed the center line and struck a truck driven by 61-year-old Charles Peller of Lake Providence. They say a third vehicle then struck Peeler’s pickup. Both Kearns and Peeler were pronounced dead. The investigation is ongoing.

New Orleans Police say an alligator on I-10 caused a fatal accident around 4 this morning. Officer Frank Robertson says a van was trying to avoid hitting the gator and slammed on his breaks before getting hit from behind by a Mitsubishi Eclipse…:
CUT 4 (03) “on the scene”
The driver of the van and a passenger in the Eclipse were transported to a local hospital with undisclosed injuries. The dead alligator was found underneath the van.

Former LSU offensive lineman La’el Collins is now a Dallas Cowboy. The Baton Rouge product signed a three-year, 1.65 million dollar guaranteed contract, after not getting drafted. NFL teams were scared to select Collins, because he was wanted for questioning about the murder of a pregnant woman.

New Orleans Police say an alligator is to blame for a fatal accident on I-10 early this morning. Officer Frank Robertson says the gator was attempting to cross the interstate at around four this morning…:
CUT 3 (04) “in the road”
Investigators says the driver of that vehicle either hit or was trying to avoid hitting the gator when he slammed on his brakes. The second vehicle then rear ended the first one. The driver of the second vehicle died on scene. The alligator died.

State Police say a woman from St. Rose is under arrest and booked with vehicular homicide for allegedly running over a bicyclist while intoxicated, then fleeing the scene. They say 55-year-old Wellman Joseph was riding his bike last night on La Highway 636-6 in St. John the Baptist Parish when he was hit. Investigators later got a call from a family member which resulted in the arrest of 29-year-old Darla Gauthreaux who is also charged with DWI and felony hit and run.

It was tax day at the House of Representatives yesterday and a package of bills that would raise 670 million dollars is headed to the Senate. That money could be used to cover the 1.6 billion dollar budget shortfall. Political analyst Bernie Pinsonat says what happened Thursday is a good start, but even with these revenue generating bills heading to the senate, there’s still a big shortfall out there…:
CUT 15 (09) “and universities”
The bills face an uncertain future in the Senate.

Louisiana Tech men’s basketball coach Michael White has accepted the head coaching job at the University of Florida. In White’s four years leading the Bulldogs, he accumulated a 101-40 record. “Bleed Tech Blue” Publisher Jonathan Ford says White left a positive legacy at Tech…:
CUT 9 (11)”that’s their goal”
Tech says they are immediately searching for a replacement.

Lawmakers approved a bill that would put a $200 million dollar cap on tax incentives for the movie industry but some thought it should be lower. There was an amendment on the measure that would have lowered the cap to $150 million but Metairie Representative Joe Lopinto opposed saying they don’t want to risk the movie industry leaving the state and taking the jobs with it…:
CUT 10 (10) “of Louisiana”
The legislation now heads to the Senate.

More people go out for Mother’s Day weekend than any other of the year. Erika Burns with the Louisiana Restaurant Association says while things tend to slow down for the restaurant industry after this weekend and over summer, people in Louisiana have a large appetite for going out to eat…:
CUT 13 (08) “summer months”

LSU Police arrest two men for carrying guns on the levee in the gun-free zone near campus. They say 28-year-old Jonathan Klein of Baton Rouge and 45-year-old Andrew Watts were dressed in military attire and carrying semi automatic rifles. Cops say they were within 1000 feet of campus and booked for Violation of the state law Firearm Free Zone. The matter is under investigation.

Former LSU offensive lineman La’el Collins goes from undrafted to a three-year guaranteed contract with the Dallas Cowboys. Jeff Palermo has the story…:
CUT 3 (29) “reporting”

The House approved a measure that would limit the amount of credits issued as part of the film tax program to $200 million dollars despite objections from lawmakers who thought the cap should be lower…

cut 2 (30) “reporting”
State Police say two men are dead after a head-on crash in Madison Parish. Authorities say 60-year-old Wayne Kearns of Dothan, Alabama crossed the center line and struck a truck driven by 61-year-old Charles Peeler of Lake Providence. They say a third vehicle then struck Peeler’s pickup. Both Kearns and Peeler were pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the third vehicle was not injured. The investigation is ongoing.

The state House advances a package of bills to the Senate that would generate 670-million dollars that can be used to cover a one-point-six billion dollar deficit. Political Analyst Bernie Pinsonat says more work needs to be done by lawwmakers to solve this budget crisis….

cut 14 (09) “and universities”

The legislation heading to the senate raises the tax on cigarettes and scales back tax programs.

Baseball Hall-of-Famer Hank Aaron will be bestowed with a Doctor of Humane Letters this morning during Grambling State University’s Spring Commencement. In Aaron’s 23-year Major League career, he hit 755 home runs, a Major League record that stood for over 30 years. John Rosenthal, a university Vice President, says Aaron is a great humanitarian, businessman, and an excellent role model…

cut 6 (09) “Grambling State University”

The state House advances a number of bills to the Senate that would raise 670-million dollars that could help cover a one-point-six billion dollar shortfall. Political Analyst Bernie Pinsonat says lawmakers have until the last day of the session on June 11th to figure it out..

cut 16 (07) “Russian Roulette”

These bills face an uncertain future in the Senate and may get vetoed by the governor if they make it through the legislative process.

The House approves a measure that would cap the amount of credits issued as part of the film tax program to $200 million dollars despite objections from lawmakers who thought the cap should be lower. Alexandria Representative Lance Harris doesn’t think the lower cap is too much to ask of an industry that’s been thriving here since 2002 when there are other areas of the state that are struggling…

Cut 8 (09) “but two hours a day”

The measure now goes to the Senate.

State Police say a two-vehicle crash in Vermillion Parish has taken the life of an Erath man. They say 82-year-old Whitney Walker was hit on the driver’s side of his vehicle when he passed through an intersection. Authorities say Walker did stop at the intersection, but for unknown reasons moved forward causing the crash with a truck. Walker was pronounced dead at a local hospital. Three others were injured in the wreck.

Erika Burns with the Louisiana Restaurant Association says Mother’s Day itself is the most popular day of the year for going out in the United States. Burns says it will probably be impossible to get a nice reservation this late in the game, but you can try your luck at any spot that doesn’t have a list…:

cut 12 (12) “as usual”

She says people go out to eat at least one night during Mother’s Day weekend, more than any other weekend of the year.

Despite objections from lawmakers who thought the cap should be lower, the state House approved a measure that would limit the amount of credits issued as part of the film tax program to $200 million dollars. New Orleans Representative Jeff Arnold opposed lowering the limit saying that it could lead to the state losing valuable business…:

cut 9 (09) “of a good list”

The bill now heads to the Senate.

The House advanced a series of bills that would raise 670-million dollars that can be used to cover a one-point-six billion dollar budget deficit. Political Analyst Bernie Pinsonat says what the House did on Thursday is a good start, but even with these revenue generating bills heading to the Senate, there’s still a big shortfall out there…

cut 15 (09) “and universities”

Pinsonat says more work needs to be done to solve this budget crisis.

Baseball great Hank Aaron will receive an honorary degree this morning during Grambling State University’s Spring Commencement. Aaron will be bestowed with a Doctor of Humane Letters, the university’s highest honor. John Rosenthal, a university Vice President, says Aaron will be honored for his work both on and off the field…

cut 5 (10) “charitable contributions”

He says this degree recognizes an individual’s contribution to the world.

People go out to eat at least one night during Mother’s Day weekend, more than any other weekend of the year. Erika Burns with the Louisiana Restaurant Association says Mother’s Day itself is the most popular day of the year for going out in the United States. She says mom gets to pick the place for brunch, lunch or dinner…:

cut 11 (06) “more casual place”

Burns says it will probably be impossible to get a nice reservation this late in the game.

The state House advances a package of bills to the Senate that would raise 670-million dollars that can be used to cover a one-point-six billion dollar shortfall. The legislation heading to the senate raises the tax on cigarettes and scales back tax programs. Political Analyst Bernie Pinsonat says more work needs to be done to solve this budget crisis….

cut 14 (09) “and universities”

Pinsonat says what the House did on Thursday is a good start.

The House approved a measure that would limit the amount of credits issued as part of the film tax program to $200 million dollars despite objections from lawmakers who thought the cap should be lower. Alexandria Representative Lance Harris tried to amend it to $150 million dollars saying that other $50 million needs to be used elsewhere…

cut 7 (11) “museums open”

There is currently no cap on the program.

Baseball Hall-of-Famer Hank Aaron will receive an honorary degree this morning during Grambling State University’s Spring Commencement. Aaron will be bestowed with a Doctor of Humane Letters. John Rosenthal, a university Vice President, says Grambling not only has a great football tradition, but a great baseball tradition as well…

cut 4 (10) “to our campus”

The Doctor of Humane Letters is the university’s highest honor. In Aaron’s 23-year Major League career, he hit 755 home runs, a Major League record that stood for over 30 years.

The state House approves several bills that will generate hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue to stave off large cuts to higher education and health care. Jeff Palermo has the story…:
CUT 2 (31) “reporting”

But even though, House members approved 670-million dollars in tax revenue generating bills, they were hoping to get above 900-million dollars. A couple of the measures that were on the agenda for Thursday, did not come up, because the votes weren’t there to pass.

Several Higher ed leaders issued statements applauding lawmakers on their commitment to the future of the state.

The House approved a measure that would limit the amount of credits issued as part of the film tax program to $200 million dollars despite objections from lawmakers who thought the cap should be lower. Alexandria Representative Lance Harris tried to amend it to $150 million dollars saying that other $50 million needs to be used elsewhere…:
CUT 7 (11) “museums open”
But the amendment failed with opponents saying the $150 million dollar cap would run the industry out of town. The bill now heads to the Senate.

Two bills that seek to control the wild hog population in Louisiana pass the House Natural Resources Committee. One of the bills would authorize a lifetime hunting license to shoot the hogs which Ouachita Parish DA Jerry Jones supports saying it would be easier on farmers…:
CUT 15 (09) “price”
The bills head to the Full House.