The House appropriations committee approves a plan that would allow the state to draw down federal money that can be used to expand Medicaid coverage. House speaker Chuck Kleckley says the plan involves hospitals putting their financial resources together so the state can draw down federal dollars that can be used to provide health care to low income individuals…:
CUT 3 (07) “federal dollars”
Governor Bobby Jindal opposes Medicaid expansion, calling it a bad deal for the state. But Kleckley says this plan could save up to $200 million for the state’s budget.

Planned Parenthood supporters from across the state are at the Capitol today to rally in support of reproductive heath care access in Louisiana. Spokeswoman Raegan Carter says the plan is to talk to lawmakers about the importance of women having access to high quality healthcare they provide in Louisiana…:
cut 13 (09) “citizens”
Carter believes the Jindal administration has made it clear they plan to launch an attack on healthcare needs.

Former LSU Tiger La’el Collins is at State Police headquarters interviewing with Baton Rouge detectives about the murder of a pregnant woman it’s believed he had a romantic relationship with at one time. Brittany Mills was shot and killed at her apartment on April 24th. Cops say there are no suspects in Mills’ killing and no arrests have been made.

Three weeks are in the books for the current legislative session and many say lawmakers are still not close to finding a solution to the state’s $1.6 billion dollar budget shortfall. Scott Carwile reports…:
CUT 2 (27) “reporting”

Week four of the legislative session is underway and many say lawmakers are still far from coming up with a solution to the state’s $1.6 billion dollar budget shortfall. Jeremy Alford of Lapolitics-dot-com says there is just as much uncertainty today as there was in January…:
cut 10 (10) “insists upon”
He predicts a plan will start to take shape near the end of the session.

Former LSU offensive lineman La’el Collins is meeting with Baton Rouge Police Detectives at this hour with his attorney. Cops say they want to talk to Collins about the murder of a pregnant woman they believe he had a relationship with at one time. 29-year-old Brittney Mills was gunned down at her apartment on April 24th. Her baby was delivered but died Friday. The investigation into the murder of Mills is ongoing. Police have not made any arrests or named a suspect.

National tourism week begins today and Lt. Governor Jay Dardenne is on the road. Eric Gill has more…
CUT 1 (28) “reporting”

State Police say a single vehicle crash in Richland Parish has claimed the life of a 77-year-old man. They say Collie Hutto of Rayville’s vehicle ran off the roadway, struck a culvert, and then overturned. Hutto, who was not wearing a seat belt, was partially ejected from the vehicle. Hutto was transported to a local hospital where he later succumbed to his injuries. The investigation is ongoing.

Planned Parenthood supporters from across the state will gather at the Capitol today to support reproductive heath care access in Louisiana. Here’s Michelle Southern…

cut 3 (29) “reporting”

Baker Police arrested a 32-year-old mother of three for allegedly leaving her three children inside a vehicle for up to 45 minutes. A witness informed authorities that Tesha Cobb left the children, ages 7-years, 20-months, and 7-months, in the vehicle while she went in a store. The witness says when she returned to her vehicle, 30 to 45 minutes later, she noticed the children still inside their mother’s car. Cobb is booked on three counts of child desertion.

Many say lawmakers are still not close to finding a solution to the state’s $1.6 billion dollar budget shortfall as we enter week four of the legislative session. Jeremy Alford of Lapolitics-dot-com says legislators could go with an inventory tax repeal which business is in favor of and local governments are opposed to or make certain tax credits non-refundable which the Jindal administration is pushing but business is against…

cut 12 (10) “neutral manner”

He says there is just as much uncertainty today as there was in January.

Lt. Governor Jay Dardenne will commemorate National Tourism Week by touring the state to celebrate the tourism industry. Dardenne says New Orleans remains the state’s biggest tourism draw, particularly for international visitors. But he says the other parts of the state are seeing big increases tourism, particularly in north Louisiana…

cut 6 (09) “of the state”

The tour runs through Saturday.

Three weeks are in the books for the current legislative session and many say lawmakers are still not close to finding a solution to the state’s $1.6 billion dollar budget deficit. Scott Carwile reports…

cut 2 (27) “reporting”

State Police say a single vehicle crash in Richland Parish has claimed the life of a 77-year-old man. They say Collie Hutto of Rayville’s vehicle ran off the roadway, struck a culvert, and then overturned. Hutto, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was partially ejected from the vehicle. Hutto was transported to a local hospital where he later succumbed to his injuries. The investigation is ongoing.

Planned Parenthood supporters from across Louisiana will gather at the Capitol today to support reproductive heath care access in Louisiana. Spokeswoman Raegan Carter says they want the message to be clear that politics should be left out of reproductive health care and of what Planned Parenthood provides…

cut 15 (09) “those services”

Carter says the plan is to talk to elected officials about the importance of women having access to the high quality healthcare they provide in Louisiana.

Louisiana is the fifth most expensive state for car insurance, according to a recent InsuranceQuotes-dot-com study. Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon says when you combine the 15-percent of uninsured motorists on the road with the 40-percent of drivers who only have the minimum amount of insurance required, that’s not good for insurance rates…

cut 9 (11) “to be legal”

Louisiana car insurance rates are 33-percent higher than the national average.

A recent InsuranceQuotes-dot-com study shows Louisiana is the fifth most expensive state for car insurance. Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon says the biggest reason for the state’s high auto insurance rates is the state’s litigation rate…

cut 8 (11) “of the state”

They say rates in Louisiana are 33-percent higher than the national average.

Supporters of Planned Parenthood from across the state will gather at the Capitol this morning to support reproductive heath care access in Louisiana. Spokeswoman Raegan Carter says they believe families deserve access to healthcare no matter who they are or where they live…

cut 14 (08) “screenings”

Carter says basic health care rights are the foundation of freedom and opportunity for women and families.

As legislators enter the fourth week of this legislative session, many say lawmakers are still not close to finding a solution to the state’s $1.6 billion dollar budget shortfall. Jeremy Alford of Lapolitics-dot-com says it’s a misconception that Governor Bobby Jindal is not staying involved in what’s going on at the Capitol because he’s making it very clear to legislators that the budget will have to be balanced in a revenue neutral way…

cut 11 (05) “following suit”

Alford believes a plan will start to take shape about two weeks from the end of the session.

To celebrate National Tourism Week, Lt. Governor Jay Dardenne is touring the state to celebrate the tourism industry in Louisiana. Dardenne says almost 29 million people visited Louisiana last year, which is a new record, and those tourists spent over $11 billion in the state…

cut 5 (10) “visiting our state”

The tour runs through Saturday.

Three weeks are in the books for the current legislative session and many say lawmakers are still not close to finding a solution to the state’s $1.6 billion dollar budget shortfall. Jeremy Alford of Lapolitics-dot-com says there is just as much uncertainty today as there was in January…

cut 10 (10) “insists upon”

Alford predicts it’ll be 15 days out of the end of the session before any real plan starts to take shape.

This is National Tourism Week and Lt. Governor Jay Dardenne will tour the state to commemorate the event. The purpose of this trip is to celebrate the tourism industry state wide. Dardenne says every part of the state has seen increased tourism numbers…

cut 4 (11) “in Louisiana”

Stops include Lake Charles, Bossier City, Alexandria, and Lafayette.

Planned Parenthood supporters from across the state plan to gather at the Capitol this morning to support reproductive heath care access in Louisiana. Spokeswoman Raegan Carter says the plan is to talk to our elected officials about the importance of women having access to high quality healthcare they provide in Louisiana…:

cut 13 (09) “citizens”

Carter says the Jindal administration has made it clear they plan to launch a full-blown attack on the true needs of the people of Louisiana.

According to a recent InsuranceQuotes-dot-com study, Louisiana is the fifth most expensive state for car insurance. They say rates in Louisiana are 33-percent higher than the national average. Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon says high insurance premiums have been a problem in Louisiana for quite a while…

cut 7 (10) “No Pay, No Play”

That was passed in the ’90s and prohibits an uninsured driver involved in an accident from filing an insurance claim, even if they are not at fault.

The St. Landry Parish Sheriff’s Office reports that three people have been arrested in connection with the overdose death of 26-year-old Lance Gordon. Michelle Southern has more…

cut 1 (29) “reporting”

The New Orleans Saints came away with three new players in rounds two and three of the NFL Draft. In the second round, the Saints selected All-American outside linebacker Hau’oli Kikaha from the University of Washington. The Black & Gold got two selections in the third round. They selected Mountain West Conference Offensive Player of the Year quarterback Garrett Grayson from Colorado State and cornerback P.J. Williams of Florida State. The draft wraps up with rounds four through seven today.

The full Senate has approved a measure by Napoleonville Senator Troy Brown that would require public school systems to promote the online homework assistance service which is offered through state and local libraries. He says Common Core has been a big change that some schools have had success with, but others continue to struggle…

cut 8 (10) “that shortcoming”

Brown says there is a disconnect between the state’s new curriculum standards and parents and this bill seeks to fill that void.

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries announces today is Boating Education Lagniappe Day. LDWF spokesman Gabe Giffin says they will be hosting these boating education certificate events at 9 locations throughout the state. He says completion of the course will result in the student being issued a vessel operators certification card…

cut 11 (12) “navigation rules”

The full Senate has approved a measure that would require public school systems to promote the online homework assistance service which is offered through state and local libraries. The bill is by Napoleonville Senator Troy Brown who says under this proposal, schools would have to include information about the HomeworkLA-dot-org program in their handbooks…

cut 7 (10) “everyday”

The bill now moves to the House for consideration.

The St. Landry Parish Sheriff’s office arrests three in connection with a tragic drug overdose death and cover up. Lt. Clay Higgins says a woman allegedly gave some sort of drug cock tail to 26-year-old Lance Gordon who got extremely ill. He says instead of calling cops, 29-year-old Jessica Stelly brought Gordon to his house with the help of 27-year-old Stephan Godeaux and 34-year-old Gene Dunbar, who all face serious charges…

cut 4 (11) “of justice”

A federal judge in Washington has ruled the US Government is liable for some of the Hurricane Katrina flooding. A 2005 lawsuit points the blame in the direction of a now-closed Mississippi River Gulf Outlet, that has been blamed for flooding in St. Bernard Parish and New Orleans’ Lower Ninth Ward. It’s still not clear how much money the feds are on the hook for, but many observers speculate mediation will be involved. Judge Susan Braden has set a hearing for next Wednesday.

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries is hosting boating education certificate events today for Boating Education Lagniappe Day. LDWF spokesman Gabe Giffin says boating classes could last 6-8 hours so they’ve created these events to make it fun for families…

cut 10 (10) “on the water”

Giffin says anybody born after January 1, 1984 must complete a NASBLA approved boating education course and carry proof of completion.