A group of 14 bipartisan senators have sent a letter to Governor Edwards urging him to call a special session this month, so legislators can solve the billion dollar shortfall the state faces on July 1st. Port Allen Senator Rick Ward says solving the fiscal cliff now will make it easier for legislators to pass a budget in June…
cut 4 (08) “….long way”
Governor Edwards says he’s waiting to hear from House leadership on a final list of tax bills they could support in a special session.

President Trump has asked Congress to pass a one-point-five-trillion-dollar infrastructure funding bill. But will Louisiana see any of those dollars? State Transportation Secretary Shawn Wilson says Louisiana doesn’t have enough transportation money to match what the federal government might be willing to offer…
Cut 30 (09) “those dollars.”
Wilson has pushed for a higher state gasoline tax.

Some workers have bigger checks as a result of the federal tax reform bill approved by Congress. Sanders Offner owns Crescent Payroll Solutions in Metairie and says their phones have been off the hook with clients calling, asking why their employees are making more money. He says once their client is aware of the tax changes, everyone is happy…
Cut 9 (08) “in itself.”
He says those who didn’t see bigger checks in January because of the tax changes, can make note of that when they file their taxes next year.

St. Mary Parish Sheriff Scott Anslum says he’s fired Deputy Dustin Crabree who was arrested over the weekend and charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated. Crabreee was off-duty and in a private vehicle. Police say a child was inside the vehicle.

Several state senators are urging Governor John Bel Edwards to call a special session this month to fix a one-billion dollar revenue shortfall for next fiscal year. Edwards is waiting on House Republicans to get behind tax bills to make up the shortfall. Port Allen Senator Rick Ward says for legislators to agree on a plan, they need to be at the State Capitol…
Cut 3 (11) “of happening.”
Edwards says he’s made progress with House leadership on proposals to solve the fiscal cliff, but not enough to call a special session just yet.

Workers are seeing a difference in their paychecks. The federal tax overhaul legislation has kicked in, giving the average worker, according to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center, an additional one-point-six-percent more in take home pay. Co-owner of Metairie based Crescent Payroll Solutions Sanders Offner says…
Cut 7 (10) “their paychecks.”
Peninsula Pacific says they are looking at moving the DiamondJacks Casino in Bossier City to Tangipahoa Parish near the Robert exit on I-12. Before considering a move, Manager Brent Stevens says he’d like to get some input from the Tangipahoa community.
Cut 13 (11) “this case.”
Stevens says the public can weigh in at community-conversations-la-dot-com. He says the other option is to spend over 100-million dollars to upgrade DiamondJacks in Bossier City.

Many Entergy customers are looking at higher than normal electricity bills, because of higher usage during the January cold snap. Spokesperson Shelia Pounders says they will work with customers on a payment plan. Pounders also recommends levelized billing, which allows customers to pay about the same amount for electricty every month…
Cut 29 (08) “customers like.”

Tangipahoa Parish could be in line to get a casino, Matt Doyle talked to the casino owner about the possibility.

Cut 3 (30) “I’m Matt Doyle”

Greg Hilburn with the USA TODAY Network reports Governor John Bel Edwards plans to call for a special session to start February 19^th.  He is expected to issue the official call this Friday according to spokesman Richard Carbo.   The state is facing a one-billion-dollar shortfall in the upcoming budget after temporary taxes expire June 30^th.  The Governor wants to create permanent taxes while GOP members say excessive spending has to stop.

Entergy customers are shocked by seeing an increase in the normal storm restoration fee on this months’ bills.  The money is used in the replacement of power lines and poles.  Customer service director Sheila Pounders says customers are still paying for damage done by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita…

Cut 8 (10) “from that.”

She adds the increase in the fee is directly related to a customer’s energy usage, which in most cases went up due to the extreme cold weather.

Louisiana could be in line for getting federal funding to help with transportation infrastructure, but may miss out on it if the state doesn’t have enough matching state transportation dollars.  There are several projects the state would like to do, but without money to match the federal funds, DOTD Secretary Shawn Wilson says the money may float on by…

CUT 11 (11)  “Our state”

The owners of Diamondjacks Casino in Bossier City are considering whether to invest over 100-million dollars in their current facility or build a new casino near I-12 in Tangipahoa Parish…
cut 15 (09) “…exciting place”
That’s Peninsula Pacific Manager Brent Stevens, who says the public can weigh in by going to Community Conversations-la-dot-com.

LSU Professor Tammy Dugas has developed a new treatment for heart disease using antioxidants from red wine. Research has indicated that having a glass of red wine could be good for your heart, so Dugas has developed a stent that releases red wine antioxidants slowly over time to prevent blood clotting…
Cut 4 (09) “an artery”
Dugas says she’s also working on a baloon coasted with the same compunds to treat flood flow blockages throughout the body.

Louisiana’s Transportation Secretary is worried the state may miss out if Congress approves a massive infrastructure funding bill.
Voicer 2 (32) “I’m Kelley Ray.”

Because of the severe influenza season, the state health department will offer free flu vaccines at parish health units across the state until next Monday. L-D-H vaccinated about three-thousand people when they offered free flu shots last Wednesday. Hospitals continue to report large numbers of sick patients due flu and flu-like symptoms.

Los Angeles-based Peninsula Pacific says they are looking at moving the DiamondJacks Casino in Bossier City to Tangipahoa Parish near the Robert exit on I-12. Before considering a move, Manager Brent Stevens says he’d like to get some input from the Tangipahoa community.
Cut 13 (11) “this case.”
Stevens says the public can weigh in at community-conversations-la-dot-com. He says the other option they are considering is spending over 100-million dollars to upgrade DiamondJacks in Bossier City.

A group of bipartisan state senators is urging Governor Edwards to call a special session this month to approve legislation to fix a one-billion dollar revenue shortfall for next fiscal year. Edwards is waiting to hear from House Republicans on what tax proposals they will consider.

Many Entergy Louisiana customers have suffered sticker shock after seeing their most recent bill, following the extreme cold snap in January. For many, the storm restoration fee went up. Customer Service Director Sheila Pounders explains…
Cut 7 (11) “recovery cost.”
Pounders says Entergy is willing to work with customers if they can’t pay their bill.

LSU Professor Tammy Dugas has developed a stent that releases red wine antioxidants to treat heart disease. Dugas says the red wine can prevent excess tissue from building up and blood vessels from narrowing. Dugas explains how researchers learned red wine can benefit the heart….
cut 6 (11) “….that benefit”

The owners of DiamondJacks casino in Bossier City is considering whether to upgrade the riverboat in northwest Louisiana or move it to Tangipahoa Parish near the Robert exit off of I-12. Peninsula Pacific Manager Brent Stevens….
cut 14 (05) “…number of years”
Moving a gaming license requires voter approval in Tangipahoa and the state legislature along with the Louisiana Gaming Control Board would also have to approve it.

President Donald Trump is pushing Congress to pass a massive infrastructure funding bill. But state Transportation Secretary Shawn Wilson is not sure it will help Louisiana, because it will take a large sum of money from the states to receive federal matching dollars under the President’s plan…
cut 12 (09) “…these dollars”

Many Entergy customers are having to pay a very high utility bill from January, because it took a lot more energy to keep their homes warm. Customers may notice their storm restoration fee which dates back to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita also went up. Entergy spokesperson Shelia Pounders says the storm restoration fee goes up and down depending on monthly usage…
cut 8 (10) “….from that”

LSU health professor Tammy Dugas is using antioxidant compounds found in red wine to treat heart disease. Dugas is developing a new stent that releases red wine antioxidants slowly over time to prevent blood clotting and inflamation. Dugas says its posssible you could get same effects by ingesting certain supplements, but…
cut 5 (11) “…red wine”

President Trump has asked Congress to pass a one-point-five-trillion-dollar infrastructure funding bill. But will Louisiana see any of those dollars? State Transportation Secretary Shawn Wilson says Louisiana doesn’t have enough transportation dollars to match what the federal government might be willing to offer…
Cut 10 (09) “those dollars.”
Wilson has pushed for a higher state gasoline tax.

Many Entergy customers are looking at higher than normal electricity bills. Usage was increased due to the cold weather in January. Spokesperson Shelia Pounders says they will work with customers on a payment plan. Ponders also recommends a levelized billing program, which allows customers to pay about the same amount for electricty every month…
Cut 9 (08) “customers like.”

LSU scientists are working on a program that treats heart disease using antioxidants derived from red wine. Matt Doyle has the story.
Voicer 1 (30) “I’m Matt Doyle”

LSU scientists are working on a program that treats heart disease using antioxidants derived from red wine. Matt Doyle has the story.

Cut 1 (30) “I’m Matt Doyle”

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Louisiana’s Transportation Secretary is worried Louisiana may miss out if Congress approves a massive infrastructure funding bill.  Kelley Ray has more…

Cut 2 (32) “I’m Kelley Ray.”

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Tangipahoa Parish could be in line to get a casino, Matt Doyle talked to the casino owner about the possibility.

Cut 3 (30) “I’m Matt Doyle”

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The LSU Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences has developed a new treatment for heart disease using antioxidants from red wine. Research has indicated that having a glass of red wine could be good for your heart, but with Professor Tammy Dugas’s program, even the sober can get those benefits.

Cut 4  (09) “an artery” 

Dugas developed a stent that can be inserted into arteries that releases antioxidants directly into problem areas.

For those looking to get the heart health benefits without a stent, or a buzz, resveratrol and quercetin supplements are available. But, Dugas says you’ll have to chew a lot of tablets to get the same benefits.

Cut 5  (11)  “red wine”

Dugas says the red wine health studies began when researchers noticed an interesting phenomenon in wine country.

Cut 6 (11)  “that benefit”

Experts have recommend having two glasses a day to start noticing the heart health benefits.

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Many Entergy Louisiana customers have suffered sticker shock after seeing their most recent bill, following the extreme cold snap in late December and January.  For many, the normal storm restoration fee went up.  But the fee has nothing to do with the recent cold weather as Customer Service Director Sheila Pounders explains…

Cut 7 (11)  “recovery cost.”

Pounders says Entergy does have a rainy day fund, but when a catastrophe hits, it is spent quickly for the replacement of power lines and poles.  She says the Public Service Commission approved a rate increase to recover those funds and customers are still paying for damage done by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita…

Cut 8 (10) “from that.”

Entergy says they are working with customers to set up payment arrangements if they are having problems paying for their last bill. Pounders says their levelized billing program is the one way for a customer to pay their utility bill easier…

Cut 9 (09)  “customers like.”

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President Trump has asked Congress to pass a one-point-five-trillion-dollar infrastructure funding bill.  But will Louisiana see any of those dollars if it passes? State Transportation Secretary Shawn Wilson is worried because Louisiana doesn’t have enough state transportation dollars to match what the federal government might be willing to offer…

Cut 10 (09) “those dollars.”

The state currently has a backlog of 13-billion-dollars in infrastructure repairs and a wish list of projects, including a Mississippi River bridge in Baton Rouge.  Wilson says the current state gas tax of 20 cents per gallon makes it difficult to get new projects started even with the help of the federal government…

Cut 11 (11) “our state.”

The number of reported flu cases in Louisiana has dropped.  Jeff Palermo spoke with flu bug expert Dr. Frank Welch…

Cut 1 (30) “I’m Jeff Palermo.”

Shreveport police say a Good Samaritan trying to help in an accident on I-20 was killed yesterday afternoon.  A major accident had occurred in the westbound lanes between a tractor trailer and a pickup truck.   The pedestrian stopped to help, attempting to cross both eastbound lanes of traffic when he was struck and killed.   The victims in the initial accident were taken to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

One man died and another hospitalized after a Mardi Gras parade route shooting in Jeanerette on Sunday. Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office spokesman Major Wendell Raborn says the shooting occurred at the intersection of Monnot Road and Martin Luther King Drive. There are a lot of potential witnesses, but no one has come forward with any information

Cut 10 (07) “saw anything”

There is no word on the condition of the second person shot.

Two New Orleans natives, Odell Beckham Jr. and Eli Manning stole the show last night with one of the best Super Bowl ads in years. The two Isidore Newman grads recreated an iconic moment from the classic Dirty Dancing film, high lift and all. Newman head coach Nelson Stewart says his phone blew up seconds after it aired…

Cut 13 (09) “years ago.”