A new world record may belong to people of a nursing home in Crowley by the end of the week.  Kevin Barnhart has the story.

Cut 1 (30)  I’m Kevin Barnhart“

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The nation’s top cornerback in the country announces his college choice today. Michael Farrar has more on Dunham High School’s Derek Stingley Junior…

Cut 2 (30) ”  I’m Michael Farrar” 

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A Louisiana winter wonderland in June?  That’s the scene in Downtown Lafayette as a holiday-themed independent film is in production in the area.  Kevin Barnhart has the story.

Cut 3 (31) “I’m Kevin Barnhart”

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A new world record may belong to a nursing home in Crowley. Elder Outreach and Team Mergist will attempt the world’s longest game of bingo with 24 hours of continuous play, starting today at Southwind Healthcare and Rehabilitation.  How did this all come together?  Michelle Veillon, marketing and design director of the nonprofit organization Elder Outreach, says this has been a decade in the making.

Cut 4  (09) “….ten years ago.”

The game gets kicked off at 3 pm and will continue on through Thursday afternoon.  Veillon says some players may even attempt to go the distance.

Cut 5  (08)  “…for the 24 hours..”

The event does fall on Summer Solstice, which is the longest day of the year.  Veillon says the event ties in with the significance on the day.

Cut 6 (13) “…the longest goodbye.”

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One of the top high school prospects in the country will decide today whether he’ll attend LSU, Florida or Texas. Cornerback Derek Stingley Junior of Dunham High School in Baton Rouge was recently ranked by Rivals.com as the nation’s top recruit for the Class of 2019. His father, Derek Stingley Senior, calls his son a freakish athlete with a will to win

Cut 7 (11)  “…that explosive.”

Derek Stingley Junior will make his decision known on Twitter at 1:30 and his post will include a video message. His Dad says he wants to attend a college where he’ll be comfortable on the football field and off…

Cut 8 (11)  “…those majors”

Derek Stingley Junior has been on LSU’s campus plenty of times and he also visited Texas and Florida outside of the football season, to get a better idea of what its like at those schools. His Dad explains why his son chose to announce his college commitment on social media, instead of having a big press conference with the hats of his favorite schools in front of him

Cut 9 (11)  “…all that.”

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LSU Student Government hosts a rally at the State Capitol today to call for full funding of TOPS and higher education. If lawmakers do not act before the end of the fiscal year on June 30^th, then students will face a 30% cut to TOPS and a $21 million dollar reduction in funding for LSU. LSU Student Government President Stewart Lockett says they want to give students a voice about their future.

Cut 10 (09)   “…as a whole”

There have been debates on funding since the beginning of the first special session in February and lawmakers recently came seven votes short of passing a sales tax bill that would have fully funded TOPS and higher education. Lockett expresses his frustration of not knowing the fate of his University.

Cut 11 (11) “…faculty and staff”

Lockett says their message for lawmakers is simple and that is to stabilize higher education and TOPS. All public university systems are looped into this rally and the turnout is expected to be high.

Cut 12 (12) “…different stories”

To learn more about potential cuts to TOPS and higher ed, visit www.lsu.edu/budget.

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A Louisiana winter wonderland in June?  That’s the scene in Downtown Lafayette as a holiday-themed independent film is in production in the area.  The movie, entitled The Christmas Cupid, is seeing the production spending a total of four months in the state, including twelve days in Lafayette.  Executive Director of Louisiana Entertainment Chris Stelly says filming in the area presents a great opportunity for the community.

Cut 13 (11)  “…real world experience.” 

The state has had a motion picture incentive program since 2002, one Stelly says other states have followed the model of.  In 2017, the program got an update.

Votes will come Wednesday in the House Ways and Means Committee on different sales tax bills. Jackson Representative Kenny Havard’s proposal would renew a half-cent of an expiring one-cent sales tax and generate 507-million dollars in revenues, which would be enough money to prevent cuts to college campuses, TOPS and public safety programs. Some Republicans prefer to renew less than a half of a penny, but Havard says it doesn’t make sense to raise taxes and also cut the budget at the same time…
cut 13 (05) “….at us”
Meanwhile, House Appropriations Committee heard from state health department officials on Tuesday. Prairieville Representative Tony Bacala says their budget has grown 56-percent over a ten-year period…..
cut 14 (05) “…control this”
The state health department is not slated for any cuts next fiscal year.

LSU Student Government will host a rally at the State Capitol Wednesday afternoon to call for full funding of TOPS and higher education. If lawmakers do not act before the end of the fiscal year on June 30th, then students will face a 30% cut to TOPS and a $21 million dollar reduction in funding for LSU. LSU Student Government President Stewart Lockett says they want to give students a voice about their future.
Cut 10 (09) “…as a whole”
Lockett says their message for lawmakers is simple and that is to stabilize higher education and TOPS. All public university systems are looped into this rally and the turnout is expected to be high.
Cut 12 (12) “…different stories”
To learn more about potential cuts to TOPS and higher ed, visit www.lsu.edu/budget.

A House committee heard testimony on tax bills during the first full day of the latest special session, but took no votes. That frustrated Jackson Representative Kenny Havard, who has authored a bill to renew a portion of the one-cent sales tax that expires June 30th
Cut 12 (05) “…thank you.”
Most of the legislative action today, took place in the House Appropriations Committee, where state health officials defended their spending, while higher ed and department of corrections discussed what budget cuts would mean to them.

The escalating trade war with China is not good news for Louisiana’s Agriculture Industry. President Trump is now threatening an additional 200-billion dollars in tariffs on Chinese goods, after China said they would place tariffs on US imports. Ag Commissioner Mike Strain says despite the negative impact to Louisiana, he understands the President’s position…
cut 8 (08) “other priorities”

The curtain call of the crawfish season is approaching. Jeff Palermo has the story…
Voicer 2 (30) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

The Southern Poverty Law Center has filed a complaint with the state’s ethics board accusing a handful of district attorneys of violating the state ethic’s laws. The Center claims D-As are hiring off-duty police officers to write traffic tickets and then treathen motorists with prosecution, unless they pay hundreds of dollars to the D-A’s office to dismiss the tickets. So far the claims are just an allegation.

On this first full day of the special session, the House Appropriations Committee heard testimony from the state health department and higher education leaders. Louisiana is facing a 500-million dollar revenue shortfall next fiscal year and many Republicans like Prairieville Representative Tony Bacala says the state can find savings within the state health department, which has seen its budget grow substantially over the last 10 years…
cut 14 (05) “….control this”
The state health department is not slated for any cuts next fiscal year.

There are over two thousand nursing programs throughout the United States, but only one can be ranked number one. That distinction belongs to Louisiana Tech University’s Division of Nursing. Chair of the program, Dr. Donna Hood, credits the latest accolade to the determination of both the faculty and students.
Cut 3 (08) “…of this program.”
The National Council of State Boards of Nursing ranks programs based on the rate at which graduates pass the licensing exam, which is 100-percent at Tech.

The escalating trade war with China is not good for Louisiana’s Agriculture Industry. Ag Commissioner Mike Strain says Louisiana has done a lot of work to open up China to rice, beef and poultry exports…
Cut 7 (10) “52-percent”
President Trump initially proposed tariffs on 50-billion dollars in Chinese imports, because of an estimated 375-billion dollar trade deficit with China. And now the Trump administration is looking at imposing tariffs on another 200-billion dollars worth of Chinese goods as the trade war worsens.

The 2018 crawfish season is coming to a close after getting off to a slow start, because of a cold January. David Savoy with the Louisiana Crawfish Famers Association says For those that may have noticed smaller than normal mudbugs this year, it was because the harvesting began a little early in the developmental process of the crawfish.
Cut 11 (12) “…pretty darn good.”

Tomorrow the House Ways and Means Committee will vote on tax bills that the governor is asking for the legislature to approve so the state is not forced to make cuts to state services. Jackson Representative Kenny Havard is seeking to renew one-half an expiring one-cent sales tax, which would generate 507-million dollars. Havard says if the state going to raise taxes, he’d rather raise enough so no cuts have to be made…
cut 13 (05) “….at us”

The escalating trade war with China is not good news for Louisiana’s Agriculture Industry. Ag Commissioner Mike Strain says the Bayou State has the largest trade suprlus with China….
cut 6 (10) “….go to China”
Soybeans are among the hundreds of U.S. products China has singled out for tariffs.

Louisiana Tech has been recognized as having the top nursing program in the country as all of their recent graduates passed the licensing exam to be a nurse. Chair of the Division of Nursing at La Tech, Doctor Donna Hood, says it’s worthy recognition and it’s great because there’s a need for nurses…
cut 5 (11) “…that’s what they do”
The curtain call of the 2018 crawfish season is approaching. David Savoy with the Louisiana Crawfish Farmers Association says there is still some harvesting, but most of the crawfish may not find their way into boiling pots this year.
cut 9 (07) “…for next year.”
Savoy says the 2018 season got off to a late start, because of a cold January, but was able to meet demand by the time Easter rolled around.

A House committee heard testimony on tax bills during the first full day of the latest special session, but took no votes. That frustrated at least one lawmaker, Jackson Representative Kenny Havard, who has authored a bill to renew a portion of the one-cent sales tax that expires June 30th
Cut 12 (05) “…thank you.”
Over in the House Appropriations Committee, the state’s Health Secretary Rebekah Gee testified in front of the panel to discuss her agency’s budget. Many Republicans say the governor’s decision to expand the Medicaid program in 2016 is costing the state way too much money. But Gee says Medicaid has led to better health care for the state’s working poor, which is a cost savings
Cut 15 (07) “….too late.”
The state health department is not slated for any cuts next fiscal year.

There are over two thousand nursing programs throughout the United States, but only one can be ranked number one. Kevin Barnhart tells us who.
Voicer 1 (30) “I’m Kevin Barnhart”

The Southern Poverty Law Center is asking the state’s ethics board to investigate allegations of Louisiana district attorneys padding their budgets by using off-duty police officers to write traffic tickets that can eventually be dismissed for 175-dollar fee. The law center says it’s against the state’s ethics code for D-As to profit off the threat of prosecution.

There are over two thousand nursing programs throughout the United States, but only one can be ranked number one.  That distinction now belongs to Louisiana Tech University’s Division of Nursing.  During the 2017-18 academic year, 100 percent of the Louisiana Tech program passed the licensing exam.  What does it take to be a nurse?  Chair of the program Dr. Donna Hood explains the process.

Cut 4  (11) “…a registered nurse.”

The escalating trade war with China is not good news for Louisiana’s Agriculture Industry.  President Trump initially proposed tariffs on 50-billion dollars in Chinese imports, because of an estimated 375-billion dollar trade deficit with China. And now the Trump administration is looking at imposing tariffs on another 200-billion dollars worth of Chinese goods as the trade dispute worsens. Ag Commissioner Mike Strain says despite the negative impact to Louisiana, he understands the President’s position…

cut 8 (08) “other priorities”

The World Health Organization has classified excessive video game playing as a gaming disorder. LSU Health New Orleans Clinical Psychologist Doctor Michelle Moore hopes parents do not think that just because their child plays video games that they have a disorder. Moore says it has to be a serious issue….
cut 9 (12) “….it is problematic”
Moore hopes the World Health Organization provides clear cut criteria on what constitutes a gaming disorder.

Here’s a look at your commodities (minipig)

LRN, I’m Kevin Barnhart

Cut 11 (11) “…must come now.”

That’s Governor John Bel Edwards as he addressed both chambers saying it’s time to break free of the partisan gridlock as he opened the state’s latest special session.

The House Ways and Means Committee will begin discussing today the tax bills that have been filed in this third special session. Jeff Palermo has the story…

Cut 3 (31) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

There are over two thousand nursing programs throughout the United States, but only one can be ranked number one.  That distinction now belongs to Louisiana Tech University’s Division of Nursing. Chair of the program, Dr. Donna Hood credits the latest accolade to the determination of both the faculty and students.

Cut 3 (08) “…of this program.”

The National Council of State Boards of Nursing ranks programs based on the rate at which graduates pass the licensing exam.

The escalating trade war with China is not good news for Louisiana’s Agriculture Industry. Ag Commissioner Mike Strain says Louisiana has done a lot of work to open up China to rice, beef and poultry exports…

Cut 7 (10)  “52-percent”