DOTD has created visual displays of trash they’ve collected from roadways across the state as a reminder to Keep Louisiana beautiful. Spokesperson Rodney Mallet says the trash sculptures that spell out D-O-T-D are a reminder to the public that department spend $9-million annually to pick up trash and that money could be spent on other things like…

Cut 11 (:07) infrastructure

Metairie Republican Eric Skrmetta has been re-elected to a third and final six-year term on the Public Service Commission, which regulates utility companies. Skrmetta says his goal is to keep utility rates in Louisiana among the lowest in the nation…
cut 12 (12) “…that status”
Skrmetta defeated Democrat Allen Borne, a lawyer from New Orleans, in Saturday’s run-off election.

76 percent of voters chose to reject Constitutional Amendment One Saturday, which if passed would have allowed people living out of state to serve on state college and university supervisory boards. LaPolitics.com publisher Jeremy Alford says on average voters are faced with seven constitutional amendments per ballot, and while this result may indicate some amendment fatigue from the public…

Cut 8 (12) “…makers”

Matt Viator is officially out as ULM’s football coach. ULM has the lowest athletic budget among F-B-S schools and the football program has had only one winning season since becoming an F-B-S school in 1994. KNOE-TV sports director Aaron Dietrich says it’s been difficult for coaches to build a winner at ULM…

Cut 5  (12) “..head coach” 

Voters reject a constitutional amendment Saturday that would have allowed out-of-state residents to sit on college management boards. Matt Doyle has more.

Cut 1 (28) “ …I’m Matt Doyle.”  

LDH has officially adopted the new CDC guidelines for quarantine. If you’ve been exposed and show no symptoms you can end quarantine after 10 days and if you show no symptoms after 7 days and test negative, you can end quarantine on the 8^th day. Also, LDH stresses that you continue strict mitigation efforts post quarantine to avoid transmission. A 14-day quarantine however remains the gold standard.

Matt Viator is officially out as ULM football coach as the school and Viator have decided to part ways as the team faces an eleven-game losing streak that dates back to last season. KNOE-TV sports director Aaron Dietrich says victories have been hard to come by for Viator…

Cut 3 (07)  “…pretty historic.”

Metairie Republican Eric Skrmetta has been re-elected to a third and final six-year term on the Public Service Commission, which regulates utility companies. The hurricanes that hit the state this year caused at least two-billion dollars in damage to the electricity delivery system. This could result in higher bills for Entergy and Cleco customers. Skrmetta says they are hoping for federal dollars and looking at other ways to keep any hurricane restoration fees low…

Cut 14 (10) “…for the ratepayer.” 

Voters soundly rejected Amendment One on Saturday, which would have allowed out of state residents to serve on state college and university boards. LaPolitics.com publisher Jeremy Alford says it was surprising to see 76 percent of voters say no thank you, so why the upset rejection?

Cut 7 (09) “…ammendment.”

The Louisiana State GOP also asked voters to reject the amendment, but Alford doubts that played much of a role in the final result.

Voters may have said no to One, but they did say yes to a third and final term on the Public Service Commission for Metairie Republican Eric Skrmetta. Skrmetta has worked out a few major goals for the next six years, including…

Cut 13 (07) “… unserved”

Skrmetta beat Democrat Allen Borne with 62 percent of the vote.

ULM football coach Matt Viator is out after five years on the job in the midst of a winless season for the Warhawks. KNOE-TV sports director Aaron Dietrich says victories have been hard to come by for Viator…

Cut 3 (07)  “…pretty historic.”

ULM has the lowest athletic budget among F-B-S schools.

The state transportation department has created visual displays of trash they’ve collected from roadways as a reminder to Keep Louisiana beautiful. DOTD spokesperson Rodney Mallet says the first sculpture was placed in-front of DOTD headquarters and was an original concept of Secretary Dr. Shawn Wilson. Mallett says the original display received attention from lawmakers and sparked the idea to create more.

Cut 10 (08) “…together here.”

The Louisiana Department of Health reports 10,16 new COVID cases today.

The state health department announces it’s adopting the C-D-C’s updated guidance that calls for a shorter COVID quarantine period. Instead of 14 days, it’s now ten days or as few as seven with a negative test for those who may have been exposed. Several school superintendents have been pushing to minimize the number of days teachers and students must miss because of positive tests and contact tracing.

DOTD has created trash sculptures as a visual reminder to stop littering. Brooke Thorington has more…
cut 2 (29) …I’m Brooke Thorington.”

The lone constitutional amendment on Saturday’s ballot was soundly rejected by voters as it failed on a 76-24 vote. The amendment would have allowed out-of-state residents to sit on college management boards…
cut 7 (09) “….amendment”
That’s Jeremy Alford, publisher of LA-politics-dot-com. The Louisiana Republican Party came out against the amendment claiming it would lead to rich outsiders doing political favors in an effort to receive such an appointment from the governor.

Metairie Republican Eric Skrmetta has been re-elected to a third and final six-year term on the Public Service Commission, which regulates utility companies. Skrmetta says his goal is to keep utility rates in Louisiana among the lowest in the nation…
cut 12 (12) “…that status”
Skrmetta defeated Democrat Allen Borne, a lawyer from New Orleans, in Saturday’s run-off election.

The state reported 1,016 new coronavirus cases and 23 more COVID-19 deaths today. Hospitalizations also increased by 31 to surpass for 14-hundred. Louisiana Treasurer John Schroder has been released from the hospital as he’s battling complications from COVID-19.

Voters soundly rejected a constitutional amendment Saturday that would have allowed out-of-state residents to sit on college management boards. Matt Doyle has more.
Cut 1 (28) “ …I’m Matt Doyle.”

DOTD has created visual displays of trash they’ve collected from roadways across the state as a reminder to Keep Louisiana beautiful. DOTD spokesperson Rodney Mallet says the six-foot-tall 3-D letters spell out D-O-T-D and are filled with trash…
cut 9 (10) “…a year”
Mallett says that nine million dollars could be used to overlay about 90 miles of roadway instead.

ULM has reportedly fired football coach Matt Viator with two years left on his contract that pays him about 350-thousand dollars a year. The Warhawks have lost eleven in a row. ULM has had just one winning season since 1994. KNOE-TV sports director Aaron Dietrich says it’s been difficult to build a winner at ULM…
cut 5 (12) “….head coach”

Luke Letlow will be the next Congressman for the 5^th Congressional District, beating fellow Republican Alexandria lawmaker Lance Harris with 62 percent of the vote. Matt Doyle has the story.

Cut 2 (30) “…I’m Matt Doyle.” 

Congressman Cedric Richmond has been named as one of the five co-chairs for President-elect Joe Biden’s Inaugural Committee. Richmond is quoted as says the inauguration will be different this year, but they will work to keep everyone safe for the historic event. Richmond will serve as the director of the White House Office of Public Engagement in the Biden administration.

DCF is beginning a three-month process of moving the date when food stamp recipients will receive their benefits. Deputy Assistant Secretary Jean Guinta says instead of all SNAP recipients receiving their benefits, the first two weeks of the month, it will be spread out over the first 23 days. She says the 446,000 households receiving food stamps have been notified that a change in benefit distribution is coming.

Cut 9 (11) “…messages”.

A Monroe TV station is reporting ULM football Coach Matt Viator has been fired as the Warhawks have lost eleven straight dating back to last season. KNOE-TV sports director Aaron Dietrich says right before the season started, ULM alumnus Ron Berry was named the school’s new president and it appears he does not like the direction of the program…

Cut 4 (10)   “…couple years”  

Luke Letlow is Louisiana’s newest congressman as he defeated Lance Harris in an all-Republican runoff on Saturday. The Richland Parish native joins the Republican minority in the Democrat-controlled House…
cut 10 (12) “….class”
Letlow previously served as retiring Ralph Abraham’s chief of staff.

DCF is beginning a three-month process of moving the date when food stamp recipients will receive their benefits. Deputy Assistant Secretary Jean Guinta says instead of all SNAP recipients receiving their benefits in the first two weeks of the month, it will be spread out over the first 23 days. She says the issuance date will begin to shift this month…

Cut 8 (11) “…same day”

According to the 2019 Louisiana Health Insurance Survey, the percentage of uninsured adults was 11-percent, a significant drop from before Medicaid expansion in 2016 when the rate was 23-percent.  But Interim Medicaid Executive Director Tara LeBlanc says the survey indicates the uninsured rates for children increased slightly to 4-percent in 2019, compared to 2-percent in 2017. LeBlanc says the nationally the uninsured rate increased among children also.

Cut 14 (04) “…individuals.” 

The survey is conducted every two years.

A Monroe TV station is reporting ULM football Coach Matt Viator has been fired as the Warhawks have lost eleven straight dating back to last season. KNOE-TV sports director Aaron Dietrich says victories have been hard to come by for Viator…

Cut 3 (07)  “…pretty historic.”

40-year-old Luke Letlow is Louisiana’s newest congressman as he won a run-off election on Saturday beating Alexandria state representative Lance Harris. Letlow says he wants to bring jobs to northeast and central Louisiana and help businesses grow…
cut 12 (10) “…times”
It’s Letlow’s first political office, but he has served as an aide to Congressman Ralph Abraham and former Governor Bobby Jindal.

Because of COVID-19, the holiday season could be more difficult for some, especially if they experienced the loss of a loved one because of the pandemic. LSU Health New Orleans Associate Professor of Clinical Psychology Doctor Richard Costa…
cut 6 (12) “….negative thought”

The 2019 Louisiana Health Insurance study shows only 11-percent of adults are uninsured in the state. Brooke Thorington has more.
Cut 3 (31) “…I’m Brooke Thorington.”

State Treasurer John Schroder is out of the hospital after receiving treatment for complications related to COVID-19. KNOE-TV is reporting ULM’s Matt Viator is out as head football coach as the Warhawks have lost 11 in a row. Ragin Cajuns Coach Billy Napier says he’s staying at U-L Lafayette after receiving consideration from South Carolina to be their head coach.

Republican Luke Letlow from Richland Parish has been elected as Louisiana’s next fifth District Congressman. He’ll replace Ralph Abraham, who decided not to seek re-election after three terms. Letlow says he’ll represent conservative values in a U-S House controlled by Democrats…
cut 11 (11) “….as well”
The 40-year-old Letlow received 62-percent of the vote to defeat fellow Republican Lance Harris.

The Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services is beginning a three-month process of moving the date when many food stamp recipients will receive their benefits each month. Deputy Assistant Secretary Jean Guinta says instead of all SNAP recipients receiving their benefits in the first two weeks of every month, it will be spread out over the first 23 days.
Cut 7 (10) “…grocery shelves.”
Food stamp recipients have been notified about the changes.

The state health department says a new survey finds that the percentage of uninsured adults in Louisiana is at 11-percent, a decrease from 23-percent in 2015. Interim Medicaid Executive Director Tara Leblanc credits the expansion of the Medicaid program in 2016, which also helped reduce the racial disparity in insurance coverage…
cut 15 (05) “….in healthcare”
The uninsured rate of Black adults was 10-percent and the uninsured rate of white adults was 11-percent.

At this time of year, we normally see holiday gatherings, but instead many people are living in isolation because of the coronavirus pandemic. LSU Health New Orleans Associate Professor of Clinical Psychology Dr. Richard Costa says isolation for many is difficult.
Cut 4 (10) “…pretty quickly.”
The department of health offers free counseling through The Keep Calm Through COVID hotline at 1-866-310-7977.