Senate Judiciary C advances house-backed legislation that would decriminalize possession of up to 14 grams of marijuana. Shreveport Representative Cedric Glover says under his bill those found with just under half an ounce would only face a 100 dollar fine.

Cut 12 (10)    “…felon” 

It now heads to the Senate floor.

The budgeted amount for K-12 teacher pay raises in Louisiana appears to be on track for $800 and not $1000 as previously discussed by lawmakers. Louisiana Federation of Teachers Legislative Director Cynthia Posey says teachers were in the classroom on day one of the 20-21 school year to help parents get back to work and lawmakers applauded them for it.

Cut 5  (08)  “…list”

The House passes a bill that would require Louisiana public high schools to spend more time teaching students about the Holocaust and World War II. Denham Springs Representative Valarie Hodges says currently public schools are only required to spend one semester teaching students about the topics, but she believes they should be discussed throughout a child’s high school career…

Cut 10 (11) “…I believe”

The bill passed on a 66-32 vote.

Legislation extending the state’s 180-million dollar film tax credit program for another three years through 2028 is moving closer to final passage. Slidell Senator Sharon Hewitt says the film industry supports about 10-thousand jobs in the state and last year invested more than 432-million dollars in productions in Louisiana. She expects those numbers to grow…

Cut 7 (05) “…the conversation.”

The House Ways and Means Committee approved Hewitt’s bill.

The budgeted amount for K-12 teacher pay raises in Louisiana appears to be on track for $800 and not $1000 as previously discussed by lawmakers. Louisiana Federation of Teachers Legislative Director Cynthia Posey says the effort to push state teachers towards the southern regional average got sidetracked…

Cut 4 (08) “…again.” 

The state House passes a bill that would require Louisiana public high schools to spend more time teaching students about the Holocaust and World War II. Denham Springs Representative Valarie Hodges says students and young adults know very little about the Holocaust…

Cut 9 (12) “…died”

The bill passed on a 66-32 vote with many Black lawmakers voting against it after the chamber rejected an amendment that would require instruction on significant Black figures in history.

A bill that would extend the state’s 180-million dollar film tax credit program for another three years to 2028 is headed to the House floor for final legislative passage. Jeff Palermo has the details…

Cut 2 (29) …I’m Jeff Palermo.”  

A Senate committee narrowly approves legislation decriminalizing possession of a small amount of marijuana.

Legislation that extends the state’s 180-million dollar film tax credit program for another three years through 2028 is moving closer to final passage. Slidell Senator Sharon Hewitt explained to the House Ways and Means Committee on why it’s important to pass the tax credit beyond 2025…
cut 6 (12) “…of that”
The House Ways and Means Committee approved Hewitt’s bill, which has already passed the Senate. It heads to the full House for final legislative passage. Eunice Representative Phillip Devillier is not a fan of spending 180-million dollars on the film tax industry…
cut 8 (12) “…concerns me”
The budgeted amount for K-12 teacher pay raises in Louisiana appears to be on track for $800 and not $1000 as previously discussed by lawmakers. Louisiana Federation of Teachers Legislative Director Cynthia Posey says the amount is disappointing and the goal to bring teacher pay to the southern regional average continues to be put on the backburner.
Cut 3 (08) “…to stay.”
The Senate Finance committee released their markup of the state budget that begins on July first.

The full Senate will soon vote on a bill that would allow nurse practitioners to practice independently without a doctor’s supervision. Supporters say it will improve access to health care. Louisiana Association of Nurse Practitioners president Kathy Baldridge says there are five clinics in Avoyelles Parish staffed by nurse practitioners and they have an agreement with an aging doctor…
cut 14 (11) “…clinic setting”
Opponents of the legislation say it jeopardizes patient safety.

The first of two funeral services will be held today for former Louisiana Governor Gov. Buddy Roemer. Political analyst Bernie Pinsonat recalls the political life of the former four-term congressman and a one-term governor.

Cut 4 (11)”…his style.”

The first funeral service is in Baton Rouge today and a second service on Thursday in Shreveport. Roemer was 77.

The state marks a milestone as the health department reported the lowest number of Louisianans hospitalized with COVID since March 2020.  On Monday 271 were in the hospital with COVID. The number of those patients in the hospital on ventilators is 29, and State Health Officer Dr. Joe Kantar says placing someone on a respirator with COVID is a severe intervention and is a last-ditch effort.

Cut 11 (05) “….hospitalization.”

Kanter says the majority of patients hospitalized were not vaccinated.

House-approved Legislation that would make permanent a pandemic-driven policy giving nurse practitioners more independence is set to be heard by the full Senate. Previously independent NPs would contract with a doctor who was on call to review cases, but an executive order suspended that requirement last year. President of the Louisiana Association of Nurse Practitioners Kathy Baldridge wants to make that permanent…

Cut 13 (09) “…communities”
Doctor Lisa Cary with Physicians for Patient Protection disputed claims by supporters that quality of care in Louisiana did not dip after the executive order, she says there’s been no surveys or research to confirm that. Casey says this is a patient safety issue.

Cut 16 (10) “…situation.”
The House approved the legislation on a 61-41 vote.

A bill that would remove the possibility of jail time for possessing a small amount of marijuana is set to be heard in the Senate Judiciary C Committee today. The proposal has already received House Approval and Senate Judiciary C Chairman Franklin Foil…
cut 8 (07) “….make”

Funeral services are this morning at Istrouma Baptist Church in Baton Rouge for former Louisiana Governor Buddy Roemer, who passed away last week at the age of 77. Roemer was known as a reformer and political analyst Bernie Pinsonat says the Harvard grad worked to improve education when he was in office from 1987-91…
cut 6 (10) “….schools better”
A second funeral service will take place Thursday in Shreveport.

House-approved legislation offering nurse practitioners more independence to practice without needing a collaborative agreement with a doctor is waiting to be heard on the Senate floor. Matt Doyle has more.
Cut 3 (34) “…I’m Matt Doyle.”

The House votes 63-28 in favor of a resolution that would create a committee to study the potential impacts of legalizing marijuana. The panel would include law enforcement officials, prosecutors, along with lawmakers and community and business leaders.

The Senate Judiciary C Committee is set to hear legislation this morning that would decriminalize possession of marijuana for personal use. The measure passed the House on a 68-25 vote and Senate Judiciary C Chairman Franklin Foil says attitudes towards marijuana use in Louisiana are quickly changing…
cut 9 (10) “…happen”

The full Senate will soon vote on a bill that would allow nurse practitioners to practice independently without a doctor’s supervision. The practice was put in place last March because of the pandemic and supporters say it will improve healthcare access. President of the Louisiana Association of Nurse Practitioners Kathy Baldridge says there are five clinics in Avoyelles Parish staffed by nurse practitioners and they have an agreement with an aging doctor…
ctu 14 (11) “…clinic setting”
Opponents of the legislation say it jeopardizes patient safety.

The state marks a milestone as the health department reports the lowest number of Louisianans hospitalized with COVID since March 2020. 271 are in the hospital with COVID and State Health Officer Dr. Joe Kanter says the majority of those patients have not been vaccinated.
Cut 10 (07) “…get vaccinated.”
Kanter says over two-thirds of Louisianans 65 and older are fully vaccinated. And because the average age of those in the hospital is decreasing so are fatalities.

Funeral services will be held this morning in Baton Rouge for former Governor Buddy Roemer, who passed away last week at the age of 77. After representing northwest Louisiana in Congress in the 1980s, he was elected as Louisiana’s 52nd governor. Political analyst Bernie Pinsonat says Roemer defeated Edwin Edwards in the 1987 gubernatorial election…
cut 5 (08) “…the dragon”
Pinsonat says Roemer was known as a reformer and did some of his best work in reforming education and campaign finance laws.

The first of two funeral services will be held today for former Governor Buddy Roemer. Brooke Thorington talks with a political analyst about the former governor and four-term congressman.
Cut 1 (31) “…I’m Brooke Thorington.”

The Senate Finance committee has approved its version of a 37-billion dollar spending plan for the state next year. It contains 800-dollar pay raises for teachers, despite talk of giving educators a one-thousand-dollar raise. College faculty, prison guards, and juvenile justice workers are also set to get raises.

The Louisiana Senate will soon hear legislation that would allow advanced nurse practitioners to practice without a doctor’s supervision. Supporters say the legislation will increase access to healthcare, which will improve healthcare outcomes, but Doctor Lisa Cary with Physicians for Patient Protection opposes the legislation…
cut 16 (10) “…situation”
The House approved the legislation on a 61-41 vote.

The state is reporting 271 COVID patients in the hospital, which matches the lowest total since Louisiana began keeping track. The state also reported the first two cases of a COVID variant dominant in India in Caddo Parish last week. State Health Officer Doctor Joe Kanter says the two individuals did not travel out of the country so it’s likely there are more cases in the state.
Cut 12 (09) “…down the road.”

The state marks another COVID milestone with the lowest number of individuals hospitalized with the virus since they began counting last March, with 271…
Cut 2 (30) “…I’mBrooke Thorington.”

The Senate Judiciary C Committee will hear House-approved legislation this morning that would decriminalize possession of up to 14 grams of marijuana. Chairman Franklin Foil says the bill would still make it a crime to possess small quantities of pot, but offenders would not be sent to jail…
Cut 7 (07) “…society.”

House-approved Legislation that would make permanent a pandemic-driven policy giving nurse practitioners more independence is set to be heard by the full Senate. Previously independent NPs would contract with a doctor who was on call to review cases, but an executive order suspended that requirement last year. President of the Louisiana Association of Nurse Practitioners Kathy Baldridge wants to make that permanent…
Cut 13 (09) “…communities”
Dr. Lisa Casey with Physicians for Patient Protection opposes the bill. She says there’s a difference in education and training between a doctor and a nurse practitioner and the legislation will put patients at risk…
Cut 15 (10)“…of training.”(x2)
The bill passed the House on a 61-41 vote.