10:30 LRN Newscast April 12

The 2021 legislative session begins today and at 6 o’clock tonight, Governor John Bel Edwards will deliver a state of the state address at Southern University’s Mumford Stadium. Tax reform will be a dominant issue, but Edwards says any changes to the tax code should be revenue-neutral and he does not believe it will be a good idea to reduce taxes…

Cut 10 (10) “..tax.”

Political analyst Bernie Pinsonat expects the session to be dominated by debate over how to allocate billions in federal pandemic aid. There are several controversial culture war topics on the docket including trans issues, marijuana legalization, prison labor, and teaching about systemic racism, but ultimately…

Cut 4 (11)“…happens”

Republican House Speaker Clay Schexnayder wants to simplify the tax code to make it easier for small businesses and citizens to operate. Schexnayder says the sales tax would stay the same…

Cut 13 (09) “…part of it.”
Schexnayder says the state is missing out on a substantial amount of revenue from internet sales.

There’s a bill calling for the automatic termination of any higher education employee who fails to properly report incidents of “power-based violence” to the campus Title Nine coordinator. New Orleans Representative Aimee Freeman says her legislation is in response to LSU’s failure to properly handle incidents of sexual misconduct.

Cut 7 (11)  “…terminated.”

Power-based violence is defined as dating violence, domestic violence, sexual assault, sexual harassment, and stalking.