Louisiana is experiencing good fiscal times now and the Louisiana House votes for a proposal to help the next legislature deal with the loss of a temporary sales tax. Jeff Palermo has the story…
Cut 1 (32) “…I’m Jeff Palermo”
______________________________________
CLECO customers might be eligible for a discount on their utility bills during the hot summer months. David Grubb has more…
______________________________________
The Louisiana House backs a proposal that will phase out a temporary sales tax that’s set to expire in 2025. The tax generates over 400-million dollars in revenues a year and Prairieville Representative Tony Bacala’s bill will begin the phase-out in 2023 so the state doesn’t face a fiscal cliff in 2025…
Cut 3 (11) “…appropriate word.”
Democrats are concerned the legislation will result in budget cuts. Shreveport Representative Sam Jenkins believes the Legislature should wait until next year’s fiscal session to discuss this temporary sales tax…
Despite Jenkins’ objection, the bill passed on a 67-40 vote in the House. Bacala says this temporary sales tax is set to expire in June 2025 and 2023 is the time to start reducing the sales tax, so budget planners face a soft landing instead of a fiscal cliff…
__________________________________________________
Gas prices are up, and with temperatures on the rise, utility bills will be soaring throughout the summer months. To help provide some relief, CLECO is spreading the word about its Cleco Alternative Rate for Electricity discount program for eligible low-income families. Here’s spokesperson Fran Phoenix…
Cut 6 (11) “…assistance program.”
If eligible, the discount is applied to the customer’s bills for July, August, and September. Phoenix says to receive the discount, customers must enroll before May 30 through their local community action agency.
Cut 7 (11) “…started breathing again.”
A list of those agencies is available on the Louisiana Housing Corporation website, l-h-c-dot-la-dot-gov.
The CARE program has been in place for eight years, and more than five thousand eligible customers took advantage last year. If you meet the guidelines for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program or LIHEAP, you automatically qualify for these savings during the hottest months of the year.
____________________________________________________
Optimism among small businesses continues to decline. According to the April survey by the National Federation of Independent Business, small business owners who are expecting better conditions over the next six months decreased by one point. State Director Dawn McVea says in their 48-year history of the survey…
It’s the fourth consecutive month that optimism has declined among independent business owners. McVea says the driving factor for the net negative 50-percent outlook for the future is record inflation.
Cut 10 (07) ” ….operating right now.”
McVea says ongoing supply chain issues, rising fuel costs, and inflation continue to compound earnings among small business owners. She says 70-percent of independent businesses have had to raise prices.
Another reason small businesses are having to increase prices, McVea says is due to having to pay more in wages. And 93-percent of those surveyed report few or no qualified applicants for positions they were trying to fill.
___________________________________________
Senator Bill Cassidy introduces a bill to reauthorize the bipartisan Mental Health Reform Act of 2016 that provides crucial programs to improve the nation’s mental health infrastructure. Cassidy says current legislation is set to expire in September and the new bill also focuses on mental health programs for children.
Cut 12 (10) “…support children.”
Cassidy says the 2022 Reauthorization Act not only provides mental health services for children in schools but also for those who find themselves in juvenile detention centers. He says some teens are denied services while they await sentencing.
Since the Reform Act of 2016, Cassidy says the pandemic has only worsened the mental health of Americans of all ages, particularly children with school closings and disruptions in academic and social development.
Cassidy and Connecticut Democrat Senator Chris Murphy introduced the Mental Health Reform Act of 2016 and again joined forces for the Reauthorization Act of 2022.