Critics say President Biden’s student loan forgiveness program is a waste of money and a vote grab. Supporters say it provides needed relief from crushing debt caused by soaring college costs. Marsanne Golsby has one young family’s perspective.
Cut 1 (30) “…I’m Marsanne Golsby.”
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The state’s Gaming Control Board confirms it: sportsbook – in person and via an app – is a big success in Louisiana. More from Kevin Gallagher…:
Cut 2 (30) “….I’m Kevin Gallagher.”
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Saturday marks the two-year anniversary of Hurricane Laura. Brooke Thorington talks with Lake Charles Mayor Nic Hunter about with city’s recovery.
Cut 3 (30) “…I’m Brooke Thorington.”
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Twenty-two billion dollars. That’s how much student debt the Education Data Initiative says more than 650 thousand Louisiana residents are carrying. Nationwide, those with incomes less than 125 thousand or household incomes of less than 250 thousand could see their debts reduced or eliminated.
Thirty-two-year-old Victoria Carter says she took out about thirty thousand dollars in loans and had paid all but about eleven thousand dollars of it when her young family relocated for her husband’s job.
Her loans have been on hold and she says if she has to resume payments it will cost about 600 dollars a month for her and her husband. And even though she says her family is frugal, resuming the loans would be tough.
Carter says young people are pressured to attend colleges to have good careers, but the cost is out of reach for many students now. She says those who say the relief is unfair to people who’ve paid off their loans may not understand how expensive college is.
Cut 6 (10) “…when I was a kid.”
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The state’s Gaming Control Board reports sports betting – in person and via phone app – is off to a vigorous start in Louisiana. LGCB Chairman Ronnie Johns says numbers collected for the first half of the calendar year shows just over $85-million has been bet on sporting events through June 30th…:
Cut 7 (08) “…revenue for the state.”
In-person sportsbook has been available since last November, but betting with apps has only been around since February. Johns says, of that $85-million bet, the state gets roughly $16.5-million dollars. He says some of that filters down to cities and parishes…:
Cut 8 (09) “…early childhood education.”
Johns says the figures for the first half of 2022 are encouraging. He says estimates were the state would rake in about $30-million a year from sportsbook, but those estimates will be revised upward. College and pro football begin in just weeks, and Johns expects sports betting to surge…:
Cut 9 (10) “…we move forward.”
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Saturday marks the two-year anniversary of Hurricane Laura, as the Category 4 storm made landfall in southwest Louisiana. Lake Charles Mayor Nic Hunter says his outlook has improved immensely since this time last year now that city has received an allocation of federal supplemental disaster aid.
Cut 10 (11) “…around the corner.”
With a population of 80 thousand Hunter says many are still struggling to put their lives back together and reflecting on the anniversary can be difficult. Hunter says on Saturday he will spend time with his family and reflect on how the city has recovered since Laura.
Hunter says Lake Charles should be the poster child for when a community should receive supplemental disaster aid but after experiencing four federally declared disasters in 10 months it took longer than any other city in the nation to receive aid. And while every natural disaster is different, Hunter says the response shouldn’t be.
Hunter encourages residents to visit Lake Charles and see how much progress has been made.
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All the rain this week has not been good for the state’s soybean crop. It’s the state’s largest crop at one-point-two million acres planted, but LSU soybean specialist Doctor David Moseley says it’s getting bad for some farmers, especially in northeast Louisiana
Over a foot of rain has fallen this week in some areas and Moesley says that leads to what is known as pod degradation…
There’s about a 50-percent chance of rain through the weekend in northeast Louisiana and Moseley says they really need the rain to stop so they can harvest the crop…
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The Saints will play their third and final preseason game tonight against the Los Angeles Chargers. Coach Dennis Allen has not given any indication how long the regular season starters will play or if they’ll play, but it’s certainly a big game for the guys trying to make the team…
Cut 16 (11) “..extremely important.”
The Saints currently have 80 players on their roster and will have to get down to 53 for the regular season. Defensive end Cam Jordan has this advice for the guys who are on bubble and might end up getting cut…
Saints safety Tyrann Mathieu is looking forward to the regular season as he expects the defense to be a real strength…
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