US Senator John Kennedy urges Louisiana lawmakers to pass House Bill 12. Brooke Thorington has more.
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There’s been a lot of bills filed in the Legislature this year aimed at having better and cheaper auto and home insurance. How are they coming along? Kevin Gallagher takes a look…:
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The House and Senate have three weeks to reach an agreement on funding teacher pay raises. Jeff Palermo has the story…
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US Senator John Kennedy took to the floor in DC urging state senators in Baton Rouge to pass legislation to hold back third graders who are unable to read on grade level.
Mandeville Representative Richard Nelson’s bill will give students intensive reading instruction and three opportunities to pass the literacy exam before advancing to third grade.
Kennedy says the legislation is modeled after one Mississippi and a similar program in Florida has shown promising results.
The legislation passed in the House last year and failed to garner enough votes in the Senate. So far this session it has advanced from the House and Kennedy pleaded with state senators to help the bill cross the finish line this year.
If enacted the program would begin implementation in the 2024-2025 school year.
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With just three weeks remaining in the legislative session, how are bills aimed at improving Louisiana’s property insurance environment for consumers coming along? Benjamin Riggs is Executive Director of Real Reform Louisiana; an insurance consumer advocacy group. He says RRL supports House Bill 252, sponsored by Tangipahoa Parish Rep. Robby Carter, which recently cleared committee review…:
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Riggs says insurance companies make billions and they do not need to pass advertising costs on to their customers. Another bill favored by RRL is Senate Bill 11, from Alexandria Senator Jay Luneau, which Riggs says provides relief on car insurance costs…:
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Riggs says his group is worried that some bills will have a detrimental effect on consumers if they pass. He cites SB 96, from Jefferson Parish Senator Kirk Talbot as one that seems intended to help the state-run insurer of last resort, but could easily hurt the insured…:
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Riggs is concerned there may not be enough time remaining to get real beneficial insurance reforms to final passage, before the session ends June 8th.
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State lawmakers have three weeks left to decide how they want to spend two-point-two billion dollars in surplus money. Republican House leaders would like to use 950 million dollars to pay down pension debt. House Speaker Clay Schexnayder
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House leaders say by paying down debt in the teacher retirement system it would free up cash for local school systems to give teachers a meaningful pay raise.
But Governor Edwards says there are 296-million dollars available to give teachers a three-thousand dollar pay raise. Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne says the state also has the opportunity also has to make a significant investment toward other priorities…
In order to fund teacher pay raises and spend hundreds of millions of dollars on infrastructure projects. The Legislature would have to raise the spending cap. It will take a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate. Senate President Page Cortez says raising the spending cap, the state can put significant dollars toward some major projects…
Right now the House is reluctant to raise the spending cap. Schexnayder says there’s still plenty of time to negotiate with the Senate…
The legislative session must conclude on June 8th at 6 PM.
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A federal judge in New Orleans has ordered former LSU football coach Les Miles will need to give a deposition in Sharon Lewis’ lawsuit against the LSU Board of Supervisors. Lewis is a former associate athletic director and claims LSU created a hostile work environment and retaliated against her after she tried to report Miles sexually harassed a student. Tiger Rag Editor Todd Horne says the judge also ordered LSU to provide a bunch of documents that were previously withheld…
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Miles has been out of the public eye since 2021 when it became public knowledge that Miles was investigated for sexual harassment in 2013 while he was still the coach at LSU. Horne says LSU has to be uneasy about Miles answering questions under oath from Lewis’ defense team…
Eight current and former LSU Board of Supervisor members have also been ordered to give depositions. Horne says the U-S District Judge Susie Morgan also pushed the trial date back from May to December…
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The Ragin Cajuns softball team is heading to the Super Regionals for the first time since 2016 as they rallied back to beat LSU 9-8 in the championship game of the Baton Rouge Regional. UL-Lafayette scored two runs in the seventh inning to win the game. Karly Heath homered in the fifth inning to make it a one-run game and scored the winning run in the seventh…
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UL-Lafayette beat LSU twice on Sunday to advance to the super regionals. In the first game, three different players hit home runs and Sam Landry pitched five shutout innings of relief in a seven-to-four win. In game two, Jourdyn Campbell had 5 RBIs and Chloe Riassetto had three shutout innings of relief to get the win. Coach Gerry Glasco says everyone chipped in…
It’s a disappointing finish for the 11th ranked LSU softball team who went 42-17, but for the second consecutive season lost in the regionals. Coach Beth Torinia could not hide the tears…