Tomorrow is the Louisiana Presidential Primary and the Secretary State has some tips for voters to remember. Jeff Palermo has more…
______________________________________
State Police is testing a new real-time auto insurance monitoring system to help officers make sure drivers have up to date insurance. Emelie Gunn has more…
______________________________________
State lawmakers are making progress in addressing the state’s $900 million deficit, but they still have a ways to go. Halen Doughty reports…
Cut 3 (31) “I’m Halen Doughty”
______________________________________
Tomorrow is the state’s Presidential Primary and the Secretary of State is urging Louisianans to get out and exercise your right to vote. Tom Schedler says the polls will open at 7 am and close at 8 pm. He says this election is a closed primary…
Schedler says for 26 parishes there are local elections on the March 5th ballot. He says check out the Geaux Vote app on your smart phone to see what else could be on your ballot.
Schedler says turnout is expected to be higher for this primary than in 2012.
_________________________________________________________
State Police introduces a real-time auto insurance monitoring system to catch motorists who are uninsured. Major Doug Cain says this system, which will be used in the Baton Rouge and Monroe areas first, will provide police with the ability to know at a traffic stop or accident if the driver is actually insured.
The Insurance Research Council reports 12 to 15 percent of Louisiana drivers are not insured. Cain says the system being used right now is completely dependent on the insurance companies providing police with the correct information in a timely manner and often times there are lapses. He says now that data will pop up directly on the officer’s computer screen.
Cain says they hope this new system will catch more uninsured motorists, which is one reason why Louisiana has some of the highest insurance rates in the country. He says people driving without auto insurance effect everyone on the road.
______________________________________
Injured Southern football player Devon Gales is scheduled to return home Saturday, and Southern University has planned festivities to celebrate his homecoming. Gales has spent the past four months undergoing rehabilitation in Atlanta after sustaining a severe neck injury. Southern Sports Information Director Chris Jones says Gales has received support from people throughout the South.
Gales will arrive at the Baton Rouge Metro Airport at 11am Saturday, where he will be greeted by Southern University athletic officials. Gales was paralyzed while playing against UGA in September. Jones says that Gales’ positive attitude has had an impact on people around the state.
Gales will be reunited with his teammates at A.W. Mumford Field house. Jones says that Gales will be honored at Southern after the women’s basketball game in the F.G. Clark Activity Center.
The meet and greet will begin at about 7pm.
_________________________________________________________
The state legislature has started making progress on agreeing to a plan that addresses the state’s 900-million budget deficit. The House approved a bill that increases the cigarette tax by 22-cents, while a Senate committee agreed on a measure that would cut 37-million dollars from the budget. Marksville Representative Robert Johnson is glad legislation is moving, but they still have a long way to go.
The cigarette tax bill still needs to be approved by the Senate and it appears the legislature will approve a one-cent increase to the state sales tax. Johnson says he is concerned about all the taxes that keep coming up that are hitting consumers. He says business needs to “share in the pain” of the deficit.
Johnson says it is not fair to ask Louisiana residents to pay more taxes for fewer state services. Covington Representative John Schroder says the budget issue is far from being resolved. He says even though they are closing in on fixing this fiscal year’s shortfall, there is another deficit to consider for the next fiscal year, which begins July 1.
Hammond Representative Chris Broadwater is encouraged by the progress being made at the Capitol. He says the legislature is on the right track by making both cuts and pushing revenue raising measures through the legislature