The massive amounts of rainfall Louisiana has experienced in the last month has caused some problems with the corn crop. Emelie Gunn has more…
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The House will hear three measures this week that seek to help ex-inmates reenter society. Halen Doughty has more…
Cut 2 (31) “I’m Halen Doughty”
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Only two weeks are left until Tax Day, which means time is running out to file federal taxes. Jeff Palermo has more…
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This season’s corn crop is off to a soggy start after record amounts of rainfall during March. LSU Ag Center corn specialist Dan Fromme says it’s been a challenging year so far. He says we’ve seen rain in excess of 20 inches and some corn fields are still underwater.
Fromme says this will have a significant impact on the economy. He says the corn that came up early on in the year has been sitting in water for a while.
Fromme says there are still a few weeks left to plant corn and the hope is for dry weather. He says before the corn planting season is over, they’ll have around 400 to 450-thousand acres planted.
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Three proposed bills aim to help ex-prison inmates reintegrate into society are set to be heard on the House floor this week. One would create a certificate of employability that former-felons could show potential employers. Holly Harris, Executive Director for the US Justice Action Network, says people getting out of jail need opportunities to help reduce the recidivism rate.
Another proposal would establish three new “reentry courts” in the state, in addition to 9 that are already in place. The new programs would be established in Houma, Lake Charles, and Livingston. Harris says these programs are essential to criminals who are trying to get their lives back on track.
One of the bills would encourage people to become mentors to offenders who are under court supervision. Harris says there are of other ways Louisiana can reduce its incarceration numbers down.
Cut 9 (06) “sentencing reform”
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There are only two weeks left until Tax Day, which is April 18, and time is running out to file federal taxes. IRS Spokesperson Lea Crusberg says usually April 15th is the deadline, but those who like to wait until the last minute have a couple of extra days to work with.
Crusberg advises people not to get in a hurry filing taxes, because careless mistakes can be made, like forgetting to sign or putting the wrong social security number on their return. She says filing taxes electronically can help avoid these errors.
Crusberg says people who make less than $62-thousand a year are eligible for free electronic filing. She says those individuals who live in one of the 30 parishes that have been declared a federal disaster area are allowed to file after April 18th and that information can be found at I-R-S-dot-gov.
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Governor John Bel Edwards has told state Democratic Party leaders to get behind Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell in the US Senate race. UL Lafayette political science professor Pearson Cross says Edwards endorsement of the populist politician from north Louisiana is a real boost for his campaign….
Edwards says Campbell has shown he can win elections when people don’t believe a Democrat can or should win. But Cross says Edwards endorsement does not guarantee a spot in the runoff, because this will be a race that will focus on national issues…
Cross says Edwards endorsement does not bode well for the other prominent Democrat in the race, New Orleans lawyer Caroline Fayard, who comes from a family that’s been long supported by the Democratic Party….
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There’s about two more weeks to go in spring football and LSU Coach
Les Miles likes the improvement from his quarterbacks. Brandon
Harris, Danny Etling and Justin McMilan each completed passes for a high
percentage in a scrimmage on Saturday, with Harris leading the trio with
246 passing yards. Miles says there’s more confidence with the group…
Cut 16 (16) “good offense”
Miles liked what he saw from sophomore defensive end Arden Key, who had
six tackles and one sack. The coach freshman linebacker Devin White from
North Webster High School was also impressive…
Miles says the story of Saturday’s scrimmage was the play of the
quarterbacks…