There are some encouraging upticks in the oil and gas industry, according to the Louisiana Oil and Gas Association. Halen Doughty has more…
CUT 1 (30) “I’m Halen Doughty”
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The Louisiana Right to Life says the state’s abortion rate dropped 10-percent from 2014 to 2015 based on data from the Louisiana Department of Health. Emelie Gunn has more…
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Lawmakers have raised $220 million in taxes during this second special session, and that may be all they can agree to do. Jeff Palermo has more…
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The head of the Louisiana Oil and Gas Association says there are some encouraging signs for the struggling industry. LOGA President Don Briggs says one positive sign is that oil prices are near 50-dollars a barrel, after falling to 26-dollars in February.
Briggs says they hope the price can rise some more during the second half of 2016, because of the break-even point for the industry is between 60-and-70-dollars a barrel. He says the price of natural gas is also up, which is particularly good for the northwestern part of the state.
Cut 5 (12) “Haynesville shale”
Briggs says natural gas is used to power air conditioners, so a hot summer will be good.
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The number of abortions that took place in 2015 fell 10-percent from the previous year. That’s based on numbers from the Louisiana Department of Health. Louisiana Right to Life spokesperson Ben Clapper says there were 93-hundred abortions last year, a decrease of about a thousand from the previous year. He credits pregnancy resource centers for the decline….
Clapper says Caddo Parish had the highest number of abortions in a single parish with 34-hundred. He says based on 2015 data, about 26 abortions are performed every day in Louisiana.
Cut 8 (10) “considering abortions”
Clapper says the number of abortions could drop even further in 2016, if the U.S. Supreme Court rules later this month that abortion doctors need to have admitting privileges at a hospital.
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Louisiana has the third worst roads in the country, according to a new report from CarInsurance.com. Oklahoma came in 49th on the list, and California finished last. Michelle Megna with CarInsurance.com says poor quality roads had a big impact on the state’s low rating.
The report also indicates that 29% of bridges in the state are classified as structurally deficient. Megna says Louisiana is also the second worst in the nation for how much drivers spend on their car insurance.
Megna says almost 14% of Louisiana drivers do not have auto insurance. She says the report also looked at how many hours drivers spend stuck in traffic during their daily commutes.
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It looks like the appetite just isn’t there for lawmakers to raise any more taxes. Governor John Bel Edwards asked legislators to increase revenue by 600-million dollars in this special session, but it appears the legislature will fall way short of that figure. Alexandria Representative Lance Harris says many lawmakers believe they’ve raised enough revenue.
Last night, state representatives failed to pass a measure that would limit excess itemized deductions in personal income taxes, which would have raised an additional 60-million dollars. So far in this session, the legislature has approved tax changes that would generate 220-million dollars. Harris says this money will be spread around to cover shortfalls in TOPS, education and health care services.
The special session concludes at midnight on Thursday. Governor John Bel Edwards remains hopeful the House will agree to a Senate-approved bill that would force huge industrial businesses to choose between one of two tax credits they currently receive. The measure faces opposition from business groups. Edwards says the legislature needs to do what’s best for the state, not lobbyists…
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