A new poll gives Governor John Bel Edwards his highest approval rating since taking office in January of 2016. Jeff Palermo has more…
______________________________________
Tax reform is in, and that means big changes to the way Louisianans file taxes. Matt Doyle has more.
________________________________________________________
A Southern Media and Opinion Research poll finds Governor John Bel Edwards has his highest approval numbers since taking office nearly two years ago at 65-percent. It eclipses his previous high of 63-percent and is higher than the 54-percent approval rating in May. Pollster Bernie Pinsonat says timing is everything in politics…
His approval rating is higher than other statewide elected officials. Senators John Kennedy and Bill Cassidy received 51 and 45 percent respectively and Congressman Steve Scalise got a 55-percent approval rating. Pinsonat says it helps Edwards is away from the political division that’s happening in Washington D-C…
Governor Edwards is grateful for the trust the voters have placed in him. He says the first two years have seen it’s share of challenges with the budget, the 2016 floods and the recent audit of former State Police leader Mike Edmonson, but he is looking forward to the future…
Edwards hopes his high poll numbers will help him get his agenda accomplished…
_________________________________________________________
Nearly 64,000 Americans died last year from drug overdoses, leading to a decline in life expectancy for the second year in a row, according to the CDC. Health officials say the decrease is a result of the exploding opioid epidemic, and President and CEO of the Addiction Policy Forum, Jessica Hulsey Nickel, says the number of addicted Americans is growing…
Nickel says many young adults are dying from drug overdoses, and has caused to life expectancy rate to shrink…
Cut 8 (03) “every single day.”
Nickel says the crisis has been building for years, and the country is failing to address it…
According to the World Health Organization, The United states now ranks below several dozen other countries in average life expectancy.
________________________________________________________
Congress’s 1.5 trillion dollar tax overhaul has many wondering how this will impact their finances. The wholesale changes touch everything from investment returns to charitable donations, and radically alters tax season for most Louisianans. Baton Rouge area CPA Brandon Lagarde says the bill should lower taxes for most in the state…
Lgarde says despite Republican claims, the new changes won’t necessarily make tax season any simpler. He says the new tax code will keep CPAs busy…
Congress inserted a special provision to allow flood victims to deduct more of the damages suffered. Lagarde says this provision should be a boon for those still recovering from the 2016 floods…
Lagarde says business owners in particular will benefit the most from the changes.
_________________________________________________________
Cleco has named Bill Fontenot as the new CEO effective January 1st. Fontenot has been with the company for 31 years, working in various capacities including business development, commercial operations and utility operations. He says he’s honored to help keep the focus of the utility on their customers.
Fontenot’s family has a long history with the Pineville-based utility company. The father worked for the utility for over 30 years and son Bill followed in his footsteps. Fontenot says for Cleco to prosper, they need to keep supporting the communities they serve.
The utility is looking to solidify their reliability. Fontenot says he looks forward to upgrading the power grid to withstand natural disasters.
Cut 15 (12) “catastrophic conditions.”
Cleco serves about 288-thousand customers in Louisiana.