The special session sees lawmakers take on a series of proposals aimed at assisting businesses crippled by the COVID shutdown. Matt Doyle has more.
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Louisiana enters Phase Two Friday and that means more access to more of your favorite businesses. Matt Doyle the story.
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LSU outlines a roadmap to the return to physical class settings this fall. Kevin Barnhart has the story.
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The special session has begun and lawmakers are set to tangle over proposals aimed at rebooting the state’s economy.
Chairman of the Louisiana Economic Recovery Task Force Jason Decuir says first up is codifying relief passed by executive order during the early days of the pandemic, and then things like…
Legislators will also consider a temporary, and possibly permanent repeal of the franchise tax.
Tax, fee, and regulatory assistance for business will not come free, but Decuir says despite our current budget woes the cost of inaction will ultimately be even higher.
41 items were scheduled to be discussed when the call for the special session was first made.
Decuir says many of the proposals are aimed at helping businesses that were closed under the stay at home order, but if possible the scope of this state assistance needs to expand.
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Starting Friday restaurants can operate at 50 capacity and bars can open in a limited fashion as the state enters Phase Two.
Assistant Health Secretary Doctor Alex Billioux says the 50 percent capacity in restaurants still requires groups to be seated six feet apart.
He notes “high risk” individuals should still treat this as Phase Zero and continue to isolate themselves.
Billioux notes normal bar settings are high risk for COVID transmission so they’ll only be allowed to open at 25 percent capacity with a six-foot separation between groups.
Bars with LDH food permits will be allowed to operate as restaurants.
Billioux says bars aren’t the only new businesses that can open. He notes children’s museums can open in a controlled manner, along with…
The state will remain in Phase Two at least until June 26th.
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LSU outlines a roadmap to the return to physical class settings this fall. Cleaning, handwashing, and physical distancing will see a continued emphasis. LSU Interim President Thomas Galligan expects the CDC will also still recommend face coverings, so the university will contribute to that need.
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LSU also plans to test 10 to 16 percent of the populations of the campuses statewide for the virus this fall, with voluntary participants selected at random.
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Anti-body testing will be offered to employees who are returning to campus in phases. LSU also hopes to launch a mobile app that would include a symptom checker for users and a contact tracing function.
The current plans would see the fall semester starting on schedule. Galligan says they are exploring the idea of holding physical classes on campus through Thanksgiving, then after the holiday, using online courses to finish the semester.
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Legislation aimed at lowering auto insurance rates by enacting lawsuit reform is headed to the Governor’s desk.
Bill sponsor River Ridge Senator Kirk Talbot says the bill brings our legal climate in line with other states. He pointed to an exchange he had with Nationwide as evidence of how badly the bill was needed…
The bill extends the prescriptive period for filing suits and lowers the jury trial threshold to 10,000 dollars among other changes.
Monroe Senator Katrina Jackson voted against the bill. She says the bill does not address the reasons why our auto insurance is the second-highest in the nation.
Proponents argue the legislation is written to require at least a ten percent reduction in rates if passed.
Amite Representative Robby Carter says the GOP lawmakers refused to compromise on the legislation with plaintiffs’ attorneys who represent those who stand to lose the most under lawsuit reform.
The legislation cleared the Senate with a veto-proof majority but fell four votes short in the House. Governor Edwards has indicated he does not support the bill, which may lead to a veto.
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LSU announces it will play Grambling and Southern for the first time ever in football. The Tigers will host the Jaguars in 2022 and in 2023 Grambling will travel to Tiger Stadium. LSU’s Executive Deputy Athletics Director Verge Ausberry says after a weekend of civil unrest, they thought it was appropriate to announce these future match-ups against tradition-rich black college football programs
Ausberry says they began discussing with Southern and Grambling a couple of years ago about playing these schools in football. He knows the fan bases for these two schools will be fired up to see their teams play in Tiger Stadium…
The games mean Southern and Grambling will receive big paychecks to play LSU in football. Ausberry says if they are playing an F-C-S school, they’d like it to be an in-state school, especially schools like Southern and Grambling who have great college football traditions