The American Farm Bureau Federation says based on its survey the cost of a home-cooked Thanksgiving dinner is about two dollars cheaper this year. Taylor Sharp spoke with Louisiana Farm Burea Association spokesperson Avery Davidson
Cut 1 (31) “ I’m Taylor Sharp”
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In the spring, state lawmakers will likely debate a bill that would raise 300 million dollars a year for road and bridge work by increasing the gas tax. Matt Doyle has more.
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A national survey conducted by the American Farm Bureau Federation finds the cost of the Thanksgiving dinner is slightly lower this year. Louisiana Farm Bureau spokesperson Avery Davidson says the cost of a Thanksgiving dinner at home will cost you two dollars less…
A reason for the decline is that turkeys are a little cheaper this year…
Even though the overall cost is down, Davidson says there are some side dishes that could cost more than normal.
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Car dealers were bracing for a rough year, however, president of the Louisiana Automobile Dealers Association Will Green says it was not as bad as anticipated. Green says they’ve sold more vehicles than expected because consumers bought cars to avoid public transportation and dealers offered great incentives.
Green says dealers adjusting to serve customers in the pandemic made a difference, like offering more incentives and low-interest rates along with improving the digital retail experience of automobiles.
Cut 7 (12) “…anticipated year.”
Green says many don’t understand the domino effect of auto sales, for example, if a plant or parts center is not operating at full capacity due to the pandemic, you’ll see fewer cars on the lot for sale.
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Ragin Cajuns Coach Billy Napier says he’s feeling better after testing positive for COVID-19 last week. The school says Napier began to exhibit symptoms on Tuesday night and the 41-year-old says it got worse on Thursday
Napier says Friday is the last day of isolation and he plans to travel separately from the team to Monroe for Saturday’s game against the ULM Warhawks. The coach says he now feels like a million bucks, but remains away from the team…
Napier says the hardest part is not being able to attend practice. The coach believes he caught the virus while coaching the Cajuns to a win over South Alabama on November 14th…
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Winnfield Representative Jack McFarland will introduce legislation in next year’s session to raise money to fix state roads and bridges via a gas tax increase.
McFarlands’ bill would raise the gas tax ten cents a gallon initially, and two cents per year until 2033, ultimately raising about 300 million dollars. McFarland says he needs the public’s trust.
Senate President Page Cortez has voiced skepticism that any gas tax increases will pass during his four-year term. The state gas tax currently sits at 20 cents a gallon, the 7th lowest in the nation as of July according to the Tax Foundation. Passage would require approval from two-thirds of the House and Senate.
The bill is called the Government Reform and Transportation Act. McFarland says along with raising the taxes it also seeks input from lawmakers on ways to reform DOTD.
McFarland says Louisiana’s crumbling roads and bridges are driving new and existing businesses away, and without new funds, DOTD is set to run out of money.
Louisiana currently has a 14 billion dollar backlog of road and bridgework. Within the last year Arkansas, Texas, and Mississippi have all passed tax increases of one kind or another aimed at funding road work.