Governor Edwards put a cap on what may have been the least contentious legislative session of his four year tenure. Matt Doyle has more…
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The 2019 Legislative session wrapped up yesterday at 6pm. Kevin Barnhart looks at what happened in the final moments before adjournment.
Cut 2 (30) “…I’m Kevin Barnhart.”
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Louisiana farmers could be planting hemp by early next year after a legalization effort is signed into law. Matt Doyle has the story.
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The opening of the Morganza Spillway has been pushed back again, this time with no new date set. Army Corps of Engineers spokesperson Ricky Boyett says the river levels are coming in a little lower than originally projected.
Cut 4 (10) “…on a daily basis.”
Boyett says it is possible the opening will still have to take place depending on weather conditions producing a rain event that requires the operation. Officials are monitoring the levels on at the Red River Landing, which is north of the spillway, to make sure the river level does not surpass the 62-foot mark.
Cut 5 (05) “…Morganza control structure.”
Boyett says the Corps is working as a 24/7 operation inspecting the levee to make sure the structure is in good shape.
Cut 6 (09) “…address any issues.”
The postponement is good news for farmers whose crops would have been lost by spillway flooding. Nearly a third of the 112 square miles of the spillway is used as farmland.
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Governor Edwards celebrated the end of the first legislative season of his tenure to not feature special sessions and says the passage of most of his legislative agenda points the state in the right direction.
Edwards says the over 300-million-dollar surplus the state ran last year made for smoother sailing when crafting a budget, as opposed to previous years’ fiscal chaos…
Opponents say the surplus is evidence that the Legislature did not need to pass a .45 percent sales tax renewal last year.
The Governor took a victory lap on his flagship proposal to secure a 1,000 dollar teacher pay raise and 39 million in new K-12 spending. Opponents fought the 39 million, preferring to invest more in early childhood education, but Edwards says in the end they got the best of both worlds…
Higher ed also received 47.2 million more dollars in this year’s budget than last year’s.
But it wasn’t all wins. Despite making it a campaign pledge in 2015, Edwards failed for the fourth year in a row to win a minimum wage increase, and Louisiana remains one of the few states at the 7.25 an hour federal minimum…
Edwards backed a proposal to raise the minimum to nine dollars an hour.
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The 2019 Legislative session is in the books. House Republican Chairman Lance Harris feels overall it’s been a great session. Harris says among the most positive pieces of legislation was the controversial fetal heartbeat abortion ban, which has already been signed into law by Governor Edwards.
Cut 10 (09) “…thoughts and beliefs.”
However, Harris says there were some measures that for one reason or another didn’t make it through the session. Among them, the effort to save Louisiana drivers money on their auto insurance rates.
Cut 11 (10) “…in the country.”
Harris was in favor or making an effort to also save Louisiana taxpayers money by lowering the state’s sales tax rate. That effort ultimately failed this session.
Cut 12 (11) “…again next year.”
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Governor Edwards signs industrial hemp legalization into law, potentially clearing a path for the first crop in Louisiana to be planted early next year.
Ag Commissioner Mike Strain says if everything goes according to plan, Louisiana will join dozens of other states for the next planting season.
The feds are expected to release their requirements for hemp regulation later this year.
Strain says even though there was an extensive discussion of what hemp legalization would look like in the legislature, parties involves will still have to sign off on a final plan before the feds can OK it.
There were some concerns early in the process about a lack of research involving hemp growth in Louisiana. Strain says because the plant is just now becoming legal, it may take a few years for our growers to get access to optimal varieties of the plant.
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LSU and Florida State will meet tomorrow in a best of three Super Regional Series. The winner will advance to the College World Series. The Seminoles shocked college baseball observers by easily winning the Athens Regional. Tigers Coach Paul Mainieri says F-S-U hit .375 and smacked 10 home runs during their three games at Georgia
LSU center fielder Zach Watson swung a hot bat last weekend as he hit two home runs. Watson says he likes the feel of postseason baseball…