Governor Landry is going to have another tough sell on his hands with the L-A GATOR program. That’s the voucher program that provides tax dollars to allow parents to, among other things, send their kids to private schools. Senate President Cameron Henry is looking to keep funding at 43.5-million dollars, while Landry wants to double it. But Henry says the program is too new to know whether it’s worth doing that.

Cut 14 (11) “…it every year.”

Now that Tony the crawfish has been pardoned, crawfish season is officially underway – and that means it’s time to start tracking crawfish prices. Laney King is the co-founder of The Crawfish App. ($4.50/lb. for live crawfish; $7.25/lb. for boiled crawfish)

Cut 9 (11)  “…for boiled crawfish.”

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Governor Landry wants to shift West Feliciana Parish’s federal judicial districts. Andre Champagne reports while Landry stated his reason to Congress, there’s an ulterior motive in play.

Cut 1 (35) “…I’m Andre Champagne.”

LSU men’s basketball looks for its second straight win as the Tigers host Oklahoma at 5 PM. LSU is 3-and-12 in the SEC, while the Sooners are 4-and-11.  In other action today, Louisiana Tech hosts F-I-U at 2 PM.  Southern hosts the best team in the SWAC, Bethune-Cookman at 2:30. Grambling is also home today as the Tigers take on Florida A-and-M.

Governor Landry will have a tough sell on his hands with the program that provides tax dollars that among other things, allows parents to send their kids to private schools. The governor wants to double funding for the LA-Gator program. But Senate President Cameron Henry wants to keep it the same.

Cut 13 (07) “…it’s not sustainable.”

Crawfish season is officially underway. Laney King is the co-founder of The Crawfish App and says the official start of crawfish season is a big reason why prices are down at least a dollar a pound over the last two to three weeks.

Cut 10 (09) “…sell to us.”

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Three vital members of the state’s ag industry were inducted into the Louisiana Agricultural Hall of Distinction in a ceremony hosted by the Louisiana Radio Network. David Cupp has spent 45 years working in the forestry industry

Cut 6 (09) “…faboulous.”

Billy Rogers Leonard owns Integrated Crop Consulting and has spent over 35 years working for the LSU Ag Center, on scientific and technical articles and mentoring dozens of grad students…

Cut 7 (12) “…to be here.”

A Titan in the sugar industry, Simon has led research efforts, secured funding for sugar producers, and played a big role in U-S and Mexico’s sugar trade agreements.

Cut 8 (11) “…be recognized.”

Crawfish season is officially here, and that means we begin monitoring crawfish prices. Andrew Greenstein reports.

Cut 2 (35) “…I’m Andrew Greenstein.”

The second-ranked LSU baseball team didn’t play it’s best last night.  The Tigers only had five hits, but they beat Dartmouth 5 to 2. LSU plays Northeastern today at 2 PM.  In other action, Louisiana Tech fell to 12th-ranked Southern Miss eight to three. And the Cajuns seven game winning streak ended as they lost to U-C San Diego seven-to-three.

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Governor Landry is asking Congress to shift West Feliciana Parish’s federal judicial district from the Middle District to the Western District. In a letter to lawmakers, Landry stated that his reason is to ease the caseload in a district with a growing population. However, legal analyst Franz Borghardt says Landry has an ulterior motive – to shift cases involving prisoners at Angola to court where he could get more favorable rulings.

Cut 3 (09) “…the Middle District.”

All judges in the Middle district were appointed by Obama, whereas the vast majority of the judges in the Western District were appointed by Trump. Borghardt says once confirmed to the federal bench, that’s when politics are supposed to come to an end.

Cut 4 (08) “…run for re-election.”

It will require an act of Congress to approve Landry’s request; Borghardt says approval is far from guaranteed.

Governor Landry wants to shift West Feliciana Parish’s federal judicial districts. Andre Champagne reports while Landry stated his reason to Congress, there’s an ulterior motive in play.

Cut 1 (35) “…I’m Andre Champagne.”

Detectives with the Rapides Parish Sheriff’s Office arrested a 19-year-old Alexandria man this week in connection with a February 19^th shooting on there.  We’re told 19 year old Kendale Codray Wilkins was tracked to a residence on Live Oak Street, there he was arrested without incident.

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Governor Landry is going to have another tough sell on his hands with the L-A GATOR program. That’s the voucher program that provides tax dollars to allow parents to, among other things, send their kids to private schools. Senate President Cameron Henry is looking to keep funding at 43.5-million dollars, while Landry wants to bump it to 88-million, which Henry says is untenable.

Cut 12 (07) “…to stop it.”

Now that Tony the crawfish has been pardoned, crawfish season is officially underway – and that means it’s time to start tracking crawfish prices. Laney King is the co-founder of The Crawfish App. ($4.50/lb. for live crawfish; $7.25/lb. for boiled crawfish)

Cut 9 (11)  “…for boiled crawfish.”

Though prices now are about $1.50 a pound higher than what they typically are at the official outset of crawfish season, King says she expects them to come down about $2.50 a pound between now and Mother’s Day.

One Louisiana lawmaker is making another run at raising the minimum wage in our state.  Democrat Delisha Boyd tried two years ago to raise it to 15 dollars an hour, but now she’s proposing raising it gradually up to ten dollars next year, then 12 in 2028, then 14 an hour an hour in 2031.

Cut 5 (07) “…the minimum wage.”

Right now, Louisiana’s minimum wage follows the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, which has remained the same for seventeen years.

If one New Orleans-area lawmaker has his way, state lawmakers will come out of the upcoming legislative session with a proposed constitutional amendment that would put a lifetime limit of two terms on a person who has served as governor. St. Bernard Parish Republican Michael Bayham’s legislation would mean that former governors Bobby Jindal and John Bel Edwards could not serve as governor again, but…

Cut 11 (11) “…set going forward.”

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Crawfish season officially opened yesterday with one lucky mudbug. Colleen Crain has more.

Cut 3 (31) “…I’m Colleen Crain.”

In an effort to reduce its ongoing budget deficit, the City of New Orleans is selling city-owned cars. New Orleans Chief Administrative Officer Joe Giarrusso has said the selling of the vehicles was part of a campaign promise from Mayor Helena Moreno. So far, the city has reportedly sold 46 cars, at a profit of $64- thousand dollars.

One New Orleans lawmaker is taking another run at trying to get a minimum wage increase in Louisiana. Andrew Greenstein reports.

Cut 1 (35) “…I’m Andrew Greenstein.”

Wind Advisories remain in effect in many parts of Louisiana today and the threat of fires remains high. Ag and Forestry Commissioner, Mike Strain, says crews have battled more than 40 wildfires in Southeast and Northwest Louisiana since the weekend.  Two more forest fires broke out in Beauregard Parish just yesterday. Burn bans are in effect in many parts of the state.

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A New Orleans-area lawmaker has offered up a proposed constitutional amendment for the upcoming legislative session that would place a lifetime limit of two terms on a person who has served as governor. St. Bernard Parish Republican Michael Bayham’s legislation would mean that former governors Bobby Jindal and John Bel Edwards could not serve as governor again.

Cut 10 (08) “…across the board.”

The help wanted sign is already out for Amazon’s new 12-billion dollar data center campus in the Shreveport-Bossier City Area.  North Louisiana Economic Partnership President and CEO Justyn Dixon says there will be hundreds, many paying above 80-thousand a year…and he doesn’t expect Amazon to have to look far to fill those positions.

Cut 8 (08) “…taken up here.”

A south Louisiana lawmaker believes Louisiana’s governor should serve two terms and that’s it. Jeff Palermo has the story.

Cut 2 (31) “…I’m Jeff Palermo.”

A state representative from New Orleans is trying again to raise the minimum wage in Louisiana. Democrat Delisha Boyd tried two years ago to raise it to 15 dollars an hour, but that failed. This time, she’s trying a different approach.

Cut 4 (10) “…14 an hour.”

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The announcement of Amazon investing 12-billion dollars on a data center campus in the Shreveport-Bossier City area is still the buzz of the region – and now, the help wanted sign is already out. Amazon has already started posting positions at the data center on its website. North Louisiana Economic Partnership President and CEO Justyn Dixon says there will be hundreds of jobs at very attractive salaries.

Cut 7 (09) “…two-year certifications.”

For the 10th year on the Tuesday after Mardi Gras, Louisiana officially kicked off crawfish season by pardoning one lucky mudbug. Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser granted the reprieve yesterday.

Cut 13 (08)  “…Tony the crawfish.” (applause fades)

Tony the crawfish, named for the legendary Tony Chachere (SASH-uh-ree), will live out his time at Chicot (“chico”) State Park in Ville Platte.

A Red Flag Warning is in effect for all of southeast Louisiana and southern Mississippi from 9 AM to 6 PM today due to critical fire conditions caused by low humidity and gusty winds.  That after several fires across the state caused problems over the weekend, including an active fire in St. Tammany Parish that shut down I-12 between Abita Springs and Lacombe in St. Tammany Parish for three hours.

President Trump has approved Governor Landry’s request for a Major Disaster declaration for nine parishes in north Louisiana from last month’s massive winter storm. Mike Steele with GOHSEP says the declaration does not cover individuals at this point. But he says those who did sustain damage to their properties should report it to damage-dot-la-dot-gov.

Cut 6 (07) “…the federal government.”

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A bill in the legislature could add an extra layer of protection in imports of certain seafood. Colleen Crain reports.

Cut 2 (35) “…I’m Colleen Crain.”

Ten Commandments posters will start going up in Louisiana classrooms now based on a Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled a lower court’s decision ruling them unconstitutional was premature.  Loyala Law professor Dan Ciolino says there are still lots of questions.

Cut 14 (08) “…dangerous of that.”

President Trump approves Governor Landry’s request for a Major Disaster Declaration for nine parishes impacted by last month’s winter storm. Here’s Andre Champagne.

Cut 1 (35) “…I’m Andre Champagne.”

One person was killed and two were injured in an “industrial accident” at a Belle Rose plant on Sunday.  Assumption Parish Office of Emergency Preparedness Director Paul LeBlanc says a crew was doing a routine pressure test on a brine well at the GIE plant off Grand Bayou Road when a loose hose struck three people, killing one. The other two were air lifted to the hospital.

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Louisiana classrooms are given the green light by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to put up Ten Commandments posters. This, after the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated a three-judge panel’s earlier decision that found the state law requiring those classroom displays to be unconstitutional. Loyola University law professor Dane Ciolino says the full Fifth Circuit did not overturn the ruling; it instead said it was too soon for it to rule on whether it is or not.

Cut 13 (09)  “…in the abstract.”

American Airlines adds an additional non-stop round-trip flight between Monroe Regional Airport and Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. Monroe Regional Airport Director Charles Butcher says locals were getting squeezed out of the seats on the three existing daily round trips to and from DFW.

Cut 11 (06) “…are flying in.”

Wildfires causing problems in in northwest and southeast Louisiana over the weekend.  A stretch of Interstate 12 in St. Tammany Parish was closed for three hours due to active wildfires. Officials announced the closure around 5:30 last night between Abita Springs and Lacombe, reopening around 9.  Meantime, in Livingston Parish, a fire burning near Gum Swamp Road is now under control after scorching more than 200 acres there over the weekend. And a wildfire in the Mora community burned an estimated 30 to 40 acres in southwest Natchitoches Parish yesterday. Thankfully, no injuries have been reported.

President Trump has approved Governor Landry’s request for a Major Disaster declaration for nine parishes in north Louisiana from last month’s massive winter storm. Mike Steele with GOHSEP…

Cut 4 (10) “…at this point.”

Steele says the costs incurred by governments have been wide-ranging, with much more still to come.

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Louisiana classrooms are given the green light to start putting up the Ten Commandments posters. Andrew Greenstein reports.

Cut 3 (35) “…I’m Andrew Greenstein.”

American Airlines adds an additional non-stop round-trip flight between Monroe Regional Airport and Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. Monroe Regional Airport Director Charles Butcher on what this will mean.

Cut 10 (11) “…into the area.”