The House Ways and Means Committee has approved a series of tax relief bills for Louisiana businesses worth millions of dollars. Chairman of the Louisiana Economic Recovery Task Force Jason Decuir says the state owes it to these businesses after many were ordered closed for weeks.
Cut 13 (08) “…safe”
One of the bills that passed would suspend franchise taxes for small businesses.

LSU professors are tracking COVID-19 in wastewater in Baton Rouge through a science called sewer epidemiology. Civil and environmental engineering professor Dr. John Pardue says coronavirus patents shed the virus in their fecal matter and testing wastewater from various areas in the parish can see how many cases exist.
Cut 7 (08) “…get pretty precise.”
Pardue says Houston, Oregon and Michigan are doing similar testing.

The ongoing special session does not allow lawmakers to file bills that seek to reform police practices, but Baton Rouge Senator Cleo Fields says the legislation will come up in either a special session in the fall or the 2021 regular legislative session. Fields says he will propose a ban on the use of chokeholds by law enforcement, routine psychological testing for both prospective and current officers and new regulations for body cameras.
Cut 6 (12) “…in real-time.”

Governor Edwards has signed legislation that would put an end to higher auto insurance rates for military members who return from a deployment. Alexandria Senator Jay Luneau says it’s a great piece of legislation….
cut 11 (08) “…overseas”

Baton Rouge Senator Cleo Fields plans to file police reform legislation in a future session and in the current special session he’s authored a resolution to create a Task Force to study police practices…
Cut 1 (31) “I’m Brooke Thorington”

Opelousas Police Sergeant Tyron Andrepont is facing five felony charges of malfeasance for allegedly beating up a black teenager last fall in a hospital. Andrepont, who is white, has been on paid administrative leave since November.

Governor John Bel Edwards has signed legislation that ends what is called the Patriot Penalty. Service members pay higher auto insurance costs when renewing their policies after coming back home following deployment. Alexandria Senator Jay Luneau authored this legislation to end this practice but wishes his other rate reduction bills passed as well…
cut 12 (10) “…drive more”

LSU researchers are using what is known as sewer epidemiology as a way to track community spread of the coronavirus in Baton Rouge. LSU Civil and Environmental Engineering Professor John Pardue says you can track the spread of the virus through human waste in the sewers…
cut 8 (11) “…about to come”
Pardue says COVID-19 patients shed the virus in fecal matter.

Bills that would provide businesses with various tax breaks have been approved by the House Ways and Means Committee. Democrats on th panel raised concerns that the state can not afford tax cuts at a time of declining revenues. Lafayette Representative Stuart Bishop disagrees…
cut 15 (10) “…leave”
According to the Associated Press, the proposals would provide 130-million dollars in tax cuts over five years.

He can’t do it in this special session, but Baton Rouge Senator Cleo Fields is looking at filing legislation for an upcoming session that would require certain policy changes for Louisiana police officers. Fields says a duty to intervene among officers is one proposed policy change…
cut 5 (08) “….or procedures”
Fields says he’ll also file a bill that would ban the use of chokeholds by Louisiana law enforcement.

The University of Louisiana at Monroe says they’ve placed two faculty members on administrative leave after they posted racial slurs on their personal social media pages. The school says a termination letter has been sent to Biology professor Dennis Bell and they are in the process of firing Nursing instructor Mary Holmes.

LSU researchers are tracking COVID-19 cases in Baton Rouge through wastewater testing. Kevin Barnhart has the story.
Cut 2 (31) “…I’m Kevin Barnhart”

New Orleans will move into phase two of coronavirus pandemic restrictions on Saturday which means bars can reopen on Bourbon Street and Harrah’s Casino in New Orleans can also welcome gamblers back.

The House Ways and Means Committee approves a series of bills that reduces the tax burden for Louisiana businesses. Matt Doyle has more.
Cut 3 (30) “…I’m Matt Doyle”

Governor Edwards has signed a bill that would ban vaping in vehicles with children riding as passengers.

The ongoing special session does not allow lawmakers to file bills that seek to reform police practices. But Baton Rouge Senator Cleo Fields says he has a series of bills in mind that will be introduced in either a special session in the fall or in next year’s regular legislative session. Fields says he will propose a statewide ban on the use of chokeholds by law enforcement, routine psychological testing for both prospective and current officers and new regulations for body cameras.
Cut 6 (12) “…in real-time.”

KSLA-TV has uncovered video of Shreveport police officers punching and tasing 44-year-old Tommie McGlothen who evenutally died while in custody in April. The coroner has ruled McGlothen died of excited delirium, but his death could have been prevented if he received immediate medical care. The four officers invovled have been put on departmental leave.

Legislation that provides businesses with tax breaks has advanced out of the House Ways and Means Committee. These proposals do not have the full support of the Edwards Administration, because it will mean less revenue for state services. Revenue Secretary Kimberly Robinson…
cut 14 (10) “….session”
Supporters say the legislation is needed to help businesses struggling after the COVID shutdown.

Baton Rouge Senator Cleo Fields plans to file police reform legislation in response to George Floyd’s death. However, the current special session is limited to specific legislation that was outlined before Floyd’s death. But he has filed a resolution to create a 15-member task force to study police practices.
Cut 4 (07) “…so to speak.”
As for police reform legislation, Fields encourages police departments to act now before he introduces his bill in a possible special session in the fall or in the 2021 regular session. He wants to see policies that include a “duty to intervene” among officers.

LSU professors are testing wastewater from various areas in East Baton Rouge parish as a way to track COVID-19 cases in the capital city area. LSU Civil and Environmental Engineering Professor John Pardue says COVID-19 patients shed the virus in fecal matter and continue to shed the virus for up to five weeks after negative respiratory samples. He says sewer epidemiology is not a new science and is used to track other metrics…
cut 9 (12) “….are doing that”
Environmental engineering faculty from universities in Houston, Oregon, and Michigan are doing similar tests.

Caddo Parish Coroner Doctor Todd Thoma says 44-year-old Tommie McGlothen Junior’s death in the back of a Shreveport Police patrol car in April, could have been preventable. McGlothen was involved in a physical altercation with a citizen and police officers, but Thoma says McGlothen ended up dying of excited delirium…
cut 5 (11) “…rapidly fatal”
The four arresting officers have been put on departmental leave.

Accused serial killer Ryan Sharpe will get a new trial as an East Feliciana Parish judge has voided his conviction, because it was not unanimous. Authorities say Sharpe fatally shot three people and injured another person during a 2017 shooting spree. Sharpe’s Attorney Tommy Damico believes Sharpe was insane at the time…
cut 13 (13) “…insanity”

Arkansas, Mississippi, and Texas are among 14 states that are reporting their highest-ever seven-day average of coronavirus cases. Louisiana is not one of those 14 states. Governor John Bel Edwards…
cut 10 (10) “…there”
Louisiana reported over 500 new cases today and 13 additional deaths.

Since the Memorial Day weekend, four people have drowned in Grand Isle while swimming just off the beach. Police Chief Laine Landry says they’ve responded to to 11 calls for water rescues over the last two weeks and there are some contributing factors…
cut 7 (12) “….for beach protection”
Landry says they are asking beachgoers to be vigilant about the strong currents.