A House committee approves a Republican-led resolution that would suspend the Governor’s authority to enforce the stay at home order. House Republican Caucus Chairman Blake Miguez of Erath is the author of the measure and argued local governments should establish COVID restrictions, not the Governor.
Cut 10 (11) “…to lives”
Democrats on the committee oppose the resolution. New Orleans Representative Royce Duplessis says the virus doesn’t respect parish lines…
Cut 13 (13) “…that?.”
Despite this argument, the panel sent the resolution to the House floor on a nine to seven vote. If Governor Edwards does not extend the stay at home order, Miguez says he will not push the resolution any further.

Notable names from around Louisiana are joining together to support “Feeding Louisiana Love,” a social media campaign aimed at raising awareness and funding for food banks. Feeding Louisiana executive director Korey Patty says 773,000 Louisiana residents struggle with food security under normal circumstances.
Cut 3 (12) “…especially providing food.”
Notable musicians Amanda Shaw and Hunter Hayes are among those participating with the social media campaign.

The Louisiana Public Health Institute and state health department will host a tele-town hall this afternoon called “COVID-19, Preparing for the next phase. L-D-H Deputy Director Earl Benjamin-Robinson says they’ll discuss a phased re-opening approach and answer questions from the community. It will start at four PM for the Greater Monroe area. For more info go to L-P-H-I-dot org.

A resolution aimed at ending the Governor’s statewide stay at home order advances to the House floor. Matt Doyle has the story…
Cut 2 (45) “…I’m Matt Doyle”

And Edwards says it’s too early to predict whether Louisiana will be ready to enter phase one of re-opening the economy on May 16th.

The Senate Transportation Committee has begun their meeting. On the agenda is a bill to prohibit the use of a handheld telephone while driving. Covington Senator Patrick McMath says the goal is for drivers to have their hands on the wheel and not on their phone…
cut 8 (08) “…your voice”

The Louisiana Public Health Institute and Department of Health are hosting a regional series of tele-town halls with two taking place today. Brooke Thorington has the story.
Cut 1 (31) “I’m Brooke Thorington.”

After a lengthy and tense debate, a House committee approved Erath Republican Blake Miguez’s resolution that takes the teeth out of Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards’ stay at home order…
cut 29 (07) “…those rules”
House Concurrent Resolution 58 passed on a nine to seven vote and heads to the House floor for more debate. Here’s Governor Edwards’ reaction…
cut 11 (06) “…resolution”
But there are many business owners who are frustrated with the length of the economic shutdown, including this one from Jefferson Parish, who went before the panel…
cut 12 (08) “…fiasco”
Edwards said it’s too early to determine if the state will move to phase one of reopening on May 16th.

The number of coronavirus cases in Louisiana has surpassed 30-thousand and some of those cases include children. Kevin Barnhart has more on that…
Cut 3 (30) “…I’m Kevin Barnhart”

The governor also said at his press briefing that the state has hired an additional 700 workers to staff call centers, under the supervision of epidemiologists, to assist in the state’s effort to conduct contact tracing. Edwards says he’ll release more details on the state’s plan for contact tracing tomorrow.

A Republican-led effort to prevent Governor Edwards from enforcing stay at home order restrictions won its first legislative battle yesterday when the House Governmental Affairs Committee approved the resolution. The proposal would give local governments the power to move forward with reopening based on guidance laid out by the federal government.

Many Republicans have criticized the governor’s decision to extend the Stay at Home order to May 15th, including Congressman Garret Graves, who accuses the governor of trying to derail the President’s re-election effort. …
cut 14 (12) “…being played”
But Edwards’ executive counsel Matthew Block says the President supported the extension and a premature easing of restrictions would be costly…
cut 15 (11) “….nothing”

The Senate Transportation Committee hears legislation today that would prohibit drivers from using a handheld phone while driving a vehicle. Covington Senator Patrick McMath says his proposal would not prevent a driver from talking on the phone or answering a call….
cut 9 (07) “…your car”
Similiar bills such as this one have failed to receive legislative support.

The Louisiana Public Health Institute and the Louisiana Department of Health are holding a series of regional tele-town halls on COVID-19. Earl Benjamin-Robinson says the goal of these informational sessions is to educate the community about COVID-19 response measures….
cut 6 (09) “…social distancing”
One of the tele-halls is today at 4 PM for Monroe area residents. Got to L-P-H-I-dot-org for more information.

A House committee approves a Republican-led resolution that would suspend the Governor’s authority to enforce the stay at home order. House Republican Caucus Chairman Blake Miguez of Erath is the author of the measure and argued local governments should establish COVID restrictions, not the Governor.
Cut 10 (11) “…to lives”
Democrats on the committee oppose the resolution. New Orleans Representative Royce Duplessis says the virus doesn’t respect parish lines…
Cut 13 (13) “…that?.”
Despite this argument, the panel sent the resolution to the House floor on a nine to seven vote. If Governor Edwards does not extend the stay at home order, Miguez says he will not push the resolution any further.

Today at the Capitol, the Senate Transportation Committee hears a bill to prohibit the use of a handheld wireless telecommunications device while driving. Covington Senator Patrick McMath says his proposal would reduce crashes on Louisiana roadways…
cut 7 (12) “….a movie”
The meeting begins at 10 AM.

The Louisiana Public Health Institute and state health department will host two tele-town halls today called “COVID-19, Preparing for the next phase. Earl Benjamin-Robinson is a deputy director with L-D-H and he says they’ll discuss a phased re-opening approach and answer questions from the community….
cut 5 (12) “…answer those questions”
A tele-town hall will start at 11 AM for the Baton Rouge Area and four PM for the Greater Monroe area. For more info go to L-P-H-I-dot org.

After a lengthy and tense debate, a House committee approved Erath Republican Blake Miguez’s resolution that takes the teeth out of Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards’s stay at home order…
cut 29 (07) “…those rules”
House Concurrent Resolution 58 passed on a nine to seven vote and heads to the House floor for more debate. Here’s Governor Edwards’ reaction…
cut 11 (06) “…resolution”
Edwards says his decision to extend the stay at home order to May 15th has the support of the White House. But Republican Congressman Garret Graves accused the governor on a Baton Rouge radio station (Mornings with Brian Haldane) of trying to derail the President’s re-election effort…
cut 14 (12) “…being played”

The Louisiana Public Health Institute and Department of Health are hosting a regional series of tele-town halls with two taking place today. Deputy Director of LDH’s Office of Community Partnerships and Health Equity Earl Benjamin-Robinson will serve as a moderator and says the events will help calm uncertainties.
Cut 4 (10)_ “…where resources are.”
There will be a tele-town hall at 11 AM for Baton Rouge area residents and then another one for the Greater Monroe area at 4 PM. For a complete list of these town halls and how to participate go to L-P-H-I-dot-org.

The Senate Insurance Committee rejected legislation today prohibiting auto insurance rate making based on gender, credit score, and whether a person is a widow. Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon opposed the legislation and says the bills will not lower our rates, which are among the highest in the nation…
cut 13 (08) “…. the amount of money”
Alexandria Senator Jay Luneau brought the legislation forward and is disappointed with the outcome. But he scored one victory. His bill prohibits insurance providers from setting rates based on whether a person in the military is deployed for more than six months….
cut 15 (08) “…laughter”
The bill that prevents higher rates for deployed soldiers heads to the Senate floor for more discussion.

The governor’s stay at home order is not keeping people away from Grand Isle…
Cut 2 (28) “…I’m Matt Doyle”

Murder Hornets have arrived in the United States from Asia. They’ve been spotted in Washington State. LSU AgCenter entomologist Kristen Healey says the risk of them getting to Louisiana is low and she explains how the insect got its name…
cut 4 (07) “…matter of hours”
Human deaths have been attributed to the murder hornet, but Healey says those are normally linked to an allergic reaction.