Louisiana’s Congressional delegation continues its push for flood recovery dollars. Congress is scheduled to recess at the end of the month and will not return until after the November election. Louisiana’s Senior Senator David Vitter says they are trying to get the federal appropriation passed this month….
cut 9 (06) “….that done”
Today, Vitter chairs a meeting of the Senate Small Business committee to discuss the federal response to the flood.

The over 350 individuals who remain at a shelter at the Baton Rouge River Center will be shifted to another shelter today, because the River Center needs its facility for upcoming events. American Red Cross spokesperson Vicki Eichstaedt says there’s lots of reasons why people having trouble finding a permanent housing solution…
cut 6 (10) “….security deposit”

Disney released a gumbo recipe video on Facebook that is driving Louisianans mad. The video has since been removed after receiving backlash for adding kale, quinoa (Keen-wah) and not even starting with a roux. KATC-TV Lafayette Production Assistant David Hilbun says his first thought when watching the video was it looks nothing like real gumbo…
cut 13 (10) “…to me”
Hilbun created a reaction video to Disney’s gumbo recipie video and it has about a million views.

Governor John Bel Edwards has created the Restore Louisiana Task Force to oversee flood recovery. Emelie Gunn has more…
voicer 1 (29) “….I”m Emelie Gunn”

State Senator Troy Brown pleaded “no contest” today to an allegation that he punched his longtime girlfriend in the eye. The incident took place at a New Orleans hotel following the Bayou Classic Football game. A judge handed Brown a suspended six month sentence after the plea. Brown represents parts of St Charles and St. John the Baptist parishes.

The Obama Administration has sent a $2.6 billion request to Congress for Louisiana flood relief assistance. Congressman Garret Graves says it will be an uphill battle to get the request approved. The Baton Rouge Republican says the Louisiana delegation is trying to make Congressional leaders understand the impact of this flood…:
cut 12 (07) “insufficient”
Graves says one problem is that other states have also experienced devastating natural disasters, and they want more funding too.

Enrollment at Nicholls State University is up for the first time since 2009. President Bruce Murphy says freshman applications were up 300 over last year. And even though there was confusion over TOPS, fee increases and flooding — enrollment still went up…:
CUT 7 (10) “the fall”
He says they saw an increase of 103 students, which is just over a 1% hike.

Governor John Bel Edwards has named a 21-member task force that will oversee rebuilding of flood devastated communities. Lamar Advertising CEO Sean Reilly is on this panel and says they are not only looking to assist homeowners, but small businesses impacted by the floods in north and south Louisiana this year….
cut 5 (10) “…Rita”

How much money in federal relief assistance and when are big questions right now. A delegation from Louisiana is making the push right now. Baton Rouge Congressman Garret Graves says other states, who suffered natural disasters are making similiar requests, but the level of devastation in Louisiana speaks for itself…
cut 13 (07) “….US history”
The Obama administration has sent a two-point-six billion dollar request to Congress for Louisiana flood relief assistance.

Two elderly bodies were found in a barn in Avoyelles Parish and the search is on for the person responsible. Chief Deputy Steven Martel of the Avoyelles Parish Sheriff’s office says the victims have been identified as Hillman and Eloise Mayeaux and their 28-year-old grandson Michael Mayeaux is a person of interest…
cut 16 (10) “…area code 318”
Deputies forced entry into their Bordelonville home after Mrs Mayeaux did not show up for work.

Enrollment is up at Nicholls State for the first time since 2009. President Bruce Murphy says they’ve seen a one-percent increase and one possible reason is that college students from the Houma-Thibodaux area, who were attending other schools, may have moved back home, because of the reduction in the TOPS scholarship…
cut 8 (09) “…or not”

New census data finds the overall median income rose 5-percent nationally in 2015, but in the south, it only climbed three percent. Jan Moller, director of the Louisiana Budget Project says 3-percent is still an improvement…
cut 15 (09) “….class family”
Moller says we can’t be sure exactly why the southern part of the country is behind but the south in general has lower levels of educational attainment.

Enrollment at Nicholls State University is up for the first time since 2009. Nicholls President Bruce Murphy says they saw an increase of 103 students, which is just over a 1% hike. He says they’ve improved their recruitment by empowering recruiters to give scholarships to potential students….
cut 6 (09) “….kind of stuff”

Solar panel customers are suing the state over the 25-million dollar cap that was placed on the solar tax credit program. New Orleans Attorney Larry Centola understands the state is in a budget crunch, but…
cut 12 (10) “…rules on them”
Centola says they are seeking 10-million dollars in damages.

This week is National Drive Electric Week and the state department of natural resources urges motorists to learn about the benefits of all-electric and plug-in hybrid-electric cars. Executive Director of the Louisiana Clean Fuels program, Ann Shaneyfelt, says the range of some fully electric vehicles is up to 200 miles, which is similar to a full tank of gas.
CUT 27 (08) “every single morning” 2x
Shaneyfelt says the maintenance cost of electric vehicles is also much lower, and most public charging stations are free.

LSU AgCenter Economist Kurt Guidry has upped the amount of damage the states’ agriculture industry has sustained from the August flood and the persistent rain that followed. The new number is 277-million dollars. Guidry says livestock suffered greatly during last month’s floods….
cut 26 (09) “…the storms”
The Farm Service Agency has programs to help livestock producers.

An Ascension Parish man receives a five-year prison sentence for beating a dog to death with a baseball bat. Jamari Jackson claimed in court that the dog was stuck in a barbed wire fence and he wanted to “relax” it to get it loose. Jeff Dorson with the Humane Society of Louisiana…
cut 13 (07) “…in Louisiana”
The maximum sentence Jackson could have received is 10 years.

State Police arrest an elderly man from Slidell who allegedly had 31 terabbytes of suspected child porn in his possession. Trooper Dustin Dwight says 73-year-old Lanier Lively was charged with 500 counts of child porn…
cut 11 (07) “…of justice”
Dwight says the investigation into Lively began in April.

Governor John Bel Edwards announces I-10 will be widened from four to six lanes between Highland Road in Baton Rouge and Highway 73 in Ascension Parish. He says about 30-percent of the traffic on I-10 is moving commerce. But he says this project will benefit all drivers.
cut 4 (10) “as well”
State Department of Transportation Secretary Shawn Wilson says the project will cost more than 60-million dollars, but the state plans to use 40-million dollars in federal monies to get the project started.

A new book on the unsolved murders of prostitutes in Jefferson Davis Parish says Republican Congressman and US Senate candidate Charles Boustany was involved with those women. Boustany’s campaign denies these claims. Political Analyst Bernie Pinsonat expects voters will give Boustany the benefit of the doubt, but only time will tell if attack ads will come…
cut 8 (08) “…background noise”

State Police has arrested a 73-year-old Slidell man on 500 counts of Possession of Child Pornography. Trooper Dustin Dwight says after a search warrant of Lanier Lively’s home, authorities found massive amounts of suspected child pornography…:
CUT 9 (05) “of data”
Dwight says the investigation into Lively began in April.

The LSU Ag Center has increased it’s crop damage estimate to 277-million dollars as a result of the historic flooding event last month. Ag Center Economist Kurt Guidry says rice and soybeans were the two hardest hit crops, followed by corn at 44-million and cotton at 27-million dollars…
cut 15 (10) “….crop”
Agriculture losses from both the March and August floods are a combined 367-million dollars.

American Cancer Society volunteers from Louisiana and many other states were in Washington, D.C, today rallying for more funding for cancer research. Director of the LSU Health Stanley S. Scott Cancer Center, Augusto Ochoa, says Louisiana has one of the highest rates of death by cancer in the country….:
CUT 4 (07) “a year”