Brusly High graduate, and now LSU freshman John Foster, is in the Top 7 on American Idol and continues to make Louisiana proud. Sean Richardson has more.
Cut 1 (34) “…I’m Sean Richardson.”
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A substance sometimes referred to as “gas station heroin” is one step closer to being banned in Louisiana. Andrew Greenstein reports.
Cut 2 (33) “…I’m Andrew Greenstein.”
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Legislation that would give parishes the option to increase the homestead exemption for property owners clears its first legislative hurdle. Colleen Crain reports.
Cut 3 (35) “…I’m Colleen Crain.”
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Addis native and Brusly High graduate John Foster has made it to the Top 7 of American Idol. Brusly High Principal Walt Lemoine says the world is seeing the real John Foster.
Cut 4 (08) “…model human being.”
Lemoine says Foster, who’s now a freshman at LSU and was co-valedictorian last year, was a quiet, humble role model for the other students at Brusly High, and Foster’s success is no shock to him.
Cut 5 (12) “…Addis, Louisiana.”
Lemoine says he’s an unassuming star; and the first time he heard Foster perform, he says he never expected that voice from one of his students.
Cut 6 (10) “…out of him?”
Watch Foster perform this Sunday on ABC.
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A bill that would make kratom illegal in Louisiana moves to the House. The Senate passed S-B 154 yesterday on a vote of 26-to-11, split right down party lines. The author, West Monroe Republican Jay Morris, says kratom – sometimes known as “gas station heroin” – has already been banned in several places.
Cut 7 (09) “…grown in Asia.”
Senator Morris says while kratom can easily be purchased online or in many gas stations throughout the state, the FDA has not approved it and discourages its use.
Cut 8 (11) “…substance abuse disorder.”
Morris says he has heard many horror stories stemming from the use of kratom.
Cut 9 (12) “…a legal substance.”
Morris says Deputy Health Secretary Dr. Pete Croughan (CROW-ghin) says he has treated more people for kratom overdose than those who have taken crack cocaine.
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SkyWest Airlines, the largest regional airline in the U.S., has chosen Shreveport Regional Airport as its 13th maintenance base, supporting its fleet of nearly 500 aircraft. North Louisiana Economic Partnership CEO Justyn Dixon says the new facility is expected to create 150 direct jobs, averaging 70-thousand-dollars annually; and 375 indirect jobs, for a total of 525 new positions in Northwest Louisiana.
Cut 10 (12) “…power plant.”
Dixon says the project supports Louisiana Economic Development’s focus on aerospace and logistics, sectors in which the state has long-standing strengths, including underutilized space, low operational costs and port access.
Cut 11 (09) “…make their money.”
Dixon hopes that not only will the base keep skilled workers in the state but also believes that this project will draw talented workers to move to the region.
Cut 12 (10) “…great opportunities.”
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The House Ways and Means Committee has approved a proposed constitutional amendment that would give voters the opportunity to decide whether parishes should have the option to increase the homestead exemption from 75-hundred dollars 12-thousand-500 dollars in assessed value. The vote was 9-to-5. The bill’s author, New Orleans Democrat Matthew Willard, says since the homestead exemption has not increased since 1980, people are getting priced out of their homes.
Cut 13 (10) “…it’s not affordable.”
Willard says if people can’t afford their homes, they’ll move to a state where they can, and Louisiana cannot afford that.
Cut 14 (11) “…their roots down.”
Jim Patterson with the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry spoke out against Willard’s bill. He says if you increase the homestead exemption to lower property taxes, the government will need to make up that tax revenue somehow.
Cut 15 (09) “…taxes to others.”
Patterson says Louisiana already generates a disproportionately low amount of property tax revenue relative to other states.
Cut 16 (15) “…44-percent.”
The bill now advances to the House Civil Law for a review of the ballot language. Because this would be a constitutional amendment, it will need to pass in both houses of legislature by a two-thirds majority before it goes to the voters.