The Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s office reports the state department of health spent 112-million dollars on Medicaid coverage for nearly 14-thousand adults who did not live in Louisiana. The payments were made from September 2016 to February of this year. State Health Secretary Stephen Russo says it was hard for L-D-H to remove people from the Medicaid rolls during the COVID pandemic, because the feds changed the rules to ensure continued coverage for low-income residents.

To bring attention to his state treasurer campaign and raise funds, Republican Scott McKnight is raffling Taylor Swift concert tickets…
Cut 1 (29) “….I’m Brooke Thorington.”

Gretna Representative Joe Marino officially resigned Monday from his legislative post to begin his appointment as an Ad Hoc Judge in Jefferson Parish. The Independent, who was elected to the legislature in 2016 admits he was under the misconception that it was a part-time gig but quickly found out it’s a full-time job.
Cut 10 (08) “…up with.”
Earlier this year, Marino authored a bill to give lawmakers a pay raise, but the bill failed to make it to the House floor.

We are entering peak hurricane season as the National Hurricane Center is monitoring three named storms. Don Redman with AAA says if you don’t have flood insurance now is the time to get it, also review your current homeowner and flood insurance policies and take inventory of what’s in your home…
cut 8 (10) “…everything”

Louisiana U-S Senator Bill Cassidy believes former President Donald Trump should drop out of the 2024 Presidential race. During an appearance on C-N-N’s State of the Union, Cassidy says current polling shows Trump can not beat President Joe Biden in a general election…
Cut 3 (09) “…high inflation”
Trump is also facing nearly 100 criminal charges from four different federal indictments.

Sad story out of St. Tammany Parish as a 12-year-old girl lost her life in an ATV accident on Saturday night near the town of Bush. Her 13-year-old passenger was also injured. Sergeant Suzanne Carboni with the St. Tammany Sheriff’s Office says children should not be the ones operating ATVs…
cut 11 (08) “….very dangerous’
The deceased 12-year-old has been identified as Payton Strain.

Today in a Baton Rouge courtroom, arguments were heard in a case against the LHSAA. Nine schools from Rapides Parish and the Monroe area are seeking an injunction that would prevent the Association from implementing the football playoff format they used last year. Attorney Brian Blackwell represents the schools and says high schools never had a chance to vote on the new definition for select schools…
cut 30 (12) “….playoff structure”
An attorney for the LHSAA says the definition for select schools was on the executive committee’s agenda for months.

A tropical depression is moving across the Gulf of Mexico from east to west. It’s staying well south of Louisiana as it moves towards Texas. National Weather Service Lake Charles Meteorologist Stacey Denson says the depression is causing breezy conditions across the state…
cut 67 (08) “…southern Louisiana”
Those breezy conditions is what it’s a red flag day, which means wildfire risks are elevated.

Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy says former President Donald Trump should drop out of the 2024 Presidential race.
Cut 1 (30) “…I’m Jeff Palermo”

The tropics are very active. Stacey Denson is a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Lake Charles…
cut 8 (08) “…in Louisiana”
Denson says a tropical depression in the Gulf of Mexico is expected to become a tropical storm before it reaches Texas tomorrow.

A family in southeast Louisiana is mourning the death of a 12-year-old, killed in an ATV accident over the weekend in St. Tammany Parish. Sergeant Suzanne Carboni with the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office, says based on their investigation, the 12-year-old was the driver…
cut 10 (08) “…as such”
Carboni says the four-wheel ATV left the roadway and struck a tree. A 13-year-old passenger was also injured.

Multiple candidates in the governor’s race are claiming they are the political outsider needed to improve Louisiana. Here’s a snippet from Stephen Waguespack’s latest TV ad…
cut 13 (10) “…job done”
But State Treasurer John Schorder’s new TV ad criticizes both Waguespack and attorney general Jeff Landry as political insiders.

There is a tropical depression in the Gulf of Mexico moving south of Louisiana towards Texas and it’s resulted in a Red Flag Warning, which means wildfires and grass fires can spread quickly. National Weather Service Lake Charles Meteorologist Stacey Denson.
Cut 6 (10) “…dry conditions”
According to the governor’s office, there have been more than 260 wildfires during this hot and dry summer that have damaged and destroyed more than 3,500 acres.

Sad story out of St. Tammany Parish as a 12-year-old girl lost her life in an ATV accident on Saturday night near the town of Bush. Her 13-year-old passenger was also injured. Sergeant Suzanne Carboni with the St. Tammany Sheriff’s Office says children should not be the ones operating ATVs…
cut 11 (08) “….very dangerous’
The deceased 12-year-old has been identified as Payton Strain.

During an appearance on C-N-N’s State of the Union, Senator Bill Cassidy said former President Donald Trump should end his 2024 presidential campaign. Cassidy says the polls indicate Trump can’t beat President Joe Biden in a general election and the former president could also be convicted of a federal crime by November 2024. Cassidy says he’ll vote for a Republican candidate that plans to address the future of Social Security….
cut 5 (05) “….do nothing”
Cassidy says if nothing is done, Social Security will start to run out of money in about a decade, resulting in a 24-percent benefit cut.

In the Louisiana governor’s race, State Treasurer John Schroder takes a shot at fellow Republicans Jeff Landry and Stephen Waguespack in his latest TV ad, calling them political insiders who will not address the issues affecting Louisiana…
cut 12 (11) “….demand change”
But Waguespack, who is the former president of the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry says, he’s the political outsider who can get the job done.

Louisiana U-S Senator Bill Cassidy believes former President Donald Trump should end his campaign to return to the White House, because Cassidy believes Trump can not defeat President Joe Biden in the general election. Trump faces several federal criminal charges and Cassidy believes the one that will certainly stick is the mishandling of classified documents…
cut 4 (08) “…this playing”
Cassidy made the comment during the C-N-N’s State of the Union.

The Louisiana Workforce Commission says the state’s unemployment rate was a record low for July, three-point-five percent. That breaks the previous low for July, which was last year at three-point six percent. Economist Loren Scott says with a relatively small group of people looking for work, businesses have to get creative…
cut 14 (12) “…..now do”

A 12-year-old girl was killed over the weekend in an ATV accident near the town of Bush. St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Sergeant Suzanne Carboni says the victim and a 13-year-old girl drove off the roadway Saturday night and slammed into a tree…
cut 9 (11) “…Sunday morning”
The coroner has identified the 12-year-old girl as Payton Strain.

Today in a Baton Rouge courtroom, arguments will be heard in a case against the LHSAA. Nine schools from Rapides Parish and the Monroe area are seeking an injunction that would prevent the Association from implementing football playoff format they used last year. Attorney Brian Blackwell represents the schools and says high schools never had a chance to vote on the new definition for select schools…
cut 5 (12) “….playoff structure”
An attorney for the LHSAA says the definition for select schools was on the executive committee’s agenda for months.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics 407,000 Louisiana workers quit their jobs in the first six months of this year. A record 760,000 Louisianans left their job last year so the Bayou State is on pace to break that record. Economist Loren Scott says many Louisiana workers are leaving their job for better pay…
Cut 13 (12) “…higher wage rates.”

Advocates for access of pre-K education say an additional 86-million dollars is needed to make sure every at-risk child can have access to early care and education programs. Louisiana Policy Institute for Children director Libbie Sonnier says pre-K education helps develop social, emotional and problem solving skills…
cut 11 (09) “….that day”
Sonnier says unfortunately 60-percent of kids in Louisiana do not meet the kindergarten school readiness benchmark.

Poverty Point in West Carroll Parish has received a one-point-eight million dollar federal grant. Division of Administration spokesperson Jacques Berry says the money will be used to enhance the visitor’s experience, including a new museum and visitor center that once constructed will not able to be seen from the archeological site…
cut 8 (11) “…1500 B.C.”
Poverty Point is the state’s only World Heritage Site and attracts 100-thousand visitors.

A hearing takes place today in a Baton Rouge courtroom over a lawsuit filed by nine schools who are upset with the LHSAA’s playoff structure. Last year the LHSAA executive committee moved dozens of non-select schools to select and reduced the number of playoff brackets for football, basketball, baseball and softball. Attorney Brian Blackwell says now you have 5A schools competing against 4A schools in the playoffs…
cut 6 (12) “….1,000”
But LHSAA Executive Director Eddie Bonine says the new playoff format has brought fairness and more competitive games.

The Louisiana Workforce Commission says the state’s unemployment rate was a record low for July, three-point-five percent. That breaks the previous low for July, which was last year at three-point six percent. Economist Loren Scott says with a relatively small group of people looking for work, businesses have to get creative…
cut 14 (12) “…..now do”

Experts say early childhood education can lead to a better workforce years later. But Louisiana Policy Institute for Children executive director Libbie Sonnier says an additional 86-million dollars is needed to make sure every at-risk child can access an early care and education program…
cut 12 (12) “…and education”
The next governor and the Legislature will have to decide where that funding will come from.

Schools that are not happy with the LHSAA changing its playoff structure last year will have their complaints addressed today in a Baton Rouge courtroom. Pierson Luscy has more…
Cut 1 (33) “….I’m Pierson Luscy.”

East Baton Rouge Public schools are closed today as bus drivers and cafeteria workers are dissatisfied with their pay. Red River schools closed today because of water issues. And Calcasieu Parish has additional law enforcement present at its schools because of several incidents of threatening behavior.

New data from the federal government shows 407-thousand workers in Louisiana left their job during the first six months of this year, the highest number ever for the first half of a year….
Cut 3 (34) “…I’m Pierson Luscy”

There is an increased outdoor fire risk today. Obviously that’s the result of the hot and dry weather, but we also have breezy conditions as a result tropical wave crossing over the Gulf of Mexico from east to west. That system will bring the state east winds at 10 to 20 miles per hour.

Poverty Point World Heritage Site in West Carroll Parish is receiving a one-point-eight million dollar federal grant that will be used to fund a master plan that will include an upgraded museum, visitor center, and other amenities. Division of Administration spokesperson Jacques Berry says this funding will enhance the visitors’ experience
Cut 7 (09) “…Poverty Point.”
Poverty Point is an archaeological site that features huge mounds and enormous concentric half-circles built by American Indians thousands of years ago.

A report by the Louisiana Policy Institute for Children shows 60 percent of kids statewide do not meet the kindergarten school readiness benchmark. LPIC Director Libbie Sonnier says the state has made progress in expanding early care and education, but the need is still great
Cut 10 (09) “…increasing access.”
Sonnier says it will take $86 million dollars for the state to make sure every at-risk child can access an early care and education program.