LSU-Alexandria will soon offer three-year bachelor’s degree programs. Joe Gallinaro reports.

Cut 1 (33) “…I’m Joe Gallinaro.”

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Will Wade is back and intends to quickly transform the LSU men’s basketball program into a winner. Jeff Palermo has the story…

Cut 2 (34) “…I’m Jeff Palermo.”

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Coming soon to LSU Alexandria – three-year bachelor’s degree programs. This, after the Board of Regents approved the state’s first accelerated bachelor’s degree programs for specialized workforce-focused degrees. Liz Beard, the vice chancellor of academic affairs at LSU-A, says these new programs, which will initially be offered in two fields, still combine a comprehensive general education curriculum with a specialized curriculum like most other degree programs.

Cut 3 (11) “…or three years.”

Beard says these accelerated degree programs are in high-demand fields, allowing LSU-A to graduate students faster so that they can fill those jobs faster.

Cut 4 (08) “…pharmaceuticals, biotech.”

Beard says one of the first two accelerated bachelor’s degree programs at LSU-A are in information technology and in bioinformatics. (Cut is of Beard talking about bioinformatics)

Cut 5 (13) “…well with that.”

The new three-year accelerated degree programs are slated to begin as early as this fall.

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Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser opposes an effort to name a new I-10 Mississippi River bridge in the Baton Rouge area after President Donald Trump. Nungesser says he has a problem with naming a public structure after a living official…

Cut 6 (12) “…in Baton Rouge.”

Nungesser made this comment during an interview with Jim Engster on “Talk Louisiana” on WRKF in Baton Rouge.

Monroe Representative Michael Echols is the author of the House-approved bill that is awaiting debate in the Senate. Echols says if Louisiana passes a law that says the new Mississippi River Bridge will be named after the current president, it raises the chances that the federal government will fully fund the bridge. Despite Echols reasoning, Nungesser does not like the idea…

Cut 7 (07) “…not in favor of it.”

The proposal passed the House on a 68-26 vote. It includes an amendment that says if the federal government does not pay for most of the cost of the projected three-billion dollar bridge, it will not be named after the current president. Nungesser believes the proposal is a way for the author to get attention for his congressional campaign…

Cut 8 (10) “…be doing.”

There is a state law that says naming public buildings in honor of a living person is prohibited. But Echols says you can still pass a law mandating that a public building or structure can be named after a living official.

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A Gretna representative’s bill seeking to make it easier to cancel unwanted subscriptions advances to the full House. Vincent Cox’s “click to cancel” bill passed unanimously in the House Commerce Committee this morning. Cox says it’s often an unnecessarily tedious process to cancel subscriptions.

Cut 9 (10)  “…click to cancel.”

Cox says he’s heard from many frustrated constituents on this issue, including some who just give up and end up paying the monthly subscription fee for something they don’t use.

Cut 10 (11) “…out of it.”

During discussion, it was brought up that there could be issues with state-to-state reciprocity, such as when someone downloads a subscription app in a different state and looks to cancel it in Louisiana. Peter Robins-Brown, the executive director of Louisiana Progress, says he knows that can be tricky and there’s no easy solution to it, but he hopes this bill can be one step towards more broad legislation.

Cut 11 (12) “…framework on this.”

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Former LSU coach Will Wade was re-introduced today as the new head men’s basketball coach. “The General” received a warm welcome back from university officials and the hundreds of Tiger fans in attendance at the Maravich Center. Wade, who led LSU to three NCAA Tournament appearances in five seasons, wants to do even bigger things the second time around…

Cut 12 (12) “…make history.”

Wade was fired in 2022 for committing NCAA recruiting violations. He rebuilt his career by winning two Southland Conference Championships at McNeese and just took North Carolina State to the NCAA Tournament. Wade says he’s not looking back; he’s looking forward to winning a lot of games at LSU…

Cut 13 (10) “…(cheering)”

Wade leaves North Carolina State after one season. He says he returned because of familiarity and his love for the state and SU….

Cut 14 (09) “…every night.”

Wade will begin building next year’s roster when the transfer portal window opens on April 7^th.

The House Ways and Means Committee is expected to debate today whether Louisiana should have a centralized sales tax collection. Jeff Palermo has the story…

Cut 1 (35) “…I’m Jeff Palermo.”

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A state representative has a plan to boost teacher pay to the regional average. Andrew Greenstein reports.

Cut 2 (34) “…I’m Andrew Greenstein.”

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The LSU women’s basketball team’s season ended earlier than most had expected, but Kim Mulkey says her coaching career is not over. Jeff Palermo has the story…

Cut 3 (34) “…I’m Jeff Palermo.”

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Today the House Ways and Means Committee will discuss a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow the state to implement a centralized system for collecting local sales and use taxes. The Tax Foundation says the proposal is sound tax policy. Manish Batt (Bot) is the Vice President of State Tax Policy at the Tax Foundation…

Cut 4 (11) “…sales taxes.”

Bhatt says Louisiana remains a national outlier in lacking central collection and administration of its sales taxes. But the Police Jury Association of Louisiana opposes the legislation as they are concerned this legislation will result in a drop in local sales tax revenue. But Bhatt says a centralized sales tax system would still be the best method for everyone

Cut 5 (09) “…the system.”

Bhatt says because Louisiana’s sales tax system is one of the most complex in the country, state and local governments could be missing out on tax revenue…

Cut 6 (06) “…compliance.”

The House Ways and Means Committee meets at 9 AM.

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Researchers at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center publish the first set of data from its RURAL Heart and Lung study. Lead Researcher Dr. Stephanie Broyles says the study gathered data in Assumption Parish.

Cut 7 (10) “…education level.”

Dr. Broyles says in cases where they saw differences, education levels, not income or age, stood out the most – but not in the way that people might expect.

Cut 8 (08) “…in lower education.”

The data book for Assumption Parish is out now. Dr. Broyles’ team also collected data in Franklin Parish, and she says it was very important that that parish be included in the study.

Cut 9 (07)  “…in the U.S.”

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A state lawmaker is looking to boost teacher pay to align with the regional average. Monroe Representative Michael Echols’ Teacher Pay Modernization Act would gradually increase teacher pay throughout the state until it reaches the Southern regional average.

Cut 10 (09) “…about 25-percent.”

Echols says the state would need to come up with somewhere between 200-million and 600-million dollars to accomplish this. Echols says one element of that involves finding cost-cutting opportunities within the public sector, including the elimination of job positions.

Cut 11 (08) “…that regional average.”

Echols says a lot of the cost-cutting could be mitigated if voters approve Constitutional Amendment Three in the May 16th election.

Cut 12 (09) “…in teachers’ pay.”

Louisiana teachers earn just under 60-thousand dollars a year on average, about 12-thousand dollars short of the national average. Echols’ bill will be considered by the House Education Committee.

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The LSU baseball rallied from seven runs down to beat Kentucky 17-10 to win its first SEC series and improve to 4-and-5 in conference play. The offense had one of its best days of the season. Derek Curiel was 3-for-5 with a home run and three RBIs…

Cut 13 (13)  “…last out”

John Pearson got the Tigers back in the game with a grand slam in the third inning. Seth Dardar hit a three-run home run in the sixth to give LSU the lead. Dardar flipped his bat way in the air and was fired up as he circled the bases

Cut 14 (10) “…world to me.”

This would have been a bad loss for the Tigers, who were in jeopardy of losing their third consecutive SEC series and second straight at home. LSU got down 7-0 in the third inning, but Coach Jay Johnson is proud of how the team bounced back…

Cut 15 (14) “…made it happen”

LSU will host Southern tomorrow night and visit Tennessee this weekend.

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Following LSU’s season-ending loss to Duke in the Sweet 16, Hall of Fame coach Kim Mulkey addressed a report that she is retiring. A social media post during the game reported that this was Mulkey’s last game. Mulkey shot the rumor down in the postgame press conference…

Cut 16 (16) “…on social media.”

Friday night was a tough end to a season that had hopes of a Final Four appearance. LSU lost a buzzer-beating shot. Mulkey says it’s never easy to see the season end with a loss…

Cut 17 (20)  “…we had.

LSU will have to replace Flau’jae Johnson, one of the greatest players in the program’s history. But the Lady Tigers return two of their top three scorers in MiLaysia Fulwiley and Mikayla Williams. Williams is expected to return for her senior season, seeking that a coveted trip to the Final Four…

Cut 18 (17)  “…Final Four.” 

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After missing five games last season due to an ankle injury, linebacker Whit Weeks decided he was going to return to LSU for his senior season. Weeks says a big deciding factor in returning was when Blake Baker was retained on Lane Kiffin’s staff.

Cut 19 (10) “…I’m coming back, too.”

Weeks is expected to miss most of spring practice as he continues to recover from an ankle injury that forced him to miss five games in the 2025 season. Weeks says he wishes he could be out there with his team, but wants to prioritize his health.

Cut 20 (09) “…roll into fall camp.”

If you’re a Netflix subscriber, prepare to pay a little more per month. Andrew Greenstein explains.

Cut 1 (35) “…I’m Andrew Greenstein.”

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Details are out on men’s basketball coach Will Wade’s new seven-year contract with LSU. Andre Champagne has the story…

Cut 2 (29) “…I’m Andre Champagne.”

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If you’re a Netflix subscriber, be prepared to fork over a little more money. The premium and standard plans each increase by two dollars a month to $26.99 and $19.99 respectively, while the ad-supported plan goes up a dollar to $8.99. Haggai Davis, the host of the TechGumbo radio show and podcast, says the biggest reason is that Netflix is now starting to show live sports.

Cut 3 (09) “…whenever they’re ready.”

Davis says this likely will not be the last price increase for Netflix in the near term.

Cut 4 (09) “…raising their rates.”

Davis says even though this is the second price increase in less than two years, Netflix does not expect to lose too many subscribers as a result.

Cut 5 (11) “…have some ads.”

The increased prices are in effect immediately for new subscribers, and they will roll out over time for existing subscribers.

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The second-seeded LSU women’s basketball team will look to punch its ticket to a fourth consecutive Elite Eight tonight as they face third-seeded Duke at 9 p.m. in Sacramento. In LSU’s 93-77 win over Duke earlier this season, the Tigers had three post players score in double figures. LSU holds a size advantage over Duke and coach Kim Mulkey says the game plan to win the battle in the paint is simple.

Cut 6 (10) “…a lot of confidence.”

The Lady Tigers, who boast the nation’s top scoring offense, are averaging 108.5 points per game in the postseason. Mulkey credits her team’s depth for its high-scoring success this season.

Cut 7 (14) “…freedom to score.”

If LSU wins tonight, it will take on either top-seeded UCLA or fourth-seeded Minnesota on Sunday at 2 p.m.

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The Senate Health and Welfare Committee approves legislation to create the Office of Health and Nutrition within the Louisiana Department of Health. Covington Senator Patrick McMath says the state needs a single office to coordinate programs that could get Louisiana residents eating better and exercising more…

Cut 8 (14) “…across the state.”

McMath says the new state nutrition office would not be an additional cost, but it could help lower health care costs in the future as Louisiana has some of the highest rates of chronic disease in the country…

Cut 9 (14)  “…productivity.”

The Senate Health and Welfare Committee advanced the bill to the Senate floor without objection. McMath has pushed several pieces of legislation aimed at making Louisiana healthier…

Cut 10 (11) “…nutritious foods.”

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We are 50 days away from the May 16^th party primary election. The U-S Senate Republican Primary is getting the most attention, but the 5^th District Congressional Republican primary is also very competitive. Radio talk show host Moon Griffon says it’s hard to judge who is the front-runner to replace Julia Letlow…

Cut 11 (08) “…play yet.”

Board of Regents Chairperson Misti Cordell, state representative Michael Echols, state senator Rick Edmonds and state senator Blake Miguez are the main candidates in the fifth district republican primary. Griffon says none of the candidates have been able to distinguish themselves from the others…

Cut 12 (08) “…missing something.”

Pollster Greg Rigamer conducted a survey last month on the primary race and it was a virtual tie between the four candidates, all polling in the single digits.

Griffon is curious to see what kind of turnout we’ll see in May and in the June primary runoff. He says voters are not used to big elections in the spring and it’s a busy time of the year…

Cut 13 (10) “…way it is.”