In the tropics Edouard became a named storm yesterday, setting the record for the earliest formation of a fifth named storm of a season. State Climatologist Barry Keim says Louisiana is currently experiencing unstable weather influenced in part by a system that is moving over the Florida Panhandle. Keim says the pattern will be bringing rain to Louisiana over the next few days.

Cut 11 (11) “…all this rain.”

Louisiana adds just over 11-hundred new COVID-19 cases today.  The state reports 44% of those cases are from people 29 and younger.  98% of the new cases are from community spread.  The daily percentage of positive tests in at 9.84%.

An LSU economist warns holding fan-less LSU Football games would hammer the Baton Rouge and LSU athletics budget. Loren Scott says LSU Football made 56.6 million dollars in profit in 2019. Scott says the cancellation of the football season could impair other sports’ ability to operate.

Cut 14 (11) “…decision”

Parish level leaders are calling for more federal funding as the National Association of Counties estimates budget losses due to COVID-19 are roughly $144 billion. Lafourche Parish President Archie Chaisson says  the impact on the offshore oil and gas industry is hurting the parish’s oil revenue.

Cut 5 (13)  “…should have been.”

LSU Economist Loren Scott says in 2019 fans spent 58.6 million dollars in new sales on LSU football game days, and if the season were to be canceled, or fans barred from the stadium due to COVID-19 that loss of revenue would be felt in sectors all over the Capitol region.

Cut 13 (11) “…weekends.” 

COVID cases are spiking statewide with another 1,100 cases reported today along with another notable jump in hospitalizations. No decision has been made yet on the fate of the upcoming LSU season.

The National Association of Counties calls for more federal assistance for local governments, citing data that shows locals have lost 144 billion dollars nationwide since the pandemic began. Tangipahoa Parish President Robby Miller says spread mitigation efforts are eating away at the revenue they do have left.

Cut 3 (08)  “…because of PPE.”  

A 19-year-old man is dead and a 22-year-old man is behind bars facing a murder charge after an argument inside Dillard’s at Mall St. Vincent in Shreveport accelerated to violence in the Mall’s parking lot Saturday afternoon. Shreveport Police Department Spokesperson, Angie Willhite…

Cut 7 (11) “…second degree murder.”

(Trey – vee- ous) Treyvious Dotie of Shreveport was arrested in connection and charged with the shooting death

The tropics are seeing an uptick in activity with the formation of Tropical Storm Edouard in the north atlantic. Edouard became a named storm yesterday, setting the record for the earliest formation of a fifth named storm of a season. State Climatologist Barry Keim says there’s also another system to watch, a wave sitting over Florida. If it does develop it would be record setting as well.

Cut 12 (11) “…a watch on.”

The tropics are seeing an uptick in activity with the formation of Tropical Storm Edouard. Edouard became a named storm yesterday, setting the record for the earliest formation of a fifth named storm of a season. State Climatologist Barry Keim says the previous record was from a season that was quite devastating to the Bayou State.
Cut 10 (12) “…active hurricane season.”

LSU economist Loren Scott warns holding fan-less LSU Football games would hammer the Baton Rouge and LSU athletics budget. Fans spent 58.6 million in new sales on LSU game days last year. Scott says turning away 102-thousand fans would be devastating.

Cut 15 (10) “…stadium” 

The National Association of Counties estimates budget losses due to COVID-19 are roughly $144 billion, leaving parishes in a financial crunch and seeking a federal lifeline.   Kevin Barnhart has the story.

Cut 1 (27) “…I’m Kevin Barnhart”  

Due to COVID-19 four Office of Motor Vehicle locations will be closed to the public due to the positive testing of an employee. The offices are in Alexandria, Lafayette, Monroe and Shreveport. Customers are encouraged to use the website expresslane.org for any services. These closures are in addition to previously closed offices.

The National Association of Counties estimates budget losses due to COVID-19 are roughly $144 billion, leaving parishes in a financial crunch and seeking a federal lifeline.   Kevin Barnhart has the story.

Cut 1 (27) “…I’m Kevin Barnhart”  

____________________________

.Matt Doyle asked an LSU economist what the economic impact of holding fan-less LSU football games would be…

Cut 2 (32) “…I’m Matt Doyle”  

_____________________________

Parish level leaders are calling for more federal funding as the National Association of Counties estimates budget losses due to COVID-19 are roughly $144 billion. Tangipahoa Parish President Robby Miller says spread mitigation efforts are eating away at the revenue they do have.

Cut 3 (08)  “…because of PPE.”  
If they do not have the funds. Miller says the reduction in revenue from COVID-19 is making a bad situation worse in assisting in public health.

Cut 4 (10)_ “…time and effort.”

Lafourche Parish President Archie Chaisson says sales tax collections are down a little bit, but much of the woes in his parish comes from COVID’s impact on the offshore oil and gas industry and the parish’s oil revenue.

Cut 5 (13)  “…should have been.”

Chaisson says some estimates show nationally about 1.2 million local government workers have been furloughed or laid off and that can be even more damaging to the economy of a rural area.

Cut 6 (07) “…lot of cases.”

______________________

A 19-year-old man is dead and a 22-year-old man is behind bars facing a murder charge after an argument inside Dillard’s at Mall St. Vincent in Shreveport accelerated to violence in the Mall’s parking lot Saturday afternoon. Shreveport Police Department Spokesperson, Angie Willhite…

Cut 7 (11) “…second degree murder.”

(Trey – vee- ous) Treyvious Dotie of Shreveport was arrested in connection and charged with the shooting death

Willhite describes what surveillance video shows after the argument which began inside the mall.

Cut 8 (12) “…in his body.”

Immediately after the shooting Willhite says the suspect fled the scene.

9 (11) “…city jail.”

_________________________________________________

The tropics are seeing an uptick in activity with the formation of Tropical Storm Edouard in the north atlantic. Edouard became a named storm yesterday, setting the record for the earliest formation of a fifth named storm of a season. State Climatologist Barry Keim says the previous record was from a season that was quite devastating to the Bayou State.
Cut 10 (12) “…active hurricane season.”

Louisiana is currently experiencing unstable weather influenced in part by a system that is moving over the Florida Panhandle. Keim says the pattern will be bringing rain to Louisiana over the next few days.

Cut 11 (11) “…all this rain.”

Keim says if the wave over Florida does develop into a named system, it’ll be the setting a record of its own.

Cut 12 (11) “…a watch on.”

Keim says another system a few hundred miles east of the Winward Islands in the Caribbean is also being monitored but the chance of formation in the next five days is around 10%.
_________________________________________________________

An LSU economist warns holding fan-less LSU Football games would hammer the Baton Rouge and LSU athletics budget.

Loren Scott says fans spent 58.6 million in new sales on LSU game days last year. He says that money finds its way all through the city economy…

Cut 13 (11) “…weekends.” 

LSU Football made 56.6 million dollars in profit in 2019, while most of the other sports ran deficits. Scott says the cancellation of the football season could impair other sports’ ability to operate.

Cut 14 (11) “…decision”

The season is still set to go ahead as usual, but no word has been given on the stadium experience, which can feature up to 102,000 people when full. Scott says turning that many people away would be devastating.

Cut 15 (10) “…stadium” 

COVID cases are spiking statewide, and in East Baton Rouge Parish in particular was the focus of a federal effort that has ferried in capacity to test over 5,000 more people per day.

Matt Doyle asked an LSU economist what the economic impact of holding fan-less LSU football games would be…

Cut 2 (32) “…I’m Matt Doyle”  

Louisiana adds just over 1100 new COVID-19 cases today.  The state reports 44% of those cases are from people 29 and younger.  98% of the new cases are from community spread.  The daily percentage of positive tests in at 9.84%.

A 19-year-old man is dead and a 22-year-old man is behind bars facing a murder charge after an argument inside Dillard’s at Mall St. Vincent in Shreveport accelerated to violence in the Mall’s parking lot Saturday afternoon. Shreveport Police Department Spokesperson, Angie Willhite says immediately after the shooting, the suspect fled the scene.

9 (11) “…city jail.”

(Trey – vee- ous) Treyvious Dotie of Shreveport was arrested in connection and charged with the shooting death.

Parish level leaders are calling for more federal funding as the National Association of Counties estimates budget losses due to COVID-19 are roughly $144 billion. Lafourche Parish President Archie Chaisson says furloughed or laid off local government workers can be even more damaging to the economy of a rural area.

Cut 6 (07) “…lot of cases.”

Parish level leaders are calling for more federal funding as the National Association of Counties estimates budget losses due to COVID-19 are roughly $144 billion.  If they do not have the funds. Tangipahoa Parish President Robby Miller Miller says the reduction in revenue from COVID-19 is making a bad situation worse in assisting in public health.

Cut 4 (10)_ “…time and effort.”

An LSU economist warns holding fan-less LSU Football games would hammer the Baton Rouge and LSU athletics budget. Loren Scott says LSU Football made 56.6 million dollars in profit in 2019. Scott says the cancellation of the football season could impair other sports’ ability to operate.

Cut 14 (11) “…decision”

State Farm will cut auto insurance rates in Louisiana by 9.6%, The rate cut has been approved by Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon. State Farm, is considered the largest auto insurance company in the state when ranked by market share with nearly one-third of all policies. The rate reduction is set to go into effect August 24 for renewal and new policies.

A 19-year-old man is dead and a 22-year-old man is behind bars facing a murder charge after an argument inside Dillard’s at Mall St. Vincent in Shreveport accelerated to violence in the Mall’s parking lot Saturday afternoon. Shreveport Police Department Spokesperson, Angie Willhite describes the video surveillance footage.

Cut 8 (12) “…in his body.”

(Trey – vee- ous) Treyvious Dotie of Shreveport was arrested in connection and charged with the shooting death.

Louisiana records over 1,100 new COVID cases with a concerning 9.8 percent positive rate, along with a sharp 38 person increase in hospitalizations. These numbers indicate the state has not slowed its upward trend in new cases that began two weeks ago.

An LSU economist warns holding fan-less LSU Football games would hammer the Baton Rouge and LSU athletics budget. Loren Scott says LSU fans spent 58.6 million in new sales on LSU game days. He says that money finds its way all through the city economy…

Cut 13, 11 seconds, weekends

Parish level leaders are calling for more federal funding as the National Association of Counties estimates budget losses due to COVID-19 are roughly $144 billion.  Tangipahoa Parish President Robby Miller…

Cut 3 (08)  “…because of PPE.”  

The AARP of Louisiana is sounding the alarm on long term care facilities and their inability to take basic COVID-19 precautions.  Kevin Barnhart has the story.

Cut 3 (30)  “…I’m Kevin Barnhart.”  

State Farm announces it is lowering its auto insurance premiums by ten percent.

A 19-year-old man is dead and a 22-year-old man is behind bars facing a murder charge after an argument inside Dillard’s at Mall St. Vincent in Shreveport accelerated to violence in the Mall’s parking lot Saturday afternoon. Shreveport Police Department Spokesperson, Angie Willhite…

Cut 7 second degree murder :11

Treyvious Dotie of Shreveport was arrested in connection and charged with the shooting death

The AARP indicates the state is not doing a good enough job with the basic COVID-19 precautions needed to stem the loss of life and protect residents and staff in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. AARP State Director Denise Bottcher …

Cut 10 (09) “…raising the alarm.”

Health experts warn that testing negative for COVID after having significant exposure to a COVID positive person is no guarantee you weren’t infected. Matt Doyle has more.

Cut 2 (30) “…I’m Matt Doyle” 

Casino’s in Louisiana have announced mass layoffs are coming. The L’Auberge casinos in Lake Charles and Baton Rouge are cutting more than 600 jobs between the two following the Covid pandemic. The Treasure Chest in Kenner is also reliving 340 people of their employment and Boomtown in Harvey is cutting right at 200 jobs.

Health experts warn residents not to return to work if they’ve been ordered to quarantine, even if they test negative for COVID during that quarantine period. Ochsner Infectious Disease specialist Dr. Sandra Kemmerly says if you get exposed and immediately seek a COVID test the answer may not be helpful.
Cut 7 (08) “…negative”

State officials are calling on all residents to redouble their spread mitigation efforts like mask wearing and social distancing as Louisiana sees a 57 percent increase in hospitalizations over the last two weeks.

The minimum wage did not get much attention in the recent session, but Bogalusa Representative Malinda White says that’s going to change in 2021. White plans on educating legislators about how our high auto insurance rates are linked to our low minimum wage and how workers can’t afford both rent and insurance rates at or near 7.25 an hour…

Cut 6 (03) “…relatable”

AARP State Director Denise Bottcher says in recent weeks, the AARP has learned that about a third of facilities are not in compliance with regular testing of nursing home residents and staff, but non-compliance has been an issue for quite some time in different areas of cleanliness.
Cut 12 (12) “…before the pandemic..”

Nationally, 50,000 long term facility residents have died from the virus.

Governor Edwards is expected to sign a bill placing an eight percent tax on net revenue from online fantasy sports wagering, effectively OKing the activity in the 47 parishes that voted for it in 2018. Crowley Representative John Stefanski authored the legislation and believes those that want to participate in fantasy sports with the showdown between Drew Brees and Tom Brady in the first week of NFL games this year should be good to go.
Cut 15 (08) “…it wouldn’t be.”

An estimated 13 percent of Louisiana motorists are uninsured, and a Bogalusa Representative says increasing the minimum wage would lower that number.
The business lobby has never been a fan of raising the minimum, but Representative Malinda White says many workers don’t make enough money to both keep a roof over their heads and pay for auto insurance, so they go uninsured. She says that leads to a vicious cycle when they get caught.
Cut 5 (10) “…a break”

Governor Edwards is expected to sign a bill placing an eight percent tax on net revenue from online fantasy sports wagering.
In 2018, voters in 47 of the 64 parishes legalized fantasy sports betting and have been waiting for lawmakers to pass the tax component to win cash prizes with services like FanDuel and DraftKings. Crowley Representative John Stefanski authored the legislation and says those companies are standing by ready to implement the regulation.
Cut 14 (11) “…the ground running.”

Ochsner Infectious Disease specialist Dr. Sandra Kemmerly says if you get exposed and immediately seek a COVID test the answer may not be helpful.
She says the recent increase in demand for testing, as cases surge in Louisiana, has Ochsner announcing they will no longer test non-symptomatic patients.
Cut 9 (06) “…kits”
Kemmerly says they are saving those kits for symptomatic patients in urgent care and emergency room facilities.
Casinos in Louisiana are no longer rolling the dice on employees as mass layoffs are coming. The L’Auberge casinos in Lake Charles and Baton Rouge are slicing more than 600 jobs between the two following the COVID crisis. The Treasure Chest in Kenner also paired off 340 people. Boomtown in Harvey cut right at 200.