After failing for five months on recognizing additional revenues, the Revenue Estimating Conference adopted an income forecast that will give lawmakers an additional 110-million dollars in this year’s budget to spend and another 119-million dollars in next year’s budget. House Speaker Taylor Barras “Yes” vote broke the gridlock

Cut 7 (11) “…budget work.”

An Opelousas man is in jail suspected of stabbing his mother to death.  Detectives arrested 28-year-old Cody James Arceneaux on Monday after receiving 911 calls from a witness inside the home and from the suspect.  Deputy Chief Eddie Thibodeaux says an argument quickly escalated into violence.

Cut 10 (07) “…out of control.”

The victim has been identified as Vicky Granger.

House Republican lawmakers grilled state health officials about the growing Medicaid budget and whether the state is doing enough to prevent waste or misspending. Baton Rouge Representative Rick Edmonds is concerned the health department’s budget is set to grow by another billion dollars

Cut 3 (12) “…L-D-H.”

It was revealed during the hearing that 16-hundred people making at least 100-thousand dollars a year were covered by Medicaid, which is way above the income threshold. But Health Secretary Rebekah Gee says an upgraded computer system should make sure ineligible residents are not receiving taxpayer funded health care

Cut 6 (11) “…very well”

The Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services says the food stamp program could be cut, if the state agency does not see a 13 million dollar funding increase. Matt Doyle has the story.

Cut 2 (30) “…I’m Matt Doyle”  

The arson investigation continues into the three historically black churches that burned in St. Landry’s Parish in past two weeks and now with the assistance from Florida officials.  Seven members from the Florida State Fire Marshal’s Office are helping authorities determine the cause and origin of the fires. Louisiana State Fire Marshal Butch Browning says suspicions elements have been found in each case. The FBI, Federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives are also participating in the investigation.

The latest installment of the Louisiana Survey shows there is strong support for teacher pay raises among residents, but if Louisianans are asked to foot the bill, support wanes. Director of LSU’s Public Policy Research Center Dr. Mike Henderson says when asked about raising taxes to fund the teacher pay increase, support dropped from 88% to 63% .  The survey asked in general about teacher pay raises then questioned participants with a tax increase.

Cut 5 (07) “…support is lower.”

Lawmakers will hear from students and system leaders today during University of Louisiana System day at the capitol. U-L System President Jim Henderson says he plans to highlight the 8.8 billion dollar impact U-L system grads have on the state’s economy, and the 10.9 billion dollar total economic impact of the nine system schools, along with a new transparency tool that highlights U-L’s cost-effectiveness.

Cut 9 (05) “…operation″

Shocking development on the baseball diamond last night as Southern beat LSU 7-2.

The latest installment from the Louisiana Survey shows residents are firmly behind the teacher pay raises that the governor and other legislators are pushing for in the legislative session.  Kevin Barnhart has the story.

Cut 1 (31) “I’m Kevin Barnhart.”

John Bel Edwards’ reelection campaign reports the governor has over 10-million dollars in the bank after raising more than 2.5 million dollars in the fundraising quarter that ended April 5^th. Republican challenger Eddie Rispone says he has 10.4 million in cash on hand, while Congressman Ralph Abraham has not released updated campaign numbers.

Today is University of Louisiana System day at the State Capitol, and over a thousand students will attend to call attention to the needs of the 92,000 students studying a system college across the state. U-L System President Jim Henderson says Northwestern and Louisiana Tech are showing record numbers of enrollees, and UNO, which joined the UL system in 2011, is set to have its largest incoming class in a decade…

Cut 8 (08) “…excellence”

A House Bill is bringing attention to law enforcement profiling motorcycle riders.  Many Representative Frank Howard says bikers in various organizations have said it has become an issue.  Howard is sponsoring a bill that would add a 30 minute motorcyclist profiling awareness session to the training academy.

Cut 13 (08) “…over the state.”

Howard says despite the dedication that many motorcyclists have to their community, often they are on the receiving end of profiling from police.

The latest installment of the Louisiana Survey shows there is strong support for teacher pay raises among residents, with 88% backing the pay bump. Giving educators a pay raise is the governor’s top legislative priority. Director of LSU’s Public Policy Research Center Dr. Mike Henderson says the legislature will likely fall in line with public opinion.

Cut 4 (06) “…raising teacher pay.”

Today is University of Louisiana System day at the State Capitol, and over a thousand students will pack the lawn to call attention to the needs of the 92,000 students studying at one of nine system colleges. U-L System President Jim Henderson says this year’s event is certainly more upbeat than last year’s…

Cut 7 (09) “…Louisiana”

The system is comprised of Southeastern, Northwestern, ULM, UL Lafayette, Louisiana Tech, Grambling, McNeese, Nicholls, and UNO.

The Department of Children and Family Services says they need a 13 million dollar funding increase over the current fiscal year to meet their budget needs, or the food stamps program could be shut down.

Secretary Marketa Garner Walters says any cuts would just cost more money, and others, like Child Welfare Services have been trimmed to the bone.

Cut 11 (12) “…one nickle.”

Walters made the statements at a House Appropriations Committee meeting.

The latest installment from the Louisiana Survey shows residents are firmly behind the teacher pay raises that the governor and other legislators are pushing for in the legislative session.  Kevin Barnhart has the story.

Cut 1 (31) “I’m Kevin Barnhart.”

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The Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services says the food stamp program could be cut, if the state agency does not see a 13 million dollar funding increase. Matt Doyle has the story.

Cut 2 (30) “…I’m Matt Doyle”  

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Aspiring law enforcement officers may soon have to go through additional training for motorcyclist profiling awareness.  Kevin Barnhart has the story.

Cut 3 (30) “I’m Kevin Barnhart”

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The latest installment of the Louisiana Survey shows there is strong support for teacher pay raises among residents, with 88% backing the pay bump. Giving educators a pay raise is the governor’s top legislative priority. Director of LSU’s Public Policy Research Center Dr. Mike Henderson says the legislature will likely fall in line with public opinion.

Cut 4 (06) “…raising teacher pay.”

More than 90% of Democrats and Independents support the pay hike, as do 80% of Republicans.

When asked about raising taxes to fund the teacher pay increase, support dropped to 63%.  Henderson says the support changed in the phrasing of the question.

Cut 5 (07) “…support is lower.”

About three-quarters of residents believe teachers are being paid less than they are, thinking the average is around $38,000, where in reality the average is $50,000.  But when the question was asked after being told how much teachers make, Henderson says it had no effect on the response for a raise.

Cut 6 (08) “…they should be.”

Two-thirds of residents have either a good deal or very great deal of confidence in the state’s public school teachers.

___________________________________________________

It’s University of Louisiana System day at the State Capitol, and over a thousand students will pack the lawn to call attention to the needs of the 92,000 students studying at one of nine system colleges. U-L System President Jim Henderson says this year’s event is certainly more upbeat than last year’s…

Cut 7 (09) “…Louisiana”

The system is comprised of Southeastern, Northwestern, ULM, UL Lafayette, Louisiana Tech, Grambling, McNeese, Nicholls, and UNO.

Henderson says Northwestern and Louisiana Tech are showing record numbers of enrollees, and Henderson says UNO, which joined the UL system in 2011, is set to have it’s largest incoming class in a decade…

Cut 8 (08) “…excellence”

The system President says he plans to highlight the 8.8 billion dollar impact UL system grads have on the state’s economy, and the 10.9 billion dollar total economic impact of the nine system schools, along with a new transparency tool that highlights UL’s cost-effectiveness.

Cut 9 (05) “…operation″

The day will feature four events starting at 11AM, including a McNeese cow roping demonstration at 1145 AM.

__________________________

The Department of Children and Family Services says they need a 13 million dollar funding increase over the current fiscal year to meet their budget needs, or the food stamps program could be shut down.

Secretary Marketa Garner Walters says the department is seeing increased expenses and the only program that could absorb millions in reductions is SNAP.

Cut 10 (08) “…budget”

The House budget being worked on currently does not include any funding increase for DCFS.

SNAP is not the only program under DCFS, but Walters says most of them draw federal matching funds, so any cuts would just cost more money, and others, like Child Welfare Services have been trimmed to the bone.

Cut 11 (12) “…one nickle.”

Walters acknowledged that DCFS does have a few million that has yet to specifically be dedicated, but that’s being set aside as disaster relief money, and cutting disaster relief in the summer is asking for trouble during hurricane season.

Cut 12 (08) “…a cut″

Walters made the statements at a House Appropriations Committee meeting.

________________________

Legislation in the House is bringing attention to law enforcement profiling of motorcycle riders.  Many Representative Frank Howard says bikers in various organizations have said it has become an issue.  Howard is sponsoring a bill that would add a 30 minute motorcyclist profiling awareness session to the training academy.

Cut 13 (08) “…over the state.”

Howard says despite the dedication that many motorcyclists have to their community, often they are on the receiving end of profiling from police.

Cut 14 (08) “…a lot of things.”

Some law enforcement agencies in the state already have profiling awareness as part of their training.  Howard says he doesn’t believe asking for the extra time in training is asking all that much, but says he could foresee some opposition.

Cut 15 (11) “…different organizations.”

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The Pelicans season is now over and for the first off season since 2012 the team is not planning on how to build a winner around All-Star forward Anthony Davis, who demanded a trade earlier in the season. Since that trade demand, the Pelicans fired their general manager, so Locked on Pelicans host Jake Madison says the team’s first move will be finding a replacement with a vision for the future.

Cut 16  (13) “….future” 

After they nab their new GM, he’ll be tasked with navigating what will likely be the biggest blockbuster NBA trade of the decade. The Boston Celtics, and their cadre of young talents like Jason Tatum and Jaylen Brown appear to be Brow front runners, but Madison says don’t rule out two other contenders…

 cut 17 (20)   “..this year” 

Cut 18 (17)   streak” 

With the Louisiana Radio Network Legislative Report, I’m Matt Doyle.
Lawmakers are in the early days of the session, nailing down an early working budget, and for the first time it looks like there won’t be a massive budget deficit for leaders to tackle. Governor John Bel Edwards celebrated the change of pace.
Cut 12 (10) “…chopping block”
Now that budget woes have faded into the background, the Governor is pivoting to an old campaign promise, raising the minimum wage. He got some good news on that front today, as The latest release from the 2019 Louisiana Survey shows 81% of respondents support raising the minimum wage to $8.50 an hour, and 59% back a raise to 15 an hour, from the current rate of $7.25. Director of LSU’s Public Policy Research Center Dr. Mike Henderson.
Cut 6 (08) “…that minimum wage.”
Edwards is backing a constitutional amendment to raise the minimum to 9 dollars an hour.
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Another major legislative priority for seemingly all lawmakers this year is finding the cash to get teachers a 1,000 dollar pay raise, and Kevin Barnhart has new numbers from the Louisiana Survey that show it’s not just legislators who are hoping to see educators get that increase….
Cut 1 (31) “I’m Kevin Barnhart.”
The Department of Children and Family Services says they need a 13 million dollar funding increase over last year to meet their budget needs, or the food stamps program could be shut down. The House budget being worked on currently does not include any funding increase for DCFS.

It’s the first full day of the 2019 legislative session and for the first time since Governor John Bel Edwards took office, state lawmakers are not dealing with a significant budget deficit. Edwards says a two-billion dollar budget deficit has turned into a surplus

Cut 12 (10) “…chopping block”

But the state’s Republican party says Governor Edwards eliminated the budget deficit by signing the largest tax increase in the state history.

The latest release from the 2019 Louisiana Survey shows 81% of Louisiana residents support raising the minimum wage to $8.50 an hour.  Director of LSU’s Public Policy Research Center Dr. Mike Henderson says support for a hike dropped to 59% when proposing a $15 an hour minimum wage.

Cut 8 (10) “…opinion on that.” 

Governor Edwards is pushing a constitutional amendment to increase the minimum wage to nine-dollars an hour in 2020.

Gas prices continue their usual climb during the spring months. Jeff Palermo has an update on where we stand…

Cut 1 (30) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

A young child has been found dead in a drainage ditch in Morehouse Parish. According to authorities, the child is an eleven-year-old, who was last seen by family members on Saturday. A witness says the child’s body was found near the Baron Ballpark in Bastrop. Police believe the child was a victim of the flash flooding that occurred in the area over the weekend. The investigation is ongoing.

The latest release from the 2019 Louisiana Survey shows 81% of respondents support raising the minimum wage to $8.50 an hour, and 59 percent support raising it to 15 an hour, from the current rate of $7.25. It’s a broadly popular policy that has been shot down repeatedly by lawmakers, and Director of LSU’s Public Policy Research Center Dr. Mike Henderson says this year looks set for more of the same…
Cut 7 (09) “…down in committee.”
Governor Edwards is pushing a constitutional amendment to increase the minimum wage to nine-dollars an hour in 2020, and while he might not be able to complete his minimum wage campaign promise this year, it appears that he won’t be facing another defecet debacle like in years past. The Governor championed another Louisiana Survey finding showing more people say the state is heading in the right direction compared to last year.
Cut 14 (08) “…more opportunity.”
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The statewide average price for gasoline is up 26-cents from a month ago. According to Gas-Buddy-dot-com the statewide average stands at $2.48 per gallon, which is six cents more than a year. GasBuddy analyst Patrick DeHaan says the price at the pump is rising, because production is down.
Cut 3 (10) “…summer driving season.”
Governor Edwards campaign reports it raised 2.5 million dollars in the 1st quarter of 2019, giving the reelection effort a total of 10.2 million dollars cash on hand, and today one of his rivals, Republican businessman Eddie Rispone, reported he’s now got 10.4 million on hand, but it’s not clear how much of that was fundraising, and how much was another injection of personal funds into the campaign coffers. Political analyst Clancy DuBos says it’s still early to be concerned about the GOP’s early fundraising issues.
Cut 11 (10) “.anyway”

The statewide average price for gasoline is up 26-cents from a month ago. GasBuddy analyst Patrick DeHaan says if you want to save a few pennies on gasoline, try filling up on Tuesday. He says they’ve found that’s the best day to buy gas
Cut 5 (12) “…more volatile.”
According to Gas-Buddy-dot-com the statewide average stands at $2.48 per gallon, which is six cents more than a year ago.
The latest release from the 2019 Louisiana Survey shows 81% of respondents support raising the minimum wage to $8.50 an hour, from the current rate of $7.25. Director of LSU’s Public Policy Research Center Dr. Mike Henderson says the numbers indicate there is broad support for the increase.
Cut 6 (08) “…that minimum wage.”
Support for a 15 dollar minimum wage was still a clear majority, but dropped to 59 percent.
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Governor Edwards campaign reports it raised 2.5 million dollars in the 1st quarter of 2019, giving the reelection effort a total of 10.2 million dollars cash on hand, but, Edwards fundraising is about to screech to a halt over the next three months as Louisiana law prohibits election fundraising during legislative sessions. Political analyst Clancy DuBos says this gives the GOP a chance to dramatically close the gap.
Cut 10 (09) “…candidacies”
Edwards is being challenged by businessman Eddie Rispone and Congressman Ralph Abraham.
It’s the first full day of the 2019 legislative session and for the first time since Governor John Bel Edwards took office, state lawmakers are not dealing with a significant budget deficit. Edwards celebrated data that showed personal income is up in Louisiana.
Cut 13 (10) “…for business.”

It’s the first full day of the 2019 legislative session and for the first time since Governor John Bel Edwards took office, state lawmakers are not dealing with a significant budget deficit. Edwards says a two-billion dollar budget deficit has turned into a surplus

Cut 12 (10) “…chopping block”

But the state’s Republican party says Governor Edwards eliminated the budget deficit by signing the largest tax increase in the state history.

The latest release from the 2019 Louisiana Survey shows 81% of Louisiana residents support raising the minimum wage to $8.50 an hour.  Director of LSU’s Public Policy Research Center Dr. Mike Henderson says support for a hike dropped to 59% when proposing a $15 an hour minimum wage.

Cut 8 (10) “…opinion on that.” 

Governor Edwards is pushing a constitutional amendment to increase the minimum wage to nine-dollars an hour in 2020.

Gas prices continue their usual climb during the spring months. Jeff Palermo has an update on where we stand…

Cut 1 (30) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

A prank call to 911 results in a juvenile being charged with terrorism. Multiple agencies responded to Buckeye Junior High in Rapides Parish in reference to a possible gunshot victim at the school. Within minutes, authorities arrived to the campus and following a search of the area, found no one injured. Through an investigation, sufficient evidence was found to establish a suspect.