An income tax bill described as the linchpin towards reaching an overall deal towards closing a looming a one-billion dollar budget shortfall failed on the House floor this afternoon. Ruston Representative Rob Shadoin asked his colleagues to put aside party politics and vote for the legislation…

Cut 13 (06) “her people”

Failure of this legislation means its likely legislators will not be able to solve the fiscal cliff and hundreds of millions of dollars in cuts will be needed in state government. That means less money for TOPS,  hospitals that depend on state money and higher education. Shreveport Representative Barbara Norton…

Cut 14 (09) “back home”

The bill needed 53 yes votes to pass. It only got 50.

Authorities are investigating the finding of a severed head in Cameron Parish.   Jeff Palermo has more…

Cut 2 (30) “I’m Jeff Palermo”.

A Monroe woman who pleaded guilty to attempted first degree murder of Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Agent Tyler Wheeler was sentenced to a total of 120 years in prison. 32-year-old Amethyst Baird Rathore shot Wheeler during a traffic stop in Morehouse Parish last year leaving him for dead.   Rathore entered the guilty plea last October…

Authorities are on the lookout for a man involved in the murder of a 29-year-old man from New Iberia. Iberia Sheriff Louis Ackal says Courtland Hall was shot and killed by 26-year-old Akeam Daniels. Daniels remains on the run.  He is a black male, five-foot-ten, 155-pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. An earlier AMBER Alert was canceled after two-month-old Amari Daniels was found late last night abandoned in the car the father was last seen driving. Sheriff Ackal…

Cut 7 (07)  “the child.”

At this hour the Louisiana House is debating tax bills that would help bridge a one-billion-dollar budget gap. House Speaker Taylor Barras promised yesterday that the entire schedule of items will be considered this afternoon, including numerous amendments. A sales tax bill that would generate 300-million dollars annually was soundly defeated on Wednesday.

A report says 75 percent of Louisiana’s young people are un-fit to serve in the military. Jim Shannon has the reaction from a retired Louisiana Marine General.

Cut 1 (30) “I’m Jim Shannon”

February’s rainfall in North Louisiana set a record going back to the 1870’s. Shreveport National Weather Service forecaster Matthew Duplantis says it’s no wonder the lakes, rivers and creeks are at or above flood stage…

Cut 11 (10) “zero inches.”

A new report just released finds the majority of Louisiana’s young people are un-fit for military service.  The Pentagon reports that more than 70 percent of Americans aged 17 to 24 cannot join the United States military – 26 million young Americans for various reasons.

Officials say the problems in Louisiana are not any different from young people around the country.

With 75 percent of Louisiana kids in-eligible to serve,  the former chief of the Marine’s Paris island training facility Major General Ron Richard, from here, says it’s time for people to wake up and pay more attention to our youth.

Cut 5  (09 ) “test of time.”

We will find out Sunday if two movies filmed in Louisiana will win an Oscar.  Mudbound was filmed in New Orleans and rural St. James Parish, while Logan was filmed in several locations including Amite, Ferriday, Hammond and New Orleans. Louisiana Entertainment Executive Director Chris Stelly says these projects had far reaching impacts in the state’s economy…

Cut 10 (09) “59-million-dollars.”

Police are on the lookout for a man involved in the murder of a 29-year-old man in New Iberia. Iberia Parish Sheriff Louis Ackal says they are seeking 26-year-old Akeam Daniels. Daniels is described as a black male, five-foot-ten-inches-tall, weighing 155-pounds with black hair and brown eyes.

That prompted an AMBER Alert, which was later canceled. Ackal says two-month-old Amari Daniels was found late last night abandoned in the car the father was last seen driving…

Cut 7 (07)  “the child.”

The suspect is believed to be in a brown honda accord.

The House is set to try again today on passing tax proposals that will go towards closing a one-billion dollar budget deficit. A sales tax bill that would generate 300-million dollars anually was soundly defeated on Wednesday, but House Speaker Taylor Barras says that measure is still a critical part of addressing the fiscal cliff…

The House is set to try again today on passing tax proposals that will go towards closing a one-billion dollar budget deficit. A sales tax bill that would generate 300-million dollars annually was soundly defeated on Wednesday, but House Speaker Taylor Barras says

If the legislature cannot pass any bills to replace a billion dollars in sales taxes that are set to expire on June 30th, significant cuts would be needed to balance the budget. Barras remains optimistic

Cut 15 (04) “work to do”

Lawmakers are running out of time as the special session to pass revenue generating measures must end Wednesday night.

The Reverend Billy Graham will be laid to rest today in North Carolina.  There is a Louisiana connection. The 99-year-old evangelist will be buried in a coffin made by prisoners at Angola. Former inmate David Bacon says his life wouldn’t be what it is today, had it not been for him to meet Graham while he was at Angola…

Cut 6 (11)  “everyone else.”

Graham’s wife Ruth, who died in 2007, is also buried in one of the Angola caskets.

Four months of construction work will begin Saturday on the I-10 bridge in Lake Charles. DOTD spokesman Rodney Mallet says 8.5 million dollar project will initially close the inside eastbound lane so crews can replace expansion joints on the nearly 60-year-old structure.

The joints need to be replaced because the I-10 Lake Charles Bridge will take on more traffic when a re-decking project gets underway on I-210.

The Reverend Billy Graham will be laid to rest today in North Carolina.  There is a Louisiana connection. The 99-year-old evangelist will be buried in a coffin made by prisoners at Angola. Former inmate David Bacon  recalls the time when there wasn’t much use for religion at Angola, but former warden Burl Cain opened the door for churches to come in and Graham helped to satisfy the prisoner’s spiritual needs…

Cut 5  (11)  “several chapels.”

We will find out Sunday if two movies filmed in Louisiana will win an Oscar.  Mudbound was filmed in New Orleans and rural St. James Parish, while Logan was filmed in several locations including Amite, Ferriday, Hammond and New Orleans. Louisiana Entertainment Executive Director Chris Stelly hopes this will convince other film studios to consider Louisiana for locations. He says the state continues to demonstrate there is no better place than here to create entertainment content…

Cut 12 (12) “office sucess.”

Drivers in Lake Charles will see the start of a four month project this weekend on I-10 that includes the World War Two Memorial Bridge. Kelley Ray has more.

Cut 2 (31) “I’m Kelley Ray.”

The House is set to try again today on passing tax proposals that will go towards closing a one-billion dollar budget deficit. A sales tax bill that would generate 300-million dollars anually was soundly defeated on Wednesday, but House Speaker Taylor Barras says Lawmakers are running out of time as the special session to pass revenue generating measures must end Wednesday night. Barras says we’ll know after today on whether this special session will be successful…

Cut 14 (10) “the Senate.”

The House will try again today to pass tax proposals that would generate revenue to replace the loss of a billion dollars in temporary taxes. Jeff Palermo has a preview…

Cut 3 (30) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

The Reverend Billy Graham will be laid to rest today in North Carolina.  There is a Louisiana connection. The 99-year-old evangelist will be buried in a coffin made by prisoners at Angola. Former inmate David Bacon says Graham was so impressed with the caskets they made for those who died while in prison, he ordered one on the spot…

Cut 4  (10) “simple casket.” 

We will find out Sunday if two movies filmed in Louisiana will win an Oscar.  Mudbound was filmed in New Orleans and rural St. James Parish, while Logan was filmed in several locations including Amite, Ferriday, Hammond and New Orleans. Louisiana Entertainment Executive Director Chris Stelly says…

Typically, movies that are nominated get a second life after their initial release. He says this puts Louisiana on the silver screen to many more fans…

Cut 11 (07) “the state.”

Four months of construction work will begin Saturday on the I-10 bridge in Lake Charles. DOTD spokesman Rodney Mallet says 8.5 million dollar project will initially close the inside eastbound lane so crews can replace expansion joints on the nearly 60-year-old structure…

The joints need to replaced because the I-10 Lake Charles bridge will take on more traffic when a re-decking project gets underway on I-210. Mallett says it’s also just time to replace the joints, because they’ve been known to go out over the years…

Cut 8 (10) “these repairs.”

There is a Louisiana connection with today’s funeral for evangelist Billy Graham. Michael Farrar has the story.

Cut 1 (28) “I’m Michael Farrar.”

Four months of construction work will begin Saturday on the I-10 bridge in Lake Charles. DOTD spokesman Rodney Mallet says 8.5 million dollar project will initially close the inside eastbound lane so crews can replace expansion joints on the nearly 60-year-old structure…

Cut 7 (10)  “section work.”

We will find out Sunday if two movies filmed in Louisiana will win an Oscar.  Mudbound was filmed in New Orleans and rural St. James Parish, while Logan was filmed in several locations including Amite, Ferriday, Hammond and New Orleans. Louisiana Entertainment Executive Director Chris Stelly says these projects had far reaching impacts in the state’s economy…

Cut 10 (09) “59-million-dollars.”

The House is set to try again today on passing tax proposals that will go towards closing a one-billion dollar budget deficit. A sales tax bill that would generate 300-million dollars anually was soundly defeated on Wednesday, but House Speaker Taylor Barras says that measure is still a critical part of addressing the fiscal cliff…

Cut 13 (06)  “as we can”

There is a Louisiana connection with today’s funeral for evangelist Billy Graham. Michael Farrar has the story.

Cut 1 (28) “I’m Michael Farrar.”

______________________________________

Drivers in Lake Charles will see the start of a four month project this weekend on I-10 that includes the World War Two Memorial Bridge. Kelley Ray has more.

Cut 2 (31) “I’m Kelley Ray.”

_______________________________________

The House will try again today to pass tax proposals that would generate revenue to replace the loss of a billion dollars in temporary taxes. Jeff Palermo has a preview…

Cut 3 (30) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

____________________________________________

The Reverend Billy Graham will be laid to rest today in North Carolina.  There is a Louisiana connection. The 99-year-old evangelist will be buried in a coffin made by prisoners at Angola. Former inmate David Bacon says Graham was so impressed with the caskets they made for those who died while in prison, he ordered one on the spot…

Cut 4  (10) “simple casket.” 

Bacon recalls the time when there wasn’t much use for religion at Angola, but former warden Burl Cain opened the door for churches to come in and Graham helped to satisfy the prisoner’s spiritual needs…

Cut 5  (11)  “several chapels.”

Bacon says his life wouldn’t be what it is today, had it not been for him to meet Graham while he was at Angola…

Cut 6 (11)  “everyone else.”

Graham’s wife Ruth, who died in 2007, is also buried in one of the Angola caskets.

____________________________________________

Four months of construction work will begin Saturday on the I-10 bridge in Lake Charles. DOTD spokesman Rodney Mallet says 8.5 million dollar project will initially close the inside eastbound lane so crews can replace expansion joints on the nearly 60-year-old structure…

Cut 7 (10)  “section work.”

The joints need to replaced because the I-10 Lake Charles bridge will take on more traffic when a re-decking project gets underway on I-210. Mallett says it’s also just time to replace the joints, because they’ve been known to go out over the years…

Cut 8 (10) “these repairs.”

Yahoo Travel in 2013 rated the bridge the number 7 “Most Dangerous Bridge in the Country”, due to the wear and tear 72,000 cars put on it daily. Mallet says this work will make the bridge stronger and safer…

Cut 9 (10)  “that bridge.”

Motorists are advised to use I-210 as a detour while work takes place. Additionally, drivers can use LA 12 via LA 27 and US Highway 171.

_________________________________________________________

We will find out Sunday if two movies filmed in Louisiana will win an Oscar.  Mudbound was filmed in New Orleans and rural St. James Parish, while Logan was filmed in several locations including Amite, Ferriday, Hammond and New Orleans. Louisiana Entertainment Executive Director Chris Stelly says these projects had far reaching impacts in the state’s economy…

Cut 10 (09) “59-million-dollars.”

Typically, movies that are nominated get a second life after their initial release. Stelly says this puts Louisiana on the silver screen to many more fans…

Cut 11 (07) “the state.”

Frustrations are high and time is short for lawmakers trying to solve the fiscal cliff. Jeff Palermo has the story…

Cut 2 (30) “I’m Jeff Palermo”.

House Speaker Taylor Barras says the House will reconvene at 10am tomorrow to consider tax bills. He says there is some progress, but there is still plenty of work to do and stressed that the clock is ticking. The special session is nearly through it’s second week and it must end no later than next Wednesday.

Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Enforcement agents are offering a 55-hundred-dollar reward for information about who killed two black bears last month in St. Mary Parish in the Atchafalaya Basin. Spokesman Adam Einck says the bears were about a half mile apart. There’s no evidence as to why they were killed…

Cut 5  (05)  “under investigation.”

Anyone with information can call 800-442-2511 or use the Tip 411 phone app.

A state Department of Children and Family Services report finds there has been a 77-percent increase in the amount of juvenile human trafficking victims aged 12 or less. Juveniles account for over 52-percent of the 681 identified victims in 2017.   Author of the report Walter Fahr says once a victim is identified, they ask qualified organizations to help provide services they need…

Cut 11 (09) “related issues.”

The special session is on the verge of collapsing without a tax plan that addresses a looming one billion dollar shortfall. The House has failed to get behind a proposal to raise revenues to replace expiring sales taxes. Republican Barry Ivey of Baton Rouge says GOP legislators are not willing to work with a Democratic governor…

Cut 12 (05) “tax reform”

Legislators have been meeting today behind closed doors.  It’s unclear if they are any closer to resolving the fiscal cliff.

State Senator Troy Carter has filed a bill for the regular session that raises the age to purchase an assault rifle from 18 to 21. Opponents could say you can join the military under the age of 21 and carry an assault rifle, so why couldn’t you buy one? Carter argues….

Cut 15 (08) “or none.”

Gus Mijalis, a Shreveport businessman and noted close friend of former Gov. Edwin Edwards, has died. Mijalis family owned the Farmers Seafood Company which opened in 1918. Former Governor Edwin Edwards remembers Mijalis in an adversarial position when they first met. But things quickly changed.

Cut 6 (10)  “ever since”

A memorial service is scheduled for Monday and the former governor says he will attend.

A judge who halted the construction of the Bayou Bridge oil pipeline says her decision was designed to prevent further irreparable harm to wetlands.   U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick issued a temporary injunction after environmentalists, including the Louisiana Bucket Brigade expressed concerns about it’s effect on the economy and wildlife.  The line would pass through the Atchafalaya Basin between Lake Charles and St. James.