President Barack Obama sent a letter to Governor John Bel Edwards announcing the federal government will increase its cost-share for flood relief efforts in Louisiana from 75-percent to 90-percent, to cover repairs to public roads and infrastructure and first responder expenses. This means state and local governments will be responsible for the reaming 10-percent.

The Board of Regents placed four Louisiana universities on a fiscal watch list for being in poor financial standing. Higher Ed Commissioner Joe Rallo says they established this test to show legislators that these universities are struggling. He says there has been a lot of concern about the future of the LSU Health Center in Shreveport with many people worried it’s on “life support.”

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Rallo says these schools are facing financial challenges because of a decline in state funding and lower enrollment.

A 15-year-old girl was killed and her 12-year-old sister was seriously injured while helping their mother take out the garbage in Belle Rose. State Trooper Jesse LaGrange says the two girls were in the tailgate of their mother’s truck bringing the garbage bins to the street and they were stopped on the highway as a truck approached…

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Impairment has been ruled out.

After two devastating floods, Louisiana strawberry famers are struggling. Co-owner of Johndales Farm in Ponchatoula, Heather Robertson, says because strawberries are a specialty crop, there’s not much financial assistance, and a lot of producers will not grow strawberries again.

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Ag Commissioner Mike Strain says Tangipahoa parish is the center of strawberry production, and it was hit by both floods.

President Barack Obama has announced the federal government will increase its cost-share for flood relief efforts in Louisiana from 75-percent to 90-percent, leaving state and local governments to pay the remaining 10-percent. The 90-10 match will cover repairs to public roads and infrastructure, as well as first responder and shelter expenses.

The New Orleans Police Department issued a statement saying 28-year-old Raul Delatoba was wrongfully charged with a hate crime for violating the Blue Lives Matter law after he used sexist and racial slurs against officers. Executive Director of the Louisiana ACLU, Marjorie Esman, is glad police realized they can’t chare someone for offensive comments, but he never should have been charged with a hate crime in the first place.

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The Department of Transportation announces updates to their 511 travel information system. Rodney Mallett with DOTD says this will allow drivers to make the most informed choices they can make, which is especially important for displaced flood victims who are living in new areas.

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Mallett says motorists can now get personalized traffic updates by creating an account at 511LA.org.

Strawberry farmers in Louisiana are struggling after being hit by two devastating floods this year. Co-owner of Johndales Farm in Ponchatoula, Heather Robertson, says the flooding in August is making it very difficult to get a crop ready for next year.

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President Barack Obama announces the federal government will pay for a larger share of the costs associated with the devastated flood. That means the feds will pay 90-percent of the costs to repair damaged public buildings and roads, plus the emergency response to the flood, while state and local governments will pay pay 10-percent.

Louisiana Strawberry farmers are once again dealing with the aftermath of a devastating flood. Jeff Palermo has more…
voicer 1 (29) “…I’m Jeff Palermo”

The Department of Transportation announces upgrades to their 511 travel information system. Rodney Mallett with DOTD says motorists can now get personalized traffic updates by creating an account at 511LA.org and the system can alert of any traffic disruptions…:
CUT 9 (09) “your route”

A statement from the New Orleans Police Department says a man charged with a hate crime under the Blue Lives Matter Law was incorrectly applied. 28-year-old Raul Delatoba was charged with the crime after allegedly using sexist and racist slurs against police officers. Marjorie Esman, with the Louisiana ACLU, is glad the N-O-P-D realized they can’t arrest someone for offensive comments…
cut 15 (11) “….those charges”

President Barack Obama announced today that the federal government will cover 90-percent of the costs associated with flood relief in south Louisiana, leaving state and local governments to pick up the remaining 10-percent. In a letter to Governor John Bel Edwards, the President says he agrees to increase the feds’ cost share for the “public assistance” projects, which includes debris removal and emergency response expenses.

Four Louisiana universities have been placed on a fiscal watch list. The Board of Regents determined Southern University at New Orleans, LSU Health Shreveport, Grambling State and Southern University at Shreveport are in poor financial standing, and Higher Ed Commissioner Joe Rallo says the schools’ financial challenges are due to a decline in state funding for public universities and low enrollment.

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The Department Of Transportation has released a new Louisiana 511 app for smartphones. Rodney Mallet with DOTD says the app offers a variety of features, like live streaming traffic cameras, notifications, and more.

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Mallett says motorists can also get personalized traffic updates by creating an account at 511LA.org.

Strawberry farmers are struggling to recover from two historic floods this year. Co-owner of Johndales Farm in Ponchatoula, Heather Robertson, says they’re trying to get their fields ready to plant by late September or early October, but there’s a lot that has to be done.

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President Barack Obama says the federal government will cover a larger share of the costs to repair the damage done to public buildings and infrastrure that are the result of the historic flooding in south Louisiana. The larger cost share, means the feds will pick up 90-percent of the costs and that includes emergency repsonse expenses.

Four Louisiana Universities are doing very poorly when it comes to fiscal health. Emelie Gunn has more…
voicer 2 (30) “…I’m Emelie Gunn”

New Orleans Police have charged a 28-year-old man with a hate crime under the state’s new “Blue Lives Matter” law. A police report says Raul Delatoba used sexist and racist slurs against officers. Alexandria Representative Lance Harris says it’s up to the District Attorney’s office to determine if that charge will stick…
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The Louisiana A-C-L-U says charging someone for something they say violates our Free Speech rights.

A 15-year-old girl riding in a tailgate was killed and her 12-year-old sister was seriously injured in a head-on collision in Assumption Parish last night. It occurred as they were helping their mother place garbage bins on the side of the road and the vehicle they were in was facing the wrong way. Trooper Jesse LaGrange says the crash occurred at night, so it’s possible the driver of the other vehicle didn’t see the truck with the kids on it…
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President Barack Obama sent a letter to Governor John Bel Edwards today indicating that he is going to amend Louisiana’s disaster declaration to include that the federal government is now going to cover 90 percent of costs for disaster related flood relief. Mr. Obama said the federal government has spent more than $660 million to help the state in the aftermath of the floods.

Just over a month after the Blue Lives Matter law went into effect, a man has been arrested in New Orleans and charged with a hate crime against police officers. Police say 28-year-old Raul Delatoba was being booked on unrelated charges, when he used sexist and racial slurs against the arresting officers. Executive Director of the ACLU of Louisiana, Marjorie Esman, says the hate crime charge needs to go…:
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Those who support the Blue Lives Matter law say it was created to give DA’s another tool to provide law enforcement protection.

A 15-year-old girl was killed and her 12-year-old sister was seriously injured while helping their mother take out the garbage in Belle Rose. State Trooper Jesse LaGrange says the two girls were on the tailgate of their mother’s truck. He says the vehicle the kids were riding on was stopped on the highway and facing the wrong way when a truck was approaching…:
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LaGrange says the teenager, Sydny Landry, suffered fatal injuries and her sister was airlifted to to a local hospital in serious condition.

Displaced flood victims who are having a hard time getting around new locations are being given a new navigation tool from DOTD. Spokesman Rodney Mallett says you can create an account at 511LA.org to personalize travel plans and you will be notified of traffic issues on your route…:
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He says they’ve partnered with WAZE to make this happen.

Four Louisiana Universities have been placed on the fiscal watch list by the Board of Regents. It has been determined that Southern University at New Orleans, LSU Health Shreveport, Grambling State and Southern University at Shreveport are all in poor financial standing. Higher Education Commissioner Joe Rallo explains why they put out this report…:
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He says funding is an ongoing issue and so is enrollment.

The Department of Transportation announces upgrades to their 511 travel information system. Rodney Mallett with DOTD says motorists can now get personalized traffic updates by creating an account at 511LA.org and the system can alert of any traffic disruptions…:
CUT 9 (09) “your route”

Louisiana Strawberry farmers are once again dealing with the aftermath of a devastating flood. Halen Doughty has more…:
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LSU Coach Les Miles is not saying whether running back Leonard Fournette has been practicing this week after taking a hit to his lower leg towards the end of the Wisconsin game. Miles did say on Monday that Fournette suffered a contusion.

We’re starting to hear more from the US Senate candidates as election day nears. Republican Congressman John Fleming launched a seven figure statewide TV ad, and Congressman Charles Boustany ads have been running. Jeremy Alford of LaPolitics.com says you can expect a big battle in the coming weeks…:
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The election is November 8.

There may not be many FEMA mobile homes set up in Louisiana. Jeff Palermo explains why…:
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Customers could pay more for Louisiana strawberries in the coming months after fields were hammered by two historic floods this year. Heather Robertson and her husband own Johndales Farm in Ponchatoula. Robertson says because strawberries are a specialty crop, there’s not much financial assistance, and a lot of producers will not grow strawberries again…:
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Robertson says they’re trying to get their fields ready to plant by late September or early October, but there’s a lot that has to be done.

State Police say a teenager was killed and a 12-year-old seriously injured as they were on the tailgate of a vehicle involved in a two vehicle Assumption Parish crash. They say 38 Frannie Landry was taking out the trash in her vehicle on the road near her driveway and the two girls were riding on the tailgate to help out. An approaching vehicle could not avoid a collision and the two girls were ejected from the tailgate. The 15-year-old died and the 12-year-old is in serious condition at a hospital.

Governor John Bel Edwards is in Washington D.C. where he’s seeking $2 billion dollars from the federal government that will go towards helping flood victims repair their homes. The governor meets today with Congressional leaders and he’ll explain the level of damage the historic flood spread across 20-plus parishes…:
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The governor will also plans to discuss temporary and long-term housing recovery efforts with the secretary of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development.

It doesn’t look like we’ll see a lot of FEMA mobile homes in Louisiana. Spokesman Tito Hernandez says the temporary housing is a last resort…:
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And Hernandez says they talked to three-thousand families who qualified for a mobile home, but many of them were not interested.

Republican Congressman John Fleming begins airing television ads statewide for his U.S. Senate campaign. Emelie Gunn has more…
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First Lady Donna Edwards has been busy trying to help raise money for the Fund for Restoring Schools, which is collecting donations for flood impacted students and teachers. Edwards says many teachers lost everything…
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Governor John Bel Edwards is traveling to Washington, D.C., today to meet with federal officials about getting more assistance for Louisiana flood victims — specifically housing. He says he’s also asking for full funding for the Comite River Diversion Project, which could prevent disastrous flooding in the Baton Rouge area…:
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First Lady Donna Edwards is visiting schools in flood ravaged areas of south Louisiana to distribute school supplies. Edwards has teamed up with the Louisiana School Boards Association to collect thousands of dollars for kids and teachers. She says she will be at Greenbrier Elementary today…:
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To help out again, that GoFundMe account is called the LSBA Fund for Restoring Schools.

You’re probably starting to notice new ads for Republican Congressman John Fleming for the US Senate race. Republican Congressman Charles Boustany has also started running TV commercial and likely Treasurer John Kennedy will soon have ads running too. Jeremy Alford with LaPolitics.com says on the democratic side, there is a big war playing out on urban radio stations:
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He says these ads are playing nice now, but people will really start to pay attention to this race once the Super PACS come in with negative spots.

It doesn’t look like we’ll see a lot of FEMA mobile homes in Louisiana. Deputy Federal Coordinating Officer, Tito Hernandez, says they are a last resort and of the 3,000 people that qualified for a manufactured housing unit were not interested…:
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He says the main focus now is getting aid to people and get them back in their homes.