Just two weeks are left in the regular session, and the budget is still the biggest issue for lawmakers. Jeremy Alford with LaPolitics.com says legislators are trying to fund priorities like TOPS and safety net hospitals with a $600 million budget shortfall.

cut 4  (08)  “gonna be”

Alford says legislators are working on funding all of the public-private hospitals that care for the poor, and parents of TOPS students are also paying close attention to the debate over the funding for the scholarship program.

Cut 5  (06)  “doing that”

According to state officials, Governor Edwards hopes to have some tax proposals for a planned June special session ready for lawmakers by the end of the week. Edwards wants to call another special session so lawmakers can raise more revenues to close the budget deficit and stave off deep cuts to vital state services, because lawmakers cannot raise taxes during this regular session that ends June 6.

Between one representative’s not-so-funny joke about strippers and the legislature shooting down a proposal to get equal pay for men and women, it hasn’t been a good week for women in Louisiana. One state lawmaker hopes to change that with a new campaign for women’s rights called “It’s No Joke.” New Orleans Representative Helena Moreno says she started this campaign to combat gender inequality.

Cut 13 (12)  “significant changes”

Moreno says she wants to work towards ending sexism and inequality. She says this online petition, using the hashtag #ItsNoJoke, is raising awareness about women’s issues. More information about the #ItsNoJoke campaign is available at morenocampaign.com.

The White House has announced that a new rule goes into effect December 1 that requires employers to pay workers who make less than $47-thousand a year over time if they work more than 40 hours a week. Jeff Palermo has more…

CUT 1 (31)  “I’m Jeff Palermo”

West Feliciana Parish Sheriff’s Deputies are looking for a woman who is believed to be involved in a double homicide that took place early this morning.  27-year-old Erica Cockerham is wanted for questioning about two men who were found dead when deputies arrived at the scene.

With Memorial Day Weekend coming up, drivers can expect to see gas prices up 6 cents from the previous week. But Senior Petroleum Analyst Gregg Laskoski from GasBuddy.com says even though we’re seeing these increases, prices in Louisiana are still down almost 40 cents from this time last year…:

cut 15 (08) “this summer”

Laskoski says prices haven’t been this low since 2008.

Governor John Bel Edwards’ daughter Samantha is getting married today to Jonathan Ricau. The wedding ceremony will be in Amite at St. Helena Catholic Church and the reception will follow a few hours later at the Governor’s Mansion. Edwards says the planning is going well and Samantha is excited.

CUT 9 (07) “the aisle”

Samantha and Jonathan met in 2012 and both graduated from Southeastern Louisiana University.

A new rule from the White House goes into effect on December 1 that would require employers to pay their workers overtime if they work more than 40 hours a week and make less than about $47-thousand a year. This would affect about 35% of salaried workers. LSU Economist Stephen Barnes says this will impact business owners more than anyone.

CUT 3 (10)  “fairly painful”

Critics says this is too drastic of a change for employers.

Governor John Bel Edwards has signed two pro-life bills into law, one measure increases the wait time for a woman to receive an abortion to 72 hours and the second requires doctors performing abortions to be board certified. Louisiana Right to Life Legislative Director Deanna Wallace says this truly is a victory for women in the state

Cut 13 (06)  “against women”

As we approach a big travel weekend, motorists can expect to see prices at the pump up more than 6 cents from the prior week. Senior Petroleum Analyst Gregg Laskoski from GasBuddy.com says they’ve got the current statewide average for a gallon of regular at about $2.06…:

cut 14 (07)  “Memorial Day weekend”

Laskoski says prices haven’t been this low since 2008.

Authorities say a man is behind bars and a three-year-old is recovering following a shooting in a Shreveport home yesterday afternoon. Shreveport police say the child had already been taken to a local hospital by the time they arrived. The child reportedly suffered a single gunshot wound to the right arm, and although the injuries are serious, the child is expected to survive. The incident is still under investigation, but 17-year-old Dezhun Kendrick has been booked into the Shreveport City Jail on two counts of illegal use of a weapon.

A new rule from the White House that goes into effect on December 1 would require employers to pay workers who make less than $47-thousand a year overtime if they work more than 40 hours a week. LSU Economist Stephen Barnes says for the most part, workers should enjoy this.

CUT 5 (09)  “about that”

Governor John Bel Edwards has signed two pro-life bills into law, one measure increases the wait time for a woman to receive an abortion to 72 hours and the second requires doctors performing abortions to be board certified. Louisiana Right to Life Legislative Director Deanna Wallace says the legislation increasing wait time gives women more of a chance to reach out before being forced to have an abortion if they don’t want to have one.

Cut 11 (10) “unborn children”

Motorists can expect to see prices at the pump up more than 6 cents from the prior week, as we get closer to Memorial Day. Senior Petroleum Analyst Gregg Laskowski says even though we’re seeing these increases, prices in Louisiana are still down almost 40 cents from this time last year…:

cut 15 (08) “this summer”

Laskoski says prices haven’t been this low since 2008.

Authorities say someone crashed a stolen 18-wheeler in Caddo parish early this morning. Caddo Parish Sheriff Spokesperson Cindy Chadwick says the 18-wheeler was stolen from a truck stop in Texarkana, Arkansas, just before the crash, and the theft is still under investigation. She says the driver who stole the 18-wheeler has not been located.

CUT 7 (06) “as well”

Chadwick says she doesn’t understand why someone would steal an 18-wheeler because it would not be very low key.

The White House has announced that a new rule goes into effect December 1 that requires employers to pay workers who make less than $47-thousand a year over time if they work more than 40 hours a week. Jeff Palermo has more…

CUT 1 (31)  “I’m Jeff Palermo”

Louisiana’s unemployment rate is up to 6.3%, which is a 0.2% increase since March. This rate is the fourth worst in the nation. Oil and gas job losses slowed, but employment in that sector remains much lower than last year.

As we approach a big travel weekend, motorists can expect to see gas prices up more than 6 cents from the prior week. Senior Petroleum Analyst Gregg Laskoski from GasBuddy.com says the current statewide average for a gallon of regular gas is about $2.06…:

cut 14 (07)  “Memorial Day weekend”

Laskoski says prices haven’t been this low since 2008.

The Governor’s daughter Samantha is getting married tomorrow to her fiancé, Jonathan Ricau. Samantha and Jonathan met in 2012 and both graduated from Southeastern Louisiana University. She is the oldest daughter of the governor and First Lady Donna. Edwards says it’s a miracle he gets to walk Samantha down the aisle.

cut 10 (09)  “might be”

The wedding ceremony will be in Amite at St. Helena Catholic Church and the reception will follow at the Governor’s Mansion.

Governor John Bel Edwards has signed two pro-life bills into law. Emelie Gunn has more…

CUT 2 (31)  “I’m Emelie Gunn”

Based on released court records from a deposition, Saints and Pelicans Owner Tom Benson says his daughter and grandchildren “tried to kill him” during a confrontation at the Mercedes Benz Superdome. The deposition took place at the end of March and Benson gave that answer when he was asked why he was looking to remove control of his sports franchises from Renee Benson and Rita Benson LeBlanc.

The White House has issued a new rule that goes into effect on December 1 that would require employers to pay their workers overtime if they work more than 40 hours a week and make less than about $47-thousand a year. LSU Economist Stephen Barnes says this will impact business owners more than anyone.

CUT 3 (10)  “fairly painful”

Critics says this is too drastic of a change for employers.

Police say a stolen 18-wheeler was found overturned in a ditch in Caddo parish early this morning. Caddo Parish Sheriff Spokesperson Cindy Chadwick says she doesn’t understand why someone would steal an 18-wheeler because it would not be very low key.

CUT 8 (12) “no idea”

Chadwick says the 18-wheeler was stolen from a truck stop in Texarkana, Arkansas.

A new rule from the White House will go into effect on December 1 and would force employers to pay workers overtime if they work more than 40 hours a week and make less than about $47-thousand a year. LSU Economist Stephen Barnes says employees will be affected in a many ways depending on their pay scale and work load.
CUT 4 (12) “work done”

The governor has signed two pro-life bills into law, one measure requires doctors performing abortions to be board certified and the second increases the wait time for a woman to receive an abortion from 24 to 72 hours. Louisiana Right to Life Legislative Director Deanna Wallace says this is a victory for women in the state and is thankful Governor John Bel Edwards signed these two bills into law.
Cut 13 (06) “against women”

Governor John Bel Edwards’ daughter Samantha is getting married tomorrow to Jonathan Ricau. The wedding ceremony will be held in Amite at St. Helena Catholic Church and the reception is later at the Governor’s Mansion. Edwards says everything is going as planned and Samantha is very excited.
CUT 9 (07) “the aisle”

Samantha is the oldest daughter of the governor and First Lady Donna.

Police say someone wrecked a stolen 18-wheeler in Caddo parish early this morning. Caddo Parish Sheriff Spokesperson Cindy Chadwick says a call came in around 6 am from someone saying an 18-wheeler had flipped over on I-49 North at Louisiana Highway Two.
CUT 6 (06) “its side”

Chadwick says the big rig was stolen from a truck stop in Texarkana, Arkansas, just before the crash, and the theft is under investigation.

This week the White House announced a new overtime rule regarding pay for salary employees. The Obama administration says starting December 1st individuals who work more than 40 hours a week must make at least 47-thousand dollars a year. LSU economist Stephen Barnes says employees should like this new rule…
cut 5 (09) “….about that”
The organization that represents small businesses says this will result in entry-level management positions disappearing and those employees falling back into hourly jobs.

According to gas-buddy-dot-com, the statewide average price for a gallon of regular gasoline is up to a $2.05 that’s a six-cent increase over the last week. But Gasbuddy’s Greg Laskoski says prices in Louisiana are still down almost 40-cents from this time last year…
cut 15 (08) “…this summer’
Governor John Bel Edwards has signed into law two pro-life meaures, one of them would require a woman to wait 72 hours instead of 24 hours before they can get an abortion after visiting a clinic and the second new law says all doctors that perform abortions in Louisiana are board certified…
cut 12 (08) “…that way”
That’s Louisiana Right to Life Legislative Director Deanna Wallace.

A reason why John Bel Edwards is a pro-life governor is his daughter Samantha. Mr. Edwards and his wife Donna were told Samantha would be born with spina bifda, but they decided against an abortion. Tomorrow Samantha gets married to Jonathan Ricau and the governor couldn’t be prouder…
cut 10 (09) “…might be”
The reception will take place at the governor’s mansion.

Governor John Bel Edwards has signed two pro-life bills into law. One increases the wait time for a woman to receive an abortion to 72 hours. Louisiana Right to Life Legislative Director Deanna Wallace says the law will give women more of a chance to reach out before having an abortion if they don’t want to have one…:
Cut 11 (10) “unborn children”
The second new law requires doctors performing abortions to be board certified.

A man who cops say was trying to break into someone’s home during the severe storms last night in West Baton Rouge Parish, was shot and killed by the homeowner during the invasion. Detectives say investigators believe 32-year-old Kelly Cline was shot once with a handgun after allegedly breaking into the mobile home during loud booming thunderstorms. They believe that the shooting was justified as self-defense.

The White House has announced that a new rule goes into effect December 1 that requires employers to pay workers who make less than $47-thousand a year over time if they work more than 40 hours a week. Jeff Palermo has more…:
CUT 1 (31) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

As we approach a big travel weekend, motorists can expect to see prices at the pump up more than 6 cents from the prior week. Senior Petroleum Analyst Gregg Laskoski from GasBuddy.com says they’ve got the current statewide average for a gallon of regular at about $2.06…:
cut 14 (07) “Memorial Day weekend”.
Still he says prices haven’t been this low since 2008.

A new rule from the White House goes into effect on December 1 that would require employers to pay their workers overtime if they work more than 40 hours a week and make less than about $47-thousand a year. This would affect about 35% of salaried workers. LSU Economist Stephen Barnes says this will impact business owners more than anyone…:
CUT 3 (10) “fairly painful”
Critics says this is too drastic of a change for employers.

More than 20,000 Entergy customers remain without power after severe storms with damaging winds took down power lines and trees overnight. They say they are bringing in additional restoration workers to help get everybody back up but in most cases customers may not get their power back until late tonight and possibly even tomorrow.

Gas prices appear to have shot back up over the last week. AAA says the current statewide average for a gallon of regular is $2.05 cents, up from $2.00 the prior week.

Strange story out of Caddo Parish. Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Cindy Chadwick says they located an 18-wheeler that had crashed on I-49 this morning, and later learned it had been stolen from Texarkana. She says the driver who jacked the Mac Truck has not been located…:
CUT 7 (06) “as well”
She says she has no idea what would possess someone to steal an 18-wheeler because it’s not exactly low profile.

Federal court documents released reveal that Saints and Pelicans Owner Tom Benson said in a deposition that Renee and Rita LeBlanc Benson tried to kill him. Benson said that after he was asked why he was seeking to remove his daughter and granddaughter from having control of his sports franchises.