Governor John Bel Edwards will unveil a budget today that will show what one billion dollars in cuts to state agencies would look like. Reports say healthcare and education will be the hardest hit, with the possibility of total cut in funding to TOPS. Political analyst Clancy Dubos says this is the budget Edwards is constitutionally required to present…:
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So far, GOP legislative leaders and Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards have been unable to settle on a plan to address the fiscal cliff.

New Year’s resolutions are starting to fall by the wayside for many as day to day realities clash with their bold plans. LSU Ag Center nutritional specialist Elizabeth Gollub has a suggestion…:
Cut 7 (11) “smaller steps”

Emerge Louisiana chooses 25 Democratic women to train to run for political office. Kelley Ray spoke with executive director Melanie Oubre:
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The Louisiana Public Service Commission wants to know why utility customers were asked to conserve energy Thursday morning in the cold. Michelle Southern reports…:
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Senator John Kennedy calls out the Democrats for the federal government shutdown, saying it an embarrassment to congress, democracy, the United States of America. A statement from Kennedy says, “I defy any Democrat to explain why it is so important to ask our military to sacrifice their pay, furloughs hundreds of thousands of workers, and reject a long term renewal of the Children’s Health Insurance Program.

A billion dollar state budget short fall may spell funding trouble for the TOPS program. Higher Education Commissioner Joe Rallo says time is critical since nationwide faculty recruitment is currently underway…
Cut 8 (11) “of state.”

A non-partisan group CrowdPac is concerned about the recent volatile actions of the Vermillion School board and wants to see changes. Controversy erupted after a school teacher was arrested at a school board meeting when she voiced concerns over a pay raise for the school superintendent. Crowdpac spokesperson Mason Harrison says…
Cut 14 (10) “help out.”

A seminar teaching the public how to run for school board offices is set for January 30th at the Sunbelt Lodge in Abbeville.

The Commissioner of Higher Education is worried about possible cuts to the TOPS program. Kelley Ray has a look at the far reaching repercussions…
Cut 2 (32) “I’m Kelley Ray.”

A mysterious package left at a Slidell Post Office caused police to block off the area for the bomb squad to respond. The package was dropped off around 4 pm and after approximately 4 and half hours later the Slidell Police department said the contents of the package was about seventy pounds of human feces. Authorities say the person being questioned is thought to have mental health problems.

Public Service Commissioner Chairman Eric Skrmetta says industrial customers were warned this week that their power could be turned off due to extremely cold weather. Industrial customers handle electrical flow to Louisiana households. He says this should not happen and it’s the Public Service Commission’s job to make sure that power is always there for consumers to use..:
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Vermilion School Board President Anthony Fontana announced his resignation. This comes amid a school teacher’s arrest at a school board meeting two weeks ago when she voiced concerns over the Superintendent’s pay raise. Crowdpac spokesperson Mason Harrison says Fontana’s resignation is perfect timing for a seminar coming to Abbeville to teach citizens to how to run for a school board position…
Cut 12 (07) “do that.”

The Louisiana Public Service Commission wants to know why utility customers were asked to conserve energy Thursday morning in the cold. Michelle Southern reports…:

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The federal government shutdown has Louisiana’s elected representatives blaming the Democrats.  Representative Clay Higgins issued a statement declaring “This shut down belongs to the democrats. They own it.”  While Senator Bill Cassidy’s statement read, “They voted to shut down the government just to appease the pro-illegal immigrations extremists in their party.”  Both Representative Higgins and Senator Cassidy said the measure voted down would have funded the U.S. military and the reauthorization of the Children’s Health Insurance Program.

Governor John Bel Edwards will unveil his proposed budget for next fiscal year on Monday. Higher Education Commissioner Joe Rallo says if funding for TOPS is eliminated, it will devastate students in the program. Cuts are likely because a one-penny sales tax that funds provides nearly a billion dollars in state revenues will expire at the end of June.  Rallo says if TOPS doesn’t get funding, it could affect Louisiana’s job market…

Cut 7 (09)  “those graduates.”

A non-partisan group CrowdPac is concerned about the recent volatile actions of the Vermillion School board and wants to see changes.  School teacher Deyshia Hargrave was arrested two weeks ago after speaking out during a school board meeting.  Crowdpac spokesperson Mason Harrison says they will hold a seminar in Abbeville to train citizens to become prepared to run for a school board position.

Cut 13 (08) “this year.”

The seminar is scheduled for January 30^th at the Sunbelt Lodge in Abbeville.

Vermilion School Board President Anthony Fontana has announced he’s resigned.  This comes amid the controversy surrounding school teacher Deyshia Hargrave and her arrest two weeks ago.  A non-partisan group CrowdPac is concerned about the recent volatile actions of the board and wants to see changes. Spokesperson Mason Harrison says the resignation is perfect timing for a seminar coming to Abbeville to train citizens to become prepared to run for a school board position…

Cut 12 (07) “do that.”

The seminar is scheduled for January 30^th.

The Louisiana Public Service Commission wants to know why utility customers were asked to reduce energy consumption for a time Thursday morning over concerns the grids may not be able to handle the high demand in the cold. PSC Chairman Eric Skrmetta says nobody’s power was going to be shut off:

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Governor Edwards has said he will ask for a special session next month to consider the budget if there isn’t an agreement in principle in place.  One of the concerns with the upcoming announcement is if there is enough money to fund the TOPS program.  Higher Education Commissioner Joe Rallo says time is of the essence in getting a financial plan in place since nationwide faculty recruitment for universities and college is underway…

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A state judge will hear a dispute next month between Governor Edwards and Attorney General Jeff Landry over which party should control the state’s lawsuit against opioid manufacturers.  Edwards’ administration filed a lawsuit in September against more than a dozen drug companies.  Landry filed a request to stop the suit since it didn’t include how it impacts other agencies.  Landry says his office can supersede the state health department.

The Vermilion Parish School Board is without a president.  Anthony Fontana resigned today, saying he accomplished what he set out to do, giving the superintendent a raise.  BiPartisan group CrowdPac is upset that school teacher Deyshia Hargrave was arrested a couple of weeks ago after speaking out about the superintendent’s raise.  CrowdPac Spokesperson Mason Harrison says the entire school board could lose their positions…

Cut 13 (08) “this year.”

Roads were shuttered and pipes shattered as Louisiana suffered record lows this week. Many woke up to the sound of running water and nasty surprises across their property. New Orleans based Pipes “R” Us owner Danny Griffin says there’s a good way to avoid the hassle going forward…

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The Louisiana Public Service Commission wants to know why utility customers were asked to conserve energy Thursday morning in the cold. Michelle Southern reports…:

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Opening arguments were made today in the shooting death of former NFL player Joe McKnight.  Defense attorneys claim 56-year-old Ronald Gasser fired the gun in self defense after McKnight approached his vehicle after a traffic confrontation.  Prosecutors say Gasser’s claim that McKnight tried to lunge toward his car is unfounded.  Gasser is charged with second degree murder.

Vermilion School Board President Anthony Fontana has announced resignation, two weeks after teacher Deyshia Hargrave was arrested for asking about a proposed raise for the superintendent.  The non-partisan group CrowdPac is worried about the recent actions and plans a seminar in Abbeville later this month to train citizens to run for the school board.  Spokesperson Mason Harrison says there’s a lot of interest…

Cut 14 (10) “help out.”

The Commissioner of Higher Education Joe Rallo is concerned about a possible lack of funding for the TOPS program.  Governor Edwards is presenting his budget proposal Monday.  Rallo says if funding for TOPS is eliminated, it’s a devastating blow for students…

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Was there enough power to keep Louisiana from going dark? Public Service Commission Chairman Eric Skrmetta says the situation was bad enough yesterday that industrial customers were warned that their power could be turned off affecting their consumers. He says there is no reason that should ever happen and it’s the PSC’s job to make sure power is always there for consumers to use..:

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Many are cleaning up from the frigid weather that descended on the state last week.   Some of that cleanup may involve fixing busted water pipes.  It’s creating a lot of business for plumbers such as New Orleans based Pipes R Us.  Owner Danny Griffin says calls are flooding in…

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Griffin adds don’t try to fix the problems yourself if you’re unfamiliar with plumbing and call a professional.

The Louisiana Public Service Commission plans to investigate why Entergy asked customers to conserve energy Thursday. Midcontinent Independent System Operator, which manages the flow of electricity, said they set a record on Wednesday for peak winter power usage. PSC Chairman Eric Skrmetta says they want to make sure the resources are there and people have what they need to live their lives…
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The record cold we saw this week pusted pipes across the state and many are in the need of a plumber. Pipes “R” uUs owner Danny Griffin says if you need someone to repair your busted pipes, he has this advice…
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Griffin says if you don’t have experience working with plumbing, leave the work to professionals.

Higher Education Commissioner Joe Rallo is worried about possible cuts to TOPS, as the scholarship program could be on the chopping block if there’s no resolution to the fiscal cliff. …
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And Governor Edwards will propose his budget for next fiscal year at Monday’s joint legislative budget committee. Edwards has urged the Republican-led House to get behind a tax plan to replace the loss of one-billion dollars in revenues. Edwards told the Associated Press he still has some hope they will, so he can call a special session in February.