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A $3.5 billion spending plan for public schools was rejected by a state Senate committee Tuesday, which will likely kill the measure for the session. The proposal, Senate Concurrent Resolution 23, was denounced primarily for proposed changes in how the state would change funding for special education students. After about 90 minutes of criticism, a move … Continue reading →
Coverage of the 2013 Regular Session of the La. Legislature. For previous coverage of this session go to http://theadvocate.com/news/politics . The website for the Legislature is at http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/home.aspx . Live coverage of the session is provided by LPB each day from 2-6 p.m. Continue reading →
A state House panel on Tuesday endorsed a measure putting Planned Parenthood operations in Louisiana under scrutiny as it prepares to build a health center in New Orleans where abortions will be provided. House Resolution 105 also urges suspension of grants and reimbursements under state contracts or Medicaid provider agreements for family planning and other services … Continue reading →
An effort to bar enforcement of federal laws banning or restricting semiautomatic firearms in Louisiana stalled Tuesday. With state senators challenging the constitutionality of House Bill 5, state Sen. Rick Ward opted to delay a vote on the House-passed measure. “There are a few things I have been made aware of to try to make this … Continue reading →
State Treasurer John Kennedy questioned Tuesday whether the Jindal administration embraced the state’s sunshine laws in a meeting to refinance a major legal settlement. The Tobacco Settlement Finance Corp., which counts Kennedy and Commissioner of Administration Kristy Nichols among its members, met Tuesday and gave final approval to refinancing part of the state’s tobacco settlement. The … Continue reading →
Legislation to wrest away financial control from the St. Tammany Parish Coroner’s Office zipped through a Senate committee Tuesday. State Rep. Tim Burns and St. Tammany Parish President Pat Brister told the state Senate Committee on Judiciary B that House Bill 561 is necessary because of abuses within the Coroner’s Office. “This has … Continue reading →
For his initial pitch on legislation aimed at curtailing oil and gas activity at Lake Peigneur, state Sen. Fred Mills turned the Senate chamber into a movie theater. Mills, R-St. Martinville, showed grainy, decades-old news footage of the water draining in a violent whirlpool after a drilling accident in 1980. The images failed to convince the … Continue reading →
The Louisiana House rejected legislation Tuesday that would allow the construction of a private hotel and other development projects around the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans. But 26 representatives were out of the House chamber at the time of the vote making it difficult to reach the 53-vote threshold needed for passage. Continue reading →
A bill that would lead Louisiana down a path of rewarding colleges and universities for increased performance while punishing them for underperforming all but died on the House floor Tuesday. Senate Bill 117 would have created a 21-member task force to study ways to more closely link college performance to state funding fell one vote short … Continue reading →
A bill designed to prohibit parents from forcing underage daughters into having abortions moved closer to final legislative passage Tuesday. “It’s about choice,” state Rep. Valarie Hodges told the state Senate Committee on Judiciary A. Hodges, R-Denham Springs, filed House Bill 278 to classify coerced abortions as child abuse when the pregnant woman is a … Continue reading →
The state Senate gave final legislative approval Tuesday to a prohibition against tweeting while driving. Senate Bill 147 now goes to the governor’s desk after the Senate voted 34-1 in favor of it. The bill would make it illegal for drivers to tweet, post on Instagram or use other social network sites.
The Louisiana House on Tuesday snuffed out any chance of legislative passage of a Medicaid expansion to provide health insurance to some 400,000 of the state’s working poor. The Medicaid expansion, included in the federal Affordable Care Act, is an option for states. Gov. Bobby Jindal has rejected state participation. House Bill 233 came up 16 … Continue reading →
Legislation that would set new licensing guidelines for daycare centers and facilities gained approval from the House Health and Welfare committee on Tuesday. Senate Bill 222, which is part of Gov. Bobby Jindal’s attempt to restructure publicly-funded early childhood education, moves to the House floor for debate. It already has been backed by the Senate. While … Continue reading →
Home-based bakers, who sell their cakes or cookies from their houses, would be exempt from some state licensing regulations, under a bill approved by a House committee on Tuesday. The measure, proposed by state Sen. Rick Ward, D-Maringouin, would free people who bake from their homes from sanitation rules that require the purchase of commercial grade equipment. … Continue reading →
The Louisiana House refused Tuesday to relinquish legislative control over tuition hikes for students at Louisiana’s public colleges. A proposal by Rep. Thomas Carmody, R-Shreveport, would have spelled out in the state constitution that tuition increases don’t require approval of two-thirds of the Louisiana House and state Senate. Carmody said the campuses need to be able … Continue reading →
Coverage of the 2013 Regular Session of the La. Legislature. For previous coverage of this session go to http://theadvocate.com/news/politics . The website for the Legislature is at http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/home.aspx . Live coverage of the session is provided by LPB each day from 2-6 p.m. Continue reading →
Coverage of the 2013 Regular Session of the La. Legislature. For previous coverage of this session go to http://theadvocate.com/news/politics . The website for the Legislature is at http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/home.aspx . Live coverage of the session is provided by LPB each day from 2-6 p.m. Continue reading →
Coverage of the 2013 Regular Session of the La. Legislature. For previous coverage of this session go to http://theadvocate.com/news/politics . The website for the Legislature is at http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/home.aspx . Live coverage of the session is provided by LPB each day from 2-6 p.m. Continue reading →
Coverage of the 2013 Regular Session of the La. Legislature. For previous coverage of this session go to http://theadvocate.com/news/politics . The website for the Legislature is at http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/home.aspx . Live coverage of the session is provided by LPB each day from 2-6 p.m. Continue reading →
Coverage of the 2013 Regular Session of the La. Legislature. For previous coverage of this session go to http://theadvocate.com/news/politics . The website for the Legislature is at http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/home.aspx . Live coverage of the session is provided by LPB each day from 2-6 p.m. Continue reading →
Coverage of the 2013 Regular Session of the La. Legislature. For previous coverage of this session go to http://theadvocate.com/news/politics . The website for the Legislature is at http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/home.aspx . Live coverage of the session is provided by LPB each day from 2-6 p.m. Continue reading →
Coverage of the 2013 Regular Session of the La. Legislature. For previous coverage of this session go to http://theadvocate.com/news/politics . The website for the Legislature is at http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/home.aspx . Live coverage of the session is provided by LPB each day from 2-6 p.m. Continue reading →
Coverage of the 2013 Regular Session of the La. Legislature. For previous coverage of this session go to http://theadvocate.com/news/politics . The website for the Legislature is at http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/home.aspx . Live coverage of the session is provided by LPB each day from 2-6 p.m. Continue reading →
Coverage of the 2013 Regular Session of the La. Legislature. For previous coverage of this session go to http://theadvocate.com/news/politics . The website for the Legislature is at http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/home.aspx . Live coverage of the session is provided by LPB each day from 2-6 p.m. Continue reading →
Coverage of the 2013 Regular Session of the La. Legislature. For previous coverage of this session go to http://theadvocate.com/news/politics . The website for the Legislature is at http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/home.aspx . Live coverage of the session is provided by LPB each day from 2-6 p.m. Continue reading →
Coverage of the 2013 Regular Session of the La. Legislature. The session will reconvene on Monday, May 6. There are no meetings on Friday, May 3. For previous coverage of this session go to http://theadvocate.com/news/politics . The website for the Legislature is at http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/home.aspx . Live coverage of the session is provided by LPB each day from 2-6 p.m. Continue reading →
Coverage of the 2013 Regular Session of the La. Legislature. For previous coverage of this session go to http://theadvocate.com/news/politics . The website for the Legislature is at http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/home.aspx . Live coverage of the session is provided by LPB each day from 2-6 p.m. Continue reading →
Coverage of the 2013 Regular Session of the La. Legislature. For previous coverage of this session go to http://theadvocate.com/news/politics . The website for the Legislature is at http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/home.aspx . Live coverage of the session is provided by LPB each day from 2-6 p.m. Continue reading →
An effort to find a way Louisiana could expand the ranks of Medicaid — by proposing private companies sell the insurance — ran into a roadblock Monday in the Republican-dominated state Senate Finance Committee. The panel voted 7-3 to defer action on the measure, which attempted to move Louisiana toward what is called the “Arkansas model,” which … Continue reading →
House convenes at 2:00 p.m. Senate convenes at 1:30 p.m. Criminal Justice. 9:30 a.m. in Committee Room 6. Agenda includes: SB133 Provides for the obligation of lottery board members to disclose certain business relationships to the Senate Committee on Senate and Governmental Affairs. SB150 … Continue reading →
Louisiana motorists could have “I’m a Cajun” added to their driver’s license — no proof required — under a measure that cleared its final legislative approval Monday. The proposal, Senate Bill 201, breezed through the House 74-8 after less than five minutes of discussion. The state Senate passed the measure earlier this month 38-0. Backers … Continue reading →
A state Senate committee is set to consider a $3.5 billion spending plan for public schools on Tuesday at 9 a.m. The proposal, Senate Concurrent Resolution 23, has been the subject of controversy for the past week. The Senate Education Committee initially shelved the measure because the panel concluded that it needed reworking because of a … Continue reading →
A bid to give judges five years of annual pay raises easily received the backing Monday of the state Senate’s budget committee — after it was changed to require money for the salary hike to come from the annual judicial budget. Supporters said the judges haven’t had a raise since 2010. “It really is appropriate to do … Continue reading →
The state Department of Education failed to properly monitor some operations of charter schools, Legislative Auditor Daryl Purpera said in a report issued Monday. The review says the Louisiana Department of Education, or LDOE, did not verify that data used to calculate how charter schools are faring is reliable and failed to do all the required academic … Continue reading →
The Louisiana House backed another attempt Monday to force a 10 percent cut on state agencies’ spending on consulting and professional services contracts. State Rep. Jerome “Dee” Richard, No Party-Thibodaux, has tried a similar bill for several years, only to see the idea killed in the state Senate. The House voted unanimously for this year’s … Continue reading →
A bill that would shed light on who receives college scholarships awarded by higher education board members passed in the state House of Representatives Monday on an 88-0 vote. Senate Bill 31, by state Sen. Dan Claitor, R-Baton Rouge, would require that the board members make public who they are giving scholarships to and the value … Continue reading →
Inmates in parish jails will be able to do manual labor at churches and other religious buildings as part of their work duties, after Senate-passed legislation cleared its final legislative vote in the Louisiana House. The House voted without objection to pass Senate Bill 8, sponsored by state Sen. Rick Gallot, D-Ruston. The measure heads to Gov. … Continue reading →
Higher education leaders around the state will have their eyes on the State Capitol this week as legislators are set to debate two bills that would take tuition-setting control away from the Legislature and give it to the boards that manage Louisiana’s public colleges and universities. Should either House Bill 194 or House Bill 87 become … Continue reading →
The Louisiana Senate on Monday advanced legislation that would provide state help to finance infrastructure improvements related to the planned Juban Crossing development. The Senate voted 34-2 for measure sponsored by state Sen. Dale Erdey, R-Livingston. Senate Bill 50 now heads to the Louisiana House for debate. Juban Crossing is a 470-acre planned mix use development … Continue reading →
The Senate Finance Committee quickly signed off Monday on multi-year, 4 percent pay raises for Louisiana clerks of court. Under House Bill 174, the clerks could opt for 4 percent pay raises in each of four years. The money to cover the raises would have to come from self-generated funds. State Rep. Jeff Arnold, D-New … Continue reading →
The state Senate Finance Committee on Monday advanced two proposed constitutional amendments that opponents said would protect more areas of the budget from cuts. The propositions, contained in House Bills 532 and 533, would provide more financial stability for hospitals, nursing homes, intermediate care facilities and pharmacists through constitutionally protected funds. But … Continue reading →
A state Senate committee Monday steered dollars toward a Louisiana State Police training academy through legislation creating a state debt collector. If the bill becomes law with the amendment intact, new troopers would be trained for the first time in several years. Another significant change was made to House Bill 629 by the Senate Committee … Continue reading →
Coverage of the 2013 Regular Session of the La. Legislature from April. The website for the Legislature is at http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/home.aspx . Live coverage of the session is provided by LPB each day from 2-6 p.m. Continue reading →
Monday likely will prove a light work day in the Louisiana Legislature as Republicans take off for fundraising events connected with the party’s “Elephant Stomp.” No committee meetings are scheduled in the House of Representatives. Both chambers are scheduled to convene at 4 p.m. with light schedule. But votes are scheduled that could finally pass gun … Continue reading →
State ethics officials pushed a limited legislative agenda this year, but even that scaled-down approach got no where. No bills were filed, although Louisiana Ethics Board members says they sought legislative fixes from the Legislature’s leaders and from Gov. Bobby Jindal. Some of the measures that did get filed in the 2013 regular session of the Louisiana … Continue reading →