Author
Retired Louisiana teachers, state police may get benefits increase
Louisiana lawmakers are considering the first benefit bonus for retired Louisiana teachers since 2016. Senate Bill 6, authored by Sen. Ed Price, D-Gonzales, would provide retired teachers who qualify a 2% increase in their retirement benefits. It would apply to retirees over age 60 and those who retired due to disability. Price’s bill advanced from […]
About a third of Louisiana K-12 schools still test for COVID-19
While the Louisiana Department of Health recommends that elementary, middle and high schools continue to regularly test their students for COVID-19, only about a third still do. About 600 of the nearly 1,900 Louisiana K-12 schools take part in the state’s free COVID-19 testing program, Kevin Litten with the health department said. Dr. Susan Hassig, […]
Smoking marijuana in a car isn’t illegal in Louisiana, but that’s likely to change
You’re not allowed to be under the influence of marijuana while driving in Louisiana, but there’s no law that expressly prohibits drivers or passengers from smoking weed.
New Mississippi River bridge in Baton Rouge narrowed down to 10 possible locations
Louisiana residents will have a chance to review 10 proposed locations for a new bridge over the Mississippi River in the Baton Rouge area. The consultant group the state has hired for the project told a local committee Monday afternoon they will use public feedback to narrow that list to three by the end of […]
Louisiana needs another 2,500 teachers: ‘This is a crisis for us’
Louisiana education leaders’ message to state lawmakers was clear: the teacher shortage in K-12 schools has reached emergency levels. “This is a crisis for us. We need more teachers,” Louisiana Commissioner of Higher Education Kim Hunter Reed told the House Education Committee during a hearing Thursday at the State Capitol. Ronnie Morris, a member of […]
Louisiana schools could face deadline to install cameras in special needs classrooms
Louisiana schools may be required to install cameras in special needs classrooms by year’s end. But that’s only if the state finds the money to support the initiative. Last year, the Louisiana Legislature approved a law that added that requirement, but some schools have yet to implement the technology. “Parents would like to see the […]
Louisiana’s blind, visually impaired students could get ‘Bill of Rights’
The Louisiana House Education Committee approved a bill of rights Wednesday for blind and visually impaired students. It would require public schools to offer special education services – including appropriate screenings, assessments, and learning media – for visually impaired students. Early intervention programs at schools would have to provide some of the following if the […]
Ronald Greene committee chairman: ‘Something going on at State Police that’s rotten’
State lawmakers grew frustrated Tuesday with a high-ranking member of Louisiana State Police when he avoided answers to their questions about the 2019 in-custody death of Ronald Greene. “There’s something going on at State Police that’s rotten,” Rep. Tanner Magee, R-Houma, chair of a special House committee that is looking into allegations of a coverup. […]
Louisiana drivers could have to keep their hands off their cellphones
Drivers in Louisiana may soon be prohibited from holding their cellphones when they drive. Rep. Mike Huval’s (R-Breaux Bridge) House Bill 376, which would prohibit drivers from “holding or physically supporting a wireless telecommunications device in either or both hands or with any part of the body,” advanced out of a House committee Monday morning. […]
‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill in Louisiana Legislature would ‘isolate’ LGBTQ students, critic says
A bill that would bar teachers from discussing sexual orientation in the classroom, has been filed in the Louisiana Legislature. It follows similar efforts in Florida and more than a dozen other states referred to as “Don’t Say Gay” proposals.
TOPS eligibility could be eased for students affected by Hurricane Ida
A bill to modify eligibility requirements for Louisiana’s free college tuition program advanced from a Louisiana Senate committee Wednesday afternoon. The changes would apply to high school students affected by Hurricane Ida. Senate Bill 178, authored by Sen. Cleo Fields, D-Baton Rouge, would waive certain GPA requirements for the state’s TOPS program and extend deadlines […]
Former Louisiana State Police leader’s lack of info in Ronald Greene case frustrates lawmakers
A bipartisan committee of state lawmakers spent nearly three hours Tuesday pressing the former superintendent of Louisiana State Police about what he knew about the May 2019 death of Ronald Greene, a Black motorist, in the custody of troopers after a vehicle pursuit in north Louisiana. Col. Kevin Reeves retired in October 2020 with numerous […]