In order to stabilize Louisiana’s struggling rural regions, the state needs to expand broadband access; improve infrastructure; develop and expand workforce training and higher education opportunities; plus maintain and expand agriculture centers …
In this year's legislative session, marked by pandemic-fueled fiscal issues, police misconduct and marijuana, Governor John Bel Edwards had his fair share of landmark bills to sift through the last few weeks.
The president has been clear that he is opposed to the "defund the police" movement.
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With an overhaul of its licensing structure on the horizon, Louisiana's Department of Wildlife and Fisheries wants outdoorsmen to know that their lifetime hunting and fishing privileges aren't going away.
Gov. John Bel Edwards on Tuesday vetoed legislation that would have barred transgender girls and women from participating on sports teams that match their gender identity, calling the proposal discriminatory and a "solution in search of a problem …
Smokable marijuana allowed in Louisiana's medical pot program after Gov. John Bel Edwards signs bill
Louisiana’s nine medical marijuana pharmacies will soon be able to sell the smokable flower form of the drug, after Gov. John Bel Edwards signed into law a bill that expands the legal forms of marijuana for medical use.
Sports betting is on the way in Louisiana as Gov. John Bel Edwards signed the legislation Tuesday to create the protocols and regulation of wagering on sporting events and how the proceeds will be spent.
Gov. John Bel Edwards has signed key pieces of a complicated tax swap plan to disentangle Louisiana's income tax collections from federal tax payments, but it still needs voter approval this fall to take effect.
Gov. John Bel Edwards on Monday signed a bill that will make kindergarten mandatory in Louisiana.
A total 160,376 signed up to participate Monday to win prizes up $1 million as part of the Shot At A Million campaign that the state launched to reward residents who have been – or soon will be – vaccinated against COVID-19.
The state paid out $8.57 billion in unemployment benefits to 721,887 individuals in the year following the height of the pandemic – and $1.08 million was paid to 374 deceased individuals, according to a report by the Louisiana Legislative Auditor’…
Sen. Jay Luneau calls them “the twins” because of how often they testify side-by-side before his Senate Labor & Industrial Relations Committee, arguing diametrically opposed views.
Two years ago, when regulators gave Entergy Louisiana the green light to buy power from a new utility-scale solar plant in West Baton Rouge Parish, the power company’s CEO hailed it as a win for customers and for the environment.
Louisiana is increasing the compensation available to people who have been wrongfully convicted of crimes.
Louisiana's iconic bald cypress trees will be protected on state-owned property, after Gov. John Bel Edwards signed a new law banning the trees' harvesting on more than 1 million acres (404,685 hectares) of state land.
A million dollars for Pointe Aux-Chenes Elementary in Terrebonne Parish. Two million dollars for the Central Athletic Foundation in East Baton Rouge. Two and a half million dollars for Johnston Street lighting in Lafayette. One hundred and ten tho…
All of Louisiana's tax assessors can now give themselves car allowances up to 15% of their salaries, under a bill signed into law by Gov. John Bel Edwards that will authorize the parish officials to pocket an extra $20,000 or more annually.
BATON ROUGE, La. — Gov. John Bel Edwards is shutting down state offices early Friday, giving workers a half-day off in honor of Juneteenth, the day commemorating the end of slavery in the United States.
It’s one of those heat-of-the-moment statements Louisiana Association of Business & Industry’s president Stephen Waguespack probably wishes he could take back.
Louisiana residents who get a COVID-19 vaccine by the end of July will be eligible to enter to win a $1 million jackpot, Gov. John Bel Edwards said Thursday.
Gov. John Bel Edwards signed legislation that will increase the state’s unemployment benefits by $28 a week starting next year in return for agreeing to be the first Democratic chief executive to withdraw from the federal program that bumps the pa…
Dr. Ghali E. Ghali was reinstated by LSU late Wednesday as chancellor of the university’s medical school in Shreveport.
The embattled head of the Louisiana Housing Corp. and a member of the Superdome Commission are among the officials who were ousted from their posts by state senators in closed-door deliberations at the end of the legislative session.
Louisiana has created a framework for self-driving delivery robots to drop off packages on the state's streets, under a bill backed by lawmakers and Gov. John Bel Edwards.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The Biden administration’s suspension of new oil and gas leases on federal land and water was blocked Tuesday by a federal judge in Louisiana, who ordered that plans be resumed for lease sales that were delayed for the Gulf of M…
Gov. John Bel Edwards has signed into law a bill that takes away the possibility of jail time for possession of small amounts of marijuana, the latest shift away from Louisiana’s historically punitive stance on the drug.
U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy said Tuesday he's supportive of a bipartisan proposal to raise the federal gas tax at the rate of inflation to help fund more than half-a-trillion dollars in new infrastructure spending, though the idea is facing headwinds f…
Voters will be asked in October to extend a property tax that generates millions of dollars a year for Baton Rouge's bus system.
Bare-knuckled fights over taxes, gambling and what schools should teach have ended with the conclusion of the 80-day legislative session. The circus has left Baton Rouge.
Though the nine-week legislative session that ended Thursday was punctuated by sharp racial divisions and occasional altercations, the 2021 Louisiana Legislature passed a remarkable number of bills on issues that have been put off for years.
A lot of the television and social media coverage last week centered on state Rep. Malinda White being hustled into a side room after losing her temper at a colleague in the center aisle of the Louisiana House chamber. Not as much publicity surrou…
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Gov. John Bel Edwards has signed into law a measure that allows some people convicted of felonies in Louisiana to be able to serve on juries for civil and criminal cases.
As Louisiana's first legislative session of 2021 comes to a close, here are a few of the biggest bills that did and did not pass through the house and senate.
Louisiana's State Police are investigating whether a lawmaker's alleged threat of gun violence against a colleague on the House floor earlier this week warrants criminal charges.
The Legislature approved a sweeping bill Thursday that would gradually boost state aid for roads and bridges by about $300 million per year, which would be the biggest investment in Louisiana's troubled transportation system in nearly four decades.
Gov. John Bel Edwards is holding a press conference Thursday evening as the Louisiana Legislature ends its session, which saw the passage of laws on sports betting, marijuana decriminalization and more.
State legislators and Gov. John Bel Edwards are giving up what could amount to tens of millions of dollars over the next 32 years while agreeing to a tax settlement offer from the Harrah’s New Orleans casino.
Louisiana will be moving to elections using paper ballots under legislation finally approved about 90 minutes before the Legislature adjourned Thursday at 6 p.m.
Louisiana is poised to soon stop accepting the federal $300-a-week boost to jobless benefits a month early under a deal passed by lawmakers in the waning hours of the legislative session Thursday, a move that would make the state the latest to end…
A bill that would overhaul the duties of the Louisiana Board of Massage Therapy after a state audit blasted the board won final approval Thursday in the Legislature.
Legislation to increase the amount paid to people who have been wrongfully convicted of crimes in Louisiana cleared the Legislature Thursday.
A proposal to expand Louisiana's definition of domestic abuse to include controlling behaviors like coercion and intimidation was shelved on Thursday ahead of adjournment, spelling the end to legislation that faced unexpected opposition from the s…
Legislation detailing the framework of how Louisiana adults will be able to wager on sporting events – perhaps as early as football season – cleared its final legislative hurdle Thursday and is on its way to the governor.
Are you willing to give up a popular deduction on your state taxes in exchange for being assessed at lower income tax rates?
Gov. John Bel Edwards scoffed at lawmaker's efforts to reign in his spending powers and killed a handful of pet projects in conservative legislators' districts in a dozen vetoes to Louisiana's budget blueprint Wednesday night.
Legislation that would expand Louisiana's definition of domestic abuse to include behaviors like coercion and control was temporarily sidelined Wednesday after an emotional outburst on the House floor between the bill's chief sponsor and an opposi…
After off and on efforts for years, the Louisiana Legislature gave final approval Wednesday to a bill that would make kindergarten mandatory.
Gov. John Bel Edwards can jettison Louisiana’s official state song and replace it with two better-known tunes under legislation that will reach his desk Thursday.
The chairman of the state board that oversees gambling in Louisiana abruptly resigned from his position Wednesday, the same day he was likely to face questions from a legislative committee about actions he took as a State Police commander in 2019 …
A statewide network of walk-in clinics has agreed to pony up $36 million to resolve a contract dispute with the insurance agency covering state employees after officials last year discovered the vendor wasn't providing the return on investment pre…
Legislation to regulate advertisements by lawyers seeking clients with problems with drugs or medical devices won final legislative passage Tuesday.