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State Politics

Insurers must provide six months of smoking cessation treatment under new Louisiana law

BY SAUL PINK | Staff writer
6 hrs ago

Louisiana residents looking to quit smoking will now get six months of treatment if they’re covered by health insurance under a new law signed by Gov. John Bel Edwards.

During 2-day trip to New Orleans, Vice President Kamala Harris blasts Supreme Court rulings

BY TYLER BRIDGES | Staff writer
Updated Jun 30, 2023

Appearing at the Essence Festival of Culture in New Orleans on Thursday and Friday, Vice President Kamala Harris railed against recent conservative Supreme Court rulings and offered this solut…

John Bel Edwards vetoes anti-LGBTQ+ bills, setting up showdown with Louisiana Republicans

By JAMES FINN | Staff writer
Updated Jun 30, 2023

Gov. John Bel Edwards has vetoed three politically charged bills targeting LGBTQ+ people, raising the odds that lawmakers will return to Baton Rouge in the coming weeks to try to overturn thos…

Ascension coroner, who won key court precedent for residency in '80s, retires after nearly 40 years

BY DAVID J. MITCHELL | Staff writer
Jun 30, 2023

Dr. John F. Fraiche will retire Saturday from a nearly 40-year career as Ascension Parish's coroner, opening up a previously little sought-after public office for elections this fall.

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Mark Ballard: Voting rights advocates may get exactly what they want

BY MARK BALLARD | Staff writer
Updated Jun 30, 2023

WASHINGTON — By any measure, the news out of the nation's capital last week was good for Louisiana voting rights advocates.

Shawn Wilson has Louisiana Democratic Party endorsement, but how much will DGA support him?

BY TYLER BRIDGES | Staff writer
Updated Jun 30, 2023

The Louisiana Democratic Party has endorsed Shawn Wilson for governor, making it possible for the Democratic Governors Association to unlock money and support for him.

Four candidates for governor of Louisiana are campaigning in Florida. Here's why

BY TYLER BRIDGES | Staff writer
Updated Jun 30, 2023

Four of the candidates for governor of Louisiana are campaigning in Florida this week.

Still paying student loans? How the Supreme Court student loan decision affects you

By ADRIANA MORGA and CORA LEWIS | Associated Press
Updated Jun 30, 2023

The Supreme Court has ruled the Biden administration overstepped its authority in trying to cancel or reduce student loan debt, effectively killing the $400 billion plan. The court's decision …

The Supreme Court rejects Biden's plan to wipe away $400 billion in student loans

BY MARK BALLARD | Staff writer
Updated Jun 30, 2023

WASHINGTON – After a three-year hiatus, about 600,000 Louisiana college students will start repaying their student loans in October, after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 Friday that Presiden…

U.S. Supreme Court rules for a designer who doesn't want to make wedding websites for gay couples

By JESSICA GRESKO | Associated Press
Updated Jun 30, 2023

The Supreme Court's conservative majority has ruled a Christian graphic artist who wants to design wedding websites can refuse to work with same-sex couples. The decision is a defeat for gay r…

The Supreme Court made big decisions this week and more are coming. Here's what you need to know.

BY JESSICA GRESKO and MARK SHERMAN | THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Updated Jun 30, 2023

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court is expected to announce major decisions Friday on President Joe Biden's student loan forgiveness program and a case that impacts gay rights. It's the court's fin…

Local colleges, others react to Supreme Court decision: 'Foreign to anything we do in Louisiana'

BY MARK BALLARD | Staff writer
Updated Jun 30, 2023

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Supreme Court’s move to end nearly a half-century of affirmative action in college admissions sent Louisiana universities and politicians reeling Thursday, as colleges so…

John Bel Edwards uses veto pen to restore $100M health care cut, early childhood cash

By JAMES FINN | Staff writer
Updated Jun 29, 2023

With a few strokes of his veto pen, Gov. John Bel Edwards restored Thursday a surprise $100 million reduction to the Louisiana Department of Health along with $7.5 million for early childhood …

John Bel Edwards to restore $100 million cut to health department, vetoes eight bills

BY TYLER BRIDGES | Staff writer
Updated Jun 28, 2023

Gov. John Bel Edwards said Wednesday he has found a way to restore several unpopular spending cuts approved by lawmakers in the final chaotic minutes of the legislative session, including a su…

VP Kamala Harris, Treasury Chief Janet Yellen to visit New Orleans Friday for Essence

BY ANTHONY MCAULEY | Staff writer
Updated Jun 28, 2023

Vice President Kamala Harris and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen will visit New Orleans for the Essence Festival of Culture, with both aiming to tout President Joe Biden's economic agenda in …

EPA drops civil rights probe of Louisiana state agencies over toxic emissions

BY MARK SCHLEIFSTEIN | Staff writer
Updated Jun 27, 2023

The federal Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday abruptly announced it was ending civil rights investigations of the state Department of Environmental Quality and Department of Health ov…

Low staff morale plagues Louisiana Schools for the Deaf and Visually Impaired, audit says

By JAMES FINN | Staff writer
Jun 27, 2023

Low employee morale, little transparency from management and years of turnover have exacerbated a host of challenges plaguing Louisiana's Schools for the Deaf and Visually Impaired, a long-awa…

John Kennedy blames Democrats for failure to block ATF handgun brace rule

BY MARK BALLARD | Staff writer
Updated Jun 27, 2023

WASHINGTON – The Senate has blocked a House effort to prevent the Biden administration's ban of gun-stabilizing braces, sparking the ire of U.S. Sen. John Kennedy and other Republicans.

Plans for a new Mississippi River bridge advance — but will new leaders support them?

By PAUL COBLER | Staff writer
Jun 27, 2023

With statewide elections on the horizon in Louisiana, some Baton Rouge-area officials working to bring a new Mississippi River bridge to the region are worried leadership changes could derail …

Louisiana to get $1.3B for high-speed internet, White House announces

BY MARK BALLARD | Staff writer
Updated Jun 27, 2023

WASHINGTON – Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday recalled her March visit to Sunset as she described the Biden administration's effort to connect every person in America to high-speed inter…

Louisiana bans TikTok on state-owned equipment, citing cybersecurity concerns

BY LEAH CLARK | Staff writer
Updated Jun 30, 2023

Louisiana has banned the use of TikTok on state-owned equipment, after Gov. John Bel Edwards signed a law restricting the China-based social media app and other related apps amid concerns abou…

5 things to know about the tussle over a second majority Black district in Louisiana

BY GORDON RUSSELL | Staff writer
Updated Jun 26, 2023

What did the Supreme Court do Monday?

Two decades ago, Illinois began dismantling its death row. Could Louisiana be on the same path?

BY JILLIAN KRAMER and FAIMON A. ROBERTS III | Staff writers
Updated Jun 26, 2023

Twelve words spoken in three seconds spared 163 men and four women from Illinois’ death row.

New majority-Black congressional district in Louisiana closer to reality; see why

BY SAM KARLIN | Staff writer
Updated Jun 26, 2023

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday brought Louisiana one step closer to having a second majority-Black congressional district -- a move that would mark a dramatic reversal of fortunes for Democr…

Louisiana homeowners find lawsuits against insurance bailout program more challenging

BY MICHAEL FINCH II | Staff writer
Jun 25, 2023

Cindy Piro looked over the heap of insurance documents she had amassed over the last year. None of it made sense.

A year without Roe: How health care has changed under Louisiana’s strict abortion ban

By JAMES FINN | Staff writer
Updated Jun 25, 2023

In the year since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the landmark abortion-rights ruling Roe v. Wade, reproductive care in Louisiana has undergone a sea change, as abortions have dropped dramat…

Gubernatorial candidates agree on farm issues but differences emerge on sales tax renewal

BY TYLER BRIDGES | Staff writer
Updated Jun 23, 2023

Six candidates for governor at a Louisiana Farm Bureau forum Friday promised to keep tax subsidies that benefit the agricultural industry, but two of the hopefuls diverged from the other four …

Young artists: See these images by Louisiana high schoolers on display in the U.S. Capitol

BY MARK BALLARD | Staff writer
Updated Jun 23, 2023

WASHINGTON – In the 2023 Congressional Art Competition, the winning portrait for U.S. Rep. Troy Carter's district depicts a man who looks calm, yet hopeful of a future with new horizons, Carter said.

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