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Louisiana Illuminator
GOP politicians rush to Manhattan to line up behind Trump as hush money trial continues
WASHINGTON — Republican lawmakers are taking turns supporting former president and presumed 2024 GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump in his trial in Manhattan criminal court, where he is charged with covering up payments intended to silence porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election. Dressed alike in navy blue suits and red ties, North […] The post GOP politicians rush to Manhattan to line up behind Trump as hush money trial continues appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Louisiana lawmakers move IVF protection bill forward, but doctors still might be vulnerable
Louisiana lawmakers continue to move forward a bill to keep in vitro fertilization (IVF) services available, but they haven’t been willing to make all the changes necessary to fully protect doctors from prosecution, according to a fertility law expert. The Louisiana Senate Committee on Judiciary A voted 3-2 Tuesday to approve House Bill 833, sponsored […] The post Louisiana lawmakers move IVF protection bill forward, but doctors still might be vulnerable appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
New federal rule will overhaul transmission planning as electric grid strains
A divided Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Monday issued a long-awaited overhaul of how regional electric transmission lines are planned and paid for, a move cheered by clean power groups but blasted by a conservative commissioner who said it was driven by “special interests” and exceeds the commission’s authority. The commission’s final rule on transmission […] The post New federal rule will overhaul transmission planning as electric grid strains appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
New list rates the most bipartisan members of Congress — and the least
WASHINGTON — Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins and Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick were the most bipartisan members of Congress last year, according to a newly released analysis from the Lugar Center and the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University. The least bipartisan House lawmaker was Ohio Republican Jim Jordan, while Alabama’s Katie […] The post New list rates the most bipartisan members of Congress — and the least appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Tariffs to be sharply hiked by Biden administration on Chinese-made products
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is doubling and in some cases tripling tariffs on Chinese-made products, such as steel and electric vehicles, in a move aimed at easing economic pain in battleground states, though senior administration officials say it isn’t political. National Economic Advisor Lael Brainard told reporters on a call Monday ahead of the […] The post Tariffs to be sharply hiked by Biden administration on Chinese-made products appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Retirement flexibility in store for Louisiana higher ed faculty, staff
The Louisiana Senate gave final legislative approval to a bill that would provide more lucrative retirement savings options to thousands of state college and university employees. House Bill 31 by Rep. Barbara Freiberg, R-Baton Rouge, was unanimously approved Monday by the Senate. It would allow participants in the optional plan of the Teachers Retirement System […] The post Retirement flexibility in store for Louisiana higher ed faculty, staff appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Republicans spike bill to shield Louisiana government records from public
The sponsor of a controversial bill to shield most records of the Louisiana governor’s office from the public withdrew his bill Monday, killing it for the legislative session. Sen. Jay Morris, R-West Monroe, tanked Senate Bill 423, which he and two other GOP legislators with proposals to curb Louisiana’s public records laws had designated as […] The post Republicans spike bill to shield Louisiana government records from public appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Louisiana moves up in pre-K-12 education rankings but still near the bottom
Improvements to preschool, elementary and high school education in Louisiana have not gone unnoticed, yet the the state still finds itself among the lowest-ranked in the country. Louisiana was ranked 40th on U.S. News & World Report’s list of the best states for pre-K through 12th-grade education, up from 41st last year. It’s the highest […] The post Louisiana moves up in pre-K-12 education rankings but still near the bottom appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Star witness in Trump trial tells of plot to conceal porn star hush money payments
WASHINGTON — Donald Trump’s former fixer took the stand in a Manhattan courtroom Monday and told jurors that Trump was well aware of a scheme to hide the repayment of money intended to silence porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election. Michael Cohen, the prosecution’s star witness, told the jury that he […] The post Star witness in Trump trial tells of plot to conceal porn star hush money payments appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Auto techs offered free electric vehicle repair course
Baton Rouge Community College is offering a free three-week training course this summer on electric vehicle technology operations and maintenance. The no-cost training will be held Monday, May 20, through Friday, June 7, at the BRCC Automotive Training Center, 2115 N. Lobdell Blvd., in Baton Rouge. The three-week, in-person course will take place from 9 […] The post Auto techs offered free electric vehicle repair course appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Look back period for child abuse lawsuits could be extended in Louisiana
Louisiana lawmakers are swiftly advancing legislation that would extend the timeframe adults who are survivors of child abuse have to file lawsuits against institutions such as Catholic Church. The bill took on more relevance Friday after the Louisiana Supreme Court announced it would reconsider its decision to scrap the state law creating a “look back […] The post Look back period for child abuse lawsuits could be extended in Louisiana appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Louisiana colleges could gain more power over setting tuition
Louisiana colleges and universities could soon have more autonomy to set tuition and fees under a proposal advancing in the Legislature. House Bill 862 by Rep. Jason Hughes, D-New Orleans, would allow boards for Louisiana’s four university systems to set differential tuition for any graduate, professional or high-cost undergraduate programs. The bill would also give […] The post Louisiana colleges could gain more power over setting tuition appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Arkansas football coach returns to his shrinking hometown and scores big for teens
PINE BLUFF, Ark. — On a gray February morning, the Pine Bluff High School gymnasium was filled with colorful balloons and flooded with music and laughter as family and friends, students and staff gathered to celebrate four college-bound star football players signing their national letters of intent. Less than 6 miles away, a mother was […] The post Arkansas football coach returns to his shrinking hometown and scores big for teens appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Georgia’s fix for voter challenges could make the problem worse
Ten months after Georgia officials said they would take steps to ensure that counties were correctly handling massive numbers of challenges to voter registrations, neither the secretary of state’s office nor the State Election Board has done so. In July 2023, ProPublica reported that election officials in multiple Georgia counties were handling citizens’ challenges to […] The post Georgia’s fix for voter challenges could make the problem worse appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
‘Mom’ legislators see their numbers, influence grow but barriers to elected office remain
For the second time while serving in the Nevada Legislature, Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro gave birth last year. And again, she publicly pledged to continue full participation in her duties. As the nation’s groundbreaker when it comes to working moms in a state capital, Nevada made history in 2019 as the only female-majority legislative […] The post ‘Mom’ legislators see their numbers, influence grow but barriers to elected office remain appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Groups look to bail out Black mothers, caregivers in pretrial detention for Mother’s Day
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Yolanda Johnson’s nightmare began in the summer of 2021. As she recalls, a former boyfriend pushed her around, hitting an area on her body where there were previous burns. She threw hot water at him and brandished a knife to get him to back away. “He was much bigger than I was, […] The post Groups look to bail out Black mothers, caregivers in pretrial detention for Mother’s Day appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Survivors of domestic and sexual violence can break their leases early in some states
New Hampshire state Rep. Ellen Read remembers how trapped she felt as an 18-year-old in her native Tennessee, enduring the physical and emotional toll of an abusive relationship. The abuse Read suffered — which included being held captive in an apartment for days and hit by her abuser’s car — lasted years after she left […] The post Survivors of domestic and sexual violence can break their leases early in some states appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Good times keep rolling for the state treasury … for one last year
A boost to Louisiana’s state income projections will give lawmakers more money to spend over the next 14 months, even as the post-pandemic financial surge continues to taper off and a fiscal downturn edges ever closer. The state’s forecasting panel, called the Revenue Estimating Conference, increased its predictions for Louisiana’s tax and fee collections for […] The post Good times keep rolling for the state treasury … for one last year appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Unconstitutional definition of marriage likely to remain in Louisiana constitution despite rewrite
Republican lawmakers plan to leave in a section of the Louisiana constitution that defines marriage as between one man and one woman during a potential constitutional rewrite despite a U.S. Supreme Court ruling. Rep. Beau Beaullieu, R-New Iberia, the lawmaker carrying the legislation calling for a constitutional convention, said his conservative colleagues want to leave […] The post Unconstitutional definition of marriage likely to remain in Louisiana constitution despite rewrite appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Even as interest in women’s college sports rises, report finds big gap in participation
WASHINGTON — A congressional watchdog in a new report called on the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights to improve its enforcement of Title IX compliance in college athletics. The U.S. Government Accountability Office in the report issued Thursday appeared critical of the OCR’s oversight in expanding opportunities for women in college athletics, saying the […] The post Even as interest in women’s college sports rises, report finds big gap in participation appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
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The Louisiana Illuminator is an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization driven by its mission to cast light on how decisions are made in Baton Rouge and how they affect the lives of everyday Louisianians, particularly those who are poor or otherwise marginalized. Here readers will find in-depth investigations and news stories, news briefs and commentary, all of which is intended to help them make sense of how state policy is crafted, how it helps or hurts them and how it helps or hurts their neighbors across the state. Notwithstanding the way political reporting is often presented, we see politics as neither sport nor entertainment. There are quality-of-life consequences – even life-and-death consequences – to environmental permitting decisions, to health care policy, to income- and sales-tax rates, to budgetary cuts and to economic development plans. For those reasons, the Illuminator does not cover politics in a way that centers on politicians, their squabbles with one another or their career ambitions. Instead, we center on Louisianians from Ouachita to Calcasieu, from Plaquemines to Caddo who must live with the decisions their political leaders make. Though we’re located in Baton Rouge, we understand that the ramifications of decisions made in our capital are felt across the state and that those stories are often best told in cities, towns and parishes far from the halls of power. As our name indicates, our mission is to shine a bright light on Louisiana, to highlight the state’s successes and its examples of good and responsive government and to expose its failures and corruption. An affiliate of States Newsroom, a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit supported by grants and a coalition of donors and readers like you, the Louisiana Illuminator retains editorial independence.
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