By Paul Braun
A House committee voted down a bill Tuesday that would remove non-violent and non-sex offenses from habitual-offender law that currently limits judicial discretion and gives prosecutors the upper hand in plea negotiations.
Read the story in The Shreveport Times.
By Kaylee Poche and Devon Sanders
Louisiana State University leaders picked a good moment to celebrate their annual “LSU Day at the Capitol,” coming right after both Gov. John Bel Edwards and House Republicans proposed adding more money for TOPS scholarships back into next year’s budget.
But after a painful decade of dealing with cuts in overall spending on higher education, officials from LSU’s campuses and medical schools in Baton Rouge, Alexandria, Eunice, Shreveport and New Orleans descended on the Capitol Tuesday to lobby for more stability.
Read the story in The Daily Advertiser.
By Ryan Noonan
The state House rejected a hotly debated bill today that would have opened waters for public access and navigation.
The bill, which failed 58-38, would have allowed recreational fishermen to fish in some privately owned waterways without fear of legal consequences.
Read the story in The Courier/houmatoday.com.
By Tryfon Boukouvidis
After a contentious debate, the House Appropriations Committee voted Monday almost along party lines to approve a state budget that would fully fund TOPS while slashing health services for the state’s most vulnerable citizens.
A set of amendments sponsored by the committee’s vice chairman, Franklin Foil, R-Baton Rouge, would allocate $233 million to fund the popular TOPS scholarships and $13 million to fund Go Grant, a program that provides need-based financial aid.
Read the story in The Bossier Press-Tribune.
By Ryan Noonan & Kaylee Poche
A survey by the LSU Public Policy Research Lab found that a majority of Louisiana residents support criminal justice reform and Medicaid expansion, two major policies pushed by the John Bel Edwards administration.
The survey comes at a time when legislators are considering proposals to scale back last year’s changes in criminal justice and cut funding for some Medicaid programs.
Read the story in KALB-TV/kalb.com.
Kaylee Poche and Devon Sanders
Former U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu said Thursday night that she is not sure what she would have done if she had still been in the Senate when fellow Democrats called on Sen. Al Franken to resign over sexual harassment allegations.
“It was a very tough issue because he is known as a very thoughtful, extraordinary advocate for women and women’s issues generally,” Landrieu said at a panel discussion on sexual harassment.
“I thought a lot about what I would have done, and I’m still not 100 percent sure,“ she said.
Read the story in The Shreveport Times.
By Paul Braun
The sponsor of controversial legislation that would require criminal grand juries to review all officer-involved shootings resulting in injury or death deferred her own bill after agreeing to seek creation of a task force to study it.
Rep. Denise Marcelle, D-Baton Rouge, proposed the bill after Attorney General Jeff Landry decided not to file criminal charges against the Baton Rouge police officers involved in the 2016 shooting death of Alton Sterling.
Read the story in FOX 8/fox8live.com.
Rachel Mipro, LSU Daily Reveille
Olympic gold medals aren’t enough to keep gymnast and activist Aly Raisman silent on the issue of sexual assault, and she spoke at LSU Wednesday night about how it can affect even the most successful women.
Read the story in The Daily Advertiser.
Devon Sanders and Joby Richard
The Senate Education Committee on Thursday refused to approve a bill that would have allowed schools officials to possess firearms in a decision that marked a second defeat for efforts to arm teachers.
Read the story in The Daily Advertiser.
By Joby Richard
The fiscal cliff facing the Legislature is a little less steep than originally projected thanks to a new estimate that Louisiana will receive a $346 million windfall in tax collections as a result of changes in federal tax law.
The Revenue Estimating Conference on Thursday adopted that estimate along with projections by the Division of Administration that the state could face a $648 million budget gap unless the Legislature votes to cut services or raise more revenue.
Read the story in KALB-TV/kalb.com.
LSU Manship School Statehouse Bureau 