BATON ROUGE - Congress on Friday approved a $2 trillion-plus aid and stimulus package that may soften the economic blow caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and response, though it still might not be enough to protect state finances and get…
BATON ROUGE – More than 72,000 Louisiana residents applied for unemployment benefits last week, an increase of more than 70,000 new claims from the prior week, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Nationally, almost 2.9 million initial claims were…
BATON ROUGE – Current models show the need for COVID-19 hospitalizations could overwhelm the health care system’s capacity in the New Orleans area by April 4, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards said Tuesday. That’s a more optimistic timeline than the…
NEW ORLEANS – As schools have been forced to close across the country in response to the coronavirus, many are moving to virtual learning so students can continue to be educated. The Pelican Institute for Public Policy hosted a webcast…
BATON ROUGE – Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards is asking the federal government to declare a “major disaster” in his state, which has the third-highest number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the nation. The declaration would allow the federal government to provide…
BATON ROUGE - The Louisiana Legislative Auditor suggests capping the state’s Quality Jobs incentive program, arguing the tax rebate mostly goes to benefit job growth that would have happened anyway. The head of the state’s economic development department says the…
BATON ROUGE – The Louisiana Workforce Commission is giving employers extra time to pay their unemployment taxes for the first quarter of the year. Employers still are required to file their first quarter 2020 wage and tax reports with the…
BATON ROUGE – The Louisiana Department of Insurance has invoked an emergency rule that requires health insurance companies to pay for COVID-19 testing with no cost sharing, the insurance commissioner said Thursday. “This effort will ensure Louisiana policyholders will have…
BATON ROUGE – Louisiana is entering a critical stretch in its efforts to reduce the spread of the new coronavirus that causes COVID-19, Gov. John Bel Edwards said Wednesday. “We have two weeks to minimize the spread of COVID-19,” he…
BATON ROUGE – Louisiana is postponing its April 4 presidential primaries due to fears about the novel coronavirus pandemic. It becomes the first state to postpone elections as a result of the outbreak. Louisiana will now hold its presidential primaries…
NEW ORLEANS – Louisiana will impose restrictions on visiting nursing homes, prisons and jails over the next 30 days, Gov. John Bel Edwards said Thursday. The details will be announced soon, Edwards said during a joint news conference with U.S.…
BATON ROUGE – Louisiana’s state school board is asking for an $80 million funding increase from state government for the 2020-2021 school year. The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education on Wednesday unanimously approved requesting the increase, which is twice…
BATON ROUGE – Louisiana legislators on Monday gave final approval to more than $1 billion worth of infrastructure projects that are supposed to go forward if and when enough money is available. “We go as far as the dollars will…
BATON ROUGE - The top one percent of earners in Louisiana are taxed at an effective rate of 6.2 percent, compared to the state’s 10 percent tax rate on the middle 20 percent of income earners, according to a new…
BATON ROUGE - On the first day of the 2020 legislative session, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards stressed “investments in education at every level” during his State of the State address. “I know that it’s going to take some time…
BATON ROUGE - Louisiana Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin hopes to acquire electronic voting machines that also record votes on paper, though he said this year’s elections will be secure even without a paper trail. Ardoin spoke Thursday evening at…
BATON ROUGE - The Louisiana State Bond Commission on Thursday approved borrowing nearly $265 million for construction projects. Citigroup Global Markets was the low bidder to facilitate the bond sale, offering an interest rate of about 2.175 percent. Some Republicans…
BATON ROUGE - A state office is attempting to collect about $522.3 million in outstanding debts, officials said Wednesday. That’s the amount being sought by the state Office of Debt Recovery, part of the Department of Revenue. The office has…
BATON ROUGE - The first phase of Louisiana’s transition to a new voting system will cost about $12 million, Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin said. Ardoin, whose office runs the state’s elections, is requesting $1.3 million from the state general…
BATON ROUGE - The combined average local and state sales tax rate in Louisiana is 9.52 as of Jan. 1, which is the second highest rate among the 50 states, according to a new analysis from the Tax Foundation, a…
BATON ROUGE - Growth of Louisiana’s unemployment trust fund could lower the tax bills of state employers, though many businesses are not paying their share, officials said Friday. Many companies avoid paying into the fund by classifying employees as temporary…
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Department of Transportation is awarding $11.4 million in federal grants to 19 Louisiana airports for infrastructure improvements, U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy says. The biggest grant is $2.6 million for 7,250 feet of taxiway pavement at…
BATON ROUGE - The federal government has approved Louisiana’s plan for spending $1.2 billion to reduce flood risk in the state, Gov. John Bel Edwards announced Friday. The money is expected to be available by spring. At least half of the…
NEW ORLEANS - The Louisiana board that oversees the state’s industrial property tax incentive program on Friday approved a rules change sought by business groups but opposed by some local officials and activists. Manufacturing companies that want the tax break,…
NEW ORLEANS - Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards will ask legislators to dedicate $115 million of the $535 million state surplus to coastal restoration and protection projects. Along with almost $131 million in federal revenue sharing from energy development in…
BATON ROUGE - When Louisiana lawmakers legalized alcohol delivery last year, they set up a system that allowed third-party companies to deliver for stores and restaurants that didn’t want to do it themselves. But the third-party rule came with a catch:…
BATON ROUGE - While officials are monitoring flood conditions along the Mississippi River, the water levels are not expected to rival last year’s record-setting flood fight. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers does not expect to open the Bonnet Carré…
BATON ROUGE - The Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority is moving forward on a $200 million project to revitalize a 45,000-acre swamp forest. The RESTORE Council, which oversees the use of Clean Water Act fines stemming from the 2010…
BATON ROUGE - Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards’ administration on Friday filed a lawsuit against state Treasurer John Schroder, continuing a dispute over whether state government should be allowed to spend money from the state’s unclaimed property fund. The fund…
NEW ORLEANS - While Republicans last fall gained seats in Louisiana’s House of Representatives, the minority Democrats have gained a committee chair for the next term. House Speaker Clay Schexnayder announced Democrats will chair five of the 14 committees. However,…
