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• Questions raised about House budget proposal

  May 16, 2013 3:07 PM

  BATON ROUGE- Senators are expressing skepticism about some assumptions House lawmakers used to balance next year's budget. The Senate Finance Committee have started to comb through the House's $25 billion bipartisan budget, trying to decide what senators might want to change. Sen. Greg Tarver, of Shreveport, questioned how the House... more »

• Senate committee backs Medicaid expansion model

  April 30, 2013 6:53 PM

  BATON ROUGE - A proposal for Louisiana to tap into the federal health overhaul money available for expanding Medicaid has won approval from the state Senate's health committee, despite opposition from Gov. Bobby Jindal. The committee voted 4-3 Tuesday to send a modified Medicaid expansion bill to the full Senate... more »

• Boy Scouts proposing to lift gay ban for youth

  April 19, 2013 10:22 AM

  NEW YORK - Under pressure over its longstanding ban on gays, the Boys Scouts of America is proposing to lift the ban for youth members but continue to exclude gays as adult leaders. The Scouts announced Friday that it would submit this proposal to the roughly 1,400 voting members of... more »

• Proposal: West Bank Connector from BR to NO

  April 1, 2013 10:40 AM

  PORT ALLEN - Opinions vary among local and state officials whether or not a proposed "West Bank Connector" can get off the ground this legislative session. Wilfred Barry, president of the SJB Group, a Baton Rouge design firm, is working with six parishes on a plan that would bring an... more »

• La. workers excited about minimum wage proposal Play Video

  February 13, 2013 5:05 PM

  BATON ROUGE - President Obama's proposal to raise the federal minimum wage $9 has many workers excited. "It would be nice, it would definitely help a lot of people out," said Jonathan Meyers in Baton Rouge. "It's not surprising to me, because I know he's trying to put... more »

• Obama to campaign for gun proposals in Minnesota

  February 4, 2013 7:38 AM

  WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama is seeking to rally support from the public and the law enforcement community for his calls to ban assault weapons and require universal background checks for gun buyers. Obama is pitching his anti-gun violence agenda Monday in Minnesota, a Democratic-leaning state where officials have been... more »

• Obama calls for research on media in gun violence

  January 16, 2013 4:21 PM

  NEW YORK - The sweeping proposals from President Barack Obama today for curbing gun violence put little of the focus on movies, TV and video games. The White House pressed most forcefully for Congress to pass universal background checks and bans on military-style assault weapons like the ones used in... more »

• Obama: Gun control specifics to come within days

  January 14, 2013 12:20 PM

  WASHINGTON - He's acknowledging an uphill fight in Congress -- so President Barack Obama says he's looking at actions he can take on his own to confront gun violence. He told reporters today that he will present a plan within days. Obama says the ideas that are on the table... more »

• Lawmakers hesitant about Jindal tax proposal Play Video

  January 11, 2013 2:14 PM

  BATON ROUGE- Lawmakers are responding with caution to Gov. Bobby Jindal's proposal to eliminate Louisiana's income tax in exchange for higher sales taxes and other tax code changes. Among specific concerns raised Friday by legislators who will decide the fate of the plan are how it will impact low- to... more »

• Boehner plans vote on backup proposal

  December 19, 2012 1:28 PM

  WASHINGTON - As the country continues to creep closer to the so-called "fiscal cliff," House Speaker John Boehner is planning a vote on his backup proposal tomorrow. "Plan B," as it's called, would block tax increases from being triggered Jan. 1 on everyone but those whose incomes exceed $1 million.... more »

• Obama pressing for policy changes after shooting

  December 19, 2012 11:22 AM

  WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama is asking a team led by Vice President Joe Biden to offer "concrete proposals" to curb gun violence no later than January, in the aftermath of the horrific massacre at a Connecticut elementary school. Obama says after he receives recommendations from Biden's group, he will... more »

• Proposal could let colleges raise their own tuition Play Video

  December 4, 2012 5:19 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Tuition at four-year universities could go up in Louisiana under a new proposal before the Board of Regents. If approved, the proposal will give four-year institutions the same power to set tuition like two-year technical and community colleges have, in accordance with the Board of Regents... more »

• NHL releases details of latest offer to NHLPA

  October 17, 2012 10:30 AM

  TORONTO - The NHL has released details of its latest collective bargaining proposal to the public. In an unprecedented move, the league has published the documents it handed over to the NHL Players' Association on Tuesday in an attempt to save a full 82-game season and end the third lockout... more »

• St. Helena to vote on tax measure for schools

  October 8, 2012 2:54 PM

  GREENSBURG - The St. Helena School Board will ask parish voters Nov. 6 to consider a scaled-back version of prior tax proposals in support of parish schools. The school board is seeking a 10-year, 16.4-mill property tax for school employee pay raises and an $8 million bond issue, backed... more »

• Pointe Coupee considers trash collection proposal

  September 27, 2012 8:41 AM

  NEW ROADS - The Pointe Coupee Parish Police Jury has decided to pay a private consultant $5,000 to compile a comprehensive study detailing what it would take to initiate a parish-operated trash collection program. The jury voted 6-5 this week to take the step after an official with Progressive... more »

• Students brace for tuition increase

  June 27, 2012 9:55 AM

  BATON ROUGE- Students who attend some of Louisiana's public colleges will find out soon If they will have to pay higher tuition. Today, the State Board of Regents will announce what schools meet the benchmarks under the GRAD act. Those schools can raise tuition by 10 percent. News... more »

• Senate budget proposal relies on complex financing

  May 29, 2012 3:31 PM

  BATON ROUGE - To stave off deep cuts, senators are proposing to balance next year's budget with a series of financing maneuvers tied to building sales, loan repayments and fund transfers. The provisions - some initially pushed by the Jindal administration - were included in the Senate Finance Committee's budget... more »

• College merger proposal scrapped for the session

  May 16, 2012 7:32 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Two north Louisiana lawmakers are scrapping their attempt to make LSU's Shreveport campus a branch of Louisiana Tech University. Reps. Thomas Carmody and Jim Fannin say they don't have the two-thirds support to get the merger proposal through the Louisiana House, so they agreed to shelve the... more »

• Steep budget cuts possible for education and health care

  May 14, 2012 11:56 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Gov. Bobby Jindal's top budget adviser says the $25 billion budget proposal passed by the House could force steep cuts in public colleges and health care, damaging services. Commissioner of Administration Paul Rainwater outlined his concerns Monday to the Senate Finance Committee. GOP lawmakers in the House... more »

• Voting set to begin on CATS tax issue

  April 20, 2012 10:53 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Voting day is tomorrow in parishes across Louisiana. More than 100 tax proposals and renewals, as well as bond initiatives will be decided by voters. A 10-year, 10.6-mill property tax proposal to serve as a dedicated funding source for the struggling Capital Area Transit System one... more »

• House panel guts anti-bullying proposal Play Video

  April 18, 2012 3:11 PM

  BATON ROUGE - A Baton Rouge lawmaker has pulled her anti-bullying proposal after the House Education Committee gutted it, taking out any reference to the type of activity that would be banned. The proposal has become an annual flashpoint over the rights of gay students, and both the Jindal administration... more »

• Proposal would rewrite La.'s right to bear arms

  April 3, 2012 2:29 PM

  BATON ROUGE - A Senate judiciary panel has supported a rewriting of Louisiana's constitutional protections for the right to bear arms, despite concerns it could nullify most gun restrictions in the state and could open the door to allow guns in schools, bars and churches. The proposal sponsored by Republican... more »

• Another proposal for former Six Flags site

  March 2, 2012 7:24 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A development company says a major outdoor sporting goods retailer is interested in anchoring an outlet mall that could be built at the site of the defunct Six Flags amusement park in New Orleans. DAG Development chief executive David Garcia told CityBusiness of New Orleans that the... more »

• Panel limits sentencing proposals at Jindal urging

  February 17, 2012 11:53 AM

  BATON ROUGE- The commission charged by Gov. Bobby Jindal with finding politically viable ways to reduce Louisiana's high incarceration rate watered down key proposals after urging from the Jindal administration. After months of building consensus among judges, sheriffs and district attorneys and other interest groups, the Louisiana Sentencing Commission was... more »

• Council on Aging groups concerned over budget Play Video

  February 9, 2012 12:31 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Seniors are concerned about Governor Bobby Jindal's new $25.5 billion budget. Jindal's commissioner of administration, Paul Rainwater, presented a proposal today that would move the Governor's Office of Elderly Affairs (which oversees the Councils on Aging and Area Agencies on Aging across the state) under the... more »

• Christmas Lights Proposal

  December 20, 2011 7:31 PM

  A Christmas light display contained a message for Elizabeth Caron in Norwich, Connecticut. Jeremy Wilcox and his mom spent about two hours putting the words "Will you marry me?" in lights across the fence at the family home, which is traditionally decorated with elaborate holiday scenes. He popped his question... more »

• School board turns down charter school proposal

  December 16, 2011 9:25 AM

  BATON ROUGE - The East Baton Rouge Parish School Board has voted against the development of a second school modeled after the Inspire Charter Academy. The board announced its decision Thursday after two months of reviewing the proposal. Inspire, which opened in August 2010, is an offshoot of... more »

• Potential move for Pineville medical center

  December 9, 2011 5:20 AM

  BATON ROUGE - The LSU Board of Supervisors will consider Friday a proposal to close the Huey P. Long Medical Center in Pineville. The measure, if approved, would relocate the facility to a renovated former military hospital at the England Airpark in nearby Alexandria. Governor Bobby Jindal says... more »

• Tax renewal proposals headed to Calcasieu ballot

  October 9, 2011 9:37 AM

  LAKE CHARLES, La.- The Calcasieu Parish School Board wants to put three tax renewal propositions on the March 2012 ballot. Karl Bruchhaus, the school system's chief financial officer, said two of the proposals are for 10-year parishwide renewals. The other pertains solely to Bell City. One of the... more »

• Council votes tax package down again

  August 10, 2011 6:15 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Metro Council members voted tonight not to send Mayor-President Kip Holden's tax proposal package on to East Baton Rouge Parish voters this October. The vote was 9-1 not to put the measure on the ballot. Two members of the Council were absent. Earlier, Holden had... more »

• Mayor's tax plan goes back to Metro Council

  August 9, 2011 5:27 PM

  BATON ROUGE- People in East Baton Rouge Parish may never get the chance to vote on Mayor-President Kip Holden's $748 million tax plan. Tomorrow night Metro Council could vote to keep it off the ballot in November. The Metro Council voted 9-3 to keep the proposal off the agenda... more »

• Tax package back on EBR Metro Council agenda

  August 3, 2011 3:09 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Mayor-President Kip Holden's package of tax increases are back on the East Baton Rouge Metro Council's agenda, after it was flatly rejected at their last meeting. Scott Dyer, the mayor's spokesperson, told News 2 the plan would be "basically the same", raising $748 million to pay... more »

• Mayor Holden: Tax plan moving forward

  July 28, 2011 6:29 PM

  BATON ROUGE - One day after the East Baton Rouge Metro Council killed his nearly $800 million bond proposal, Mayor-President Kip Holden said the plan is moving forward but wouldn't elaborate how. Nine of the 12 Council members voted to kill the proposal before it was to be discussed... more »

• Holden planning for another bond proposal

  April 14, 2011 5:51 PM

  BATON ROUGE- Baton Rouge Mayor Kip Holden says he will support putting another bond proposal on the October or November ballot. The mayor says details are being ironed out. Voters rejected other recent tax increases that included everything from money for a downtown tourist attraction to roads and crime... more »

• Man pitches proposal instead of beads in parade

  March 20, 2011 12:34 PM

  HOUMA, La.- It wasn't a set of beads that Laura Shelton got from a float rider in the recently ended Mardi Gras season. It was a marriage proposal. Her boyfriend Craig Rotzler, was riding on a float in the Krewe of Houmas parade on Fat Tuesday when he held... more »

• Jindal says Obama proposal doesn't do enough

  March 1, 2011 2:43 PM

  BATON ROUGE, La. - Gov. Bobby Jindal says that President Barack Obama's willingness to give states more flexibility in complying with his health overhaul doesn't go far enough. Jindal, a Republican, was on hand when Obama told governors at a meeting in Washington that he supports speeding up their... more »

• 6 groups respond to prison-sale proposal

  February 20, 2011 11:55 AM

  BATON ROUGE- The state Department of Public Safety and Corrections' request for information on how much it would cost to operate two north Louisiana prisons has generated some interest. The Times-Picayune reports six groups have responded to the request. Gov. Bobby Jindal has proposed selling state-owned prisons in... more »

• Regents to discuss SUNO/UNO merger Feb. 8

  January 27, 2011 12:03 PM

  BATON ROUGE - The Board of Regents will hold a special meeting Feb. 8 to discuss a controversial proposal to merge the University of New Orleans campus with the historically black Southern University at New Orleans campus. Regents Chairman Robert Levy announced the meeting Thursday. A Colorado consultant is studying... more »

• CATS bus riders counting on new proposal

  January 17, 2011 5:26 PM

  BATON ROUGE - People who normally take the bus may be left at the station if CATS doesn't come up with a new plan to fill a $1 million budget hole. The Capitol Area Transit Board meets Tuesday to discuss a new plan to give to Metro Council next... more »

• Metro Council puts off CATS vote, asks for more options

  January 12, 2011 10:23 PM

  BATON ROUGE- The East Baton Rouge Metro Council told Baton Rouge transit leaders they want to hear new ideas to fix the bus system. CATS has two weeks to come up with alternatives to cutting services and raising fares. The department's budget deficit is more than $1 million. A... more »

• Government to propose truck fuel efficiency rules

  October 24, 2010 9:58 AM

  Tractor-trailers, school buses, delivery vans and other large vehicles will need to be more fuel efficient under first-ever standards coming from the Obama administration. The Environmental Protection Agency and the Transportation department plant to release a proposal Monday for medium- and heavy-duty- trucks beginning with those sold in the... more »

• Community lashes out at EBR school construction plan

  October 18, 2010 9:38 PM

  The community in Scotlandville told East Baton Rouge school officials it feels cheated, among other reactions, to the district's proposal for new school construction. About 200 parents, teachers and community members attended the budget town hall meeting on how the district is suggesting adjusting to falling sales taxes that... more »

• Go-cups debate returns to Lafayette council

  October 4, 2010 6:36 AM

  The Lafayette City-Parish Council will once again take up a proposal to ban go-cups and other open alcoholic containers, two weeks after defeating the measure in a 5-4 vote. No major changes have been made to the ordinance, which would prohibit such containers in downtown Lafayette and two other entertainment... more »

• Lake Charles officials review development project

  August 26, 2010 7:04 AM

  The Lake Charles city government has received a detailed proposal for a lakefront development project that would be named Mardi Gras Boardwalk. Lake Charles Mardi Gras Boardwalk LLC proposes building a waterfront entertainment venue on the north side of the Civic Center in two phases using 50 acres of land.... more »

• LSU reveals proposal to cut jobs, research, scholarships

  July 13, 2010 10:30 PM

  LSU laid out its worst case scenario in anticipation of more budget cuts. The plan calls for canning more than 250 jobs on the Baton Rouge campus, and that doesn't include faculty positions yet. The proposal is for the 2011 school year. The LSU system expects to lose more... more »

• Kenner council refuses to close bars at 2 a.m.

  July 9, 2010 8:45 AM

  Kenner City Council has voted against proposal to closing bars at 2 a.m. Police Chief Steve Caraway requested to regulate hours at establishments "whose main business is derived from the sale of alcoholic beverages." Council members vowed instead to strengthen the Alcohol Beverage Permit Review Committee's commitment to crack down... more »

• Proposal on rival team's field

  April 9, 2010 8:28 PM

  A high school softball coach threw a curve at a rival team's coach by asking for her hand in marriage on the opposing team's field. Glen Este High School coach Tim Gregory and Milford High coach Christy Foster dated for more than two years when he dropped to one knee... more »

• Tangi council sets hearing on liquor sales

  March 11, 2010 6:52 AM

  The Tangipahoa Parish Council plans a public hearing on proposals to change its regulations on early morning sales of alcoholic beverages. One proposal would keep the ban on sale of alcohol from 2 a.m. to 6 a.m. daily, with some wording changes. The other would allow alcohol sales to continue... more »

• BESE proposes increase in school funding formula

  March 10, 2010 1:38 PM

  The state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education has proposed a nearly $3.4 billion funding formula for public school districts. That amount is $72 million more than the funding proposed by Gov. Bobby Jindal in his budget for next year. In a 6-5 vote Wednesday, BESE backed a formula... more »

• Donaldsonville looking at sales tax hike

  January 27, 2010 4:25 PM

  Donaldsonville city leaders are finalizing a tax proposal that could go before voters in May. The plan includes a half cent sales tax that would generate almost $50,000 a year. The money would pay for road projects, law enforcement, and recreation. A portion would also support downtown development. ... more »

• Inmates to pay for health care

  January 11, 2010 6:14 AM

  Inmates in the Livingston Parish Detention Center would have to pay full price for their own doctor and dental services under a proposal by Parish President Mike Grimmer. Last year, the parish incurred $370,000 in medical expenses for prisoners. Blayne Honeycutt, attorney for the Livingston Parish Council, says the proposal... more »

• Mayor Kip Holden discusses bond proposal

  November 12, 2009 8:55 AM

  Mayor Kip Holden sat down with John Pastorek to explain why East Baton Rouge Parish needs the proposal passed this weekend. more »

• Mayor of Zachary on the tax proposal

  November 11, 2009 10:23 AM

  This weekend residents will vote on Mayor Kip Holden's bond proposal. The Mayor of Zachary Henry Martinez is against it, he joined John Pastorek with why he says it's not right for the parish. more »

• Bond proposal meetings today

  November 3, 2009 5:32 AM

  There will be two informational meetings on Mayor Kip Holden's bond issue today. The first will be at the Delmont Gardens Library from Noon to 2 p.m. Mayor Kip Holden and Walter Monsour will be on hand to answer any questions or concerns citizens might have regarding this important issue.... more »

• Mayor Holden to speak on Alive Project

  September 25, 2009 4:22 PM

  Mayor-President Kip Holden will hold a news briefing on Monday, September 28th to discuss the Alive Project proposed for downtown Baton Rouge. The news briefing will also address other issues related to the $901 million bond proposal. Joining the Mayor at the news conference are expected to be a number... more »

• Alive property questions

  September 23, 2009 10:19 AM

  Questions are being raised about who owns the land where Baton Rouge Mayor Kip Holden wants to build the "Alive" project. It's part of a small strip of land between the railroad tracks and the levee in downtown Baton Rouge. East Baton Rouge Parish voters will decide on the... more »