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Environment
Fixes After BP Spill Not Enough, Board Says | The New York Times – The federal Chemical Safety Board examined the causes of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster, warning that despite a regulatory overhaul, similar accidents are still possible. The board released explanatory videos that are second to none.
Putting a Price Tag on Nature’s Defenses | The New York Times – From storm surge protection to carbon absorption, the assessed value of ecosystems is triple what was estimated in 1997, according to a new scientific study.
If You Care About Louisiana, This Should Make You Livid | CenLamar –Blogger Lamar White summarizes the stakes of the bill to kill the levee board’s lawsuit against oil and gas companies. He notes BP’s support for the bill,and wonders if BP’s legal team reached the same conclusion as 79 law professors— that the bill could delay or derail state oil spill claims.
The Legislature’s Godzilla | Gambit – Gambit editors warn about the political risk Gov. Bobby Jindal faces if he signs Senate Bill 469 into law — which he did Friday — and the state is bitten by unintended consequences, such as the derailment of oil spill claims.
If Jindal signs SB 469 and the new law lets BP off the hook, Louisiana will suffer irreparable harm — and Jindal will go down in infamy as the worst governor Louisiana has ever had.
Don Briggs: Oil industry would pay double its fees to plug orphan wells | The Advertiser – Louisiana Oil and Gas Association president Don Briggs says the energy industry recognizes the problem of abandoned, unplugged wells and is willing to pay higher fees to fix the problem. However, Briggs said oil and gas firms are hamstrung by “a state political administration that opposes raising fees or taxes.”
Criminal Justice
Gusman eyes plan to move mentally ill inmates to St. Gabriel | The New Orleans Advocate
The inmates apparently would be moved to the Elayn Hunt Correctional Center, about an hour’s drive from New Orleans, for months or even years while [Sheriff Marlin] Gusman seeks to build a detention facility that could accommodate inmates in need of acute mental health care.
Schools
Recovery School District charters inching past historic top-performers in New Orleans | The Lens – Schools run by the Orleans Parish School Board have been the top performers on standardized tests. That continued this year, but several charters in the Recovery School District inched past them.
Among the standouts:
The B-rated KIPP Central City Academy bested several A schools in math in most grades.
- Lagniappe Academies, rated a B by the state, was the only member of the Recovery School District to have all eighth-graders pass English and math.
- In fourth-grade English and math, students at Dr. King Charter School, rated a C by the state, had more of its students pass English and math than every school but Lusher Charter School and Lake Forest Elementary Charter School.
Jindal says he wants state out of Common Core and its tests | The Advocate – The governor says he is “committed to getting us out of PARCC, out of Common Core.”
New Orleans rebuilds education system with charter schools | PBS NewsHour – Continued national media fascination with “the country’s first all-charter school district.”
Oklahoma Just Dumped The Common Core And It Could Cost The State Millions | HuffPost
Oklahoma is the second state to repeal the Common Core. Indiana dumped the standards in March. South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley signed a law May 30 that requires the state to review the Common Core before Jan. 1 and implement new standards by the 2015-16 school year.
Government & Politics
Zurik: Jindal urged to veto Cedric Grant ethics exemption | FOX 8 News – A member of the state’s ethics board says it would be bad policy to pass legislation to allow Deputy Mayor Cedric Grant to head the Sewerage and Water Board.
Gov. Jindal’s health care hostages: Robert Mann | NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune – Mann argues that nearly a quarter-million Louisianans are being punished so that the governor’s prospects for national office don’t “bear the taint of Obamacare.”
Allan Katz and Danae Columbus: Will New Orleans voters support Landrieu’s newest property-tax increase? | Uptown Messenger – Given recent cost-of-living increases, Katz and Columbus are “not sure voters are ready to add on another tax which would hurt property owners and renters, whose landlords would undoubtedly increase rents.”
Louisiana one of few states with more deficient bridges since I-35 collapse, magazine reports | NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune – Louisiana, which has a huge number of bridges, is not keeping up with maintenance.
Louisiana is one of nine states where the number of structurally deficient bridges has increased since the 2007 bridge collapse in Minnesota, according to an analysis of federal statistics by Governing magazine.
Land Use
Councilwoman takes unusual step of overruling HDLC, allowing demolition | The New Orleans Advocate
[City Councilwoman Nadine] Ramsey said she didn’t find the HDLC’s arguments in favor of retaining the Teche Street structure — that demolition would erode the streetscape and create a vast open space, among other reasons — sufficiently compelling to oppose the teardown.
Struggling Algiers Point to discuss ferry service with RTA representatives | NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune – Residents are concerned that the ferry service hours won’t be restored. They’re troubled by the lack of marketing and ridership tracking.
City shuts down Treme Center citing construction-related safety concerns | WWL-TV – “In the peak season for summer camps, the city of New Orleans shut down the pool and gymnasium at the Treme Center, citing the same safety concerns revealed in an ongoing Eyewitness Investigation that began last month.”