Environment
Live blog Monday: Committee meets to select levee authority board members | The Lens – This meeting started at noon. If the committee doesn’t nominate people by the end of the day, Gov. Bobby Jindal can pick who he wants.
BP Fights to Shrink Gulf Spill Estimate to Cap Verdict | Bloomberg – Phase two of the BP oil spill trial has begun. Billions of dollars in fines are at stake as arguments are presented on the size of the spill and whether BP’s response amounted to gross negligence.
“The evidence will show BP’s outright lies caused the oil to flow” for 87 days, plaintiffs’ attorney Brian Barr said today in his opening statement.
Schools
A Common Core dilemma: Will the littlest learners be able to type? | NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune – Exams aligned to new Common Core standards, unlike previous iLEAP and LEAP standardized tests, will require typing skills.
In Louisiana, mixed signals on Common Core heighten schools’ anxiety | Hechinger Report – Political opposition is rising in the state, and Gov. Bobby Jindal has distanced himself from the Core, raising the possibility that teachers may have to put the brakes on standards they’ve been working on for years.
Analysis: Jindal stuck in tricky political debate over Common Core national testing standards | Associated Press – As Tea Party-infused resistance to Common Core intensifies, Jindal is in a political bind.
GED exam retiring after seven decades | The Advocate — “After seven decades the state is preparing to replace the GED test, which students and adults have tackled for generations to earn an alternative credential to a high school diploma.”
Government & Politics
State retirement system doing well | The Advocate – I had to read this twice, I was so surprised: “Good investment returns and a Jindal administration-fueled reduction in the state employee workforce combined to reduce the Louisiana State Employees Retirement Systems’ liabilities by nearly $700 million in the state fiscal year that ended June 30.”
Land Use
Algiers Ferry Only for Walkers (and Scooters), Starting Monday | NOLA DEFENDER – “After a false start, the Algiers Ferry is set to become pedestrian-only. On Monday, commuters will no longer be able to drive onto the public transit boat across the Mississippi River, according to the state Department of Transportation and Development. Scooting, however, will still be allowed.”
Criminal Justice
With execution delayed, lawyer renews fight for information about lethal injection drug | The Lens – On Tuesday, the state is supposed to reveal the expiration date for its lethal injection drug.
Orleans Criminal District Court Magistrate Judge – League of Women Voters of New Orleans – The local League of Women Voters chapter has published answers from candidates running for magistrate judge and Division D of Traffic Court.
State ‘lockup quota’ among nation’s highest | Shreveport Times – From an interesting article earlier this month: “A national survey has found that Louisiana guarantees private prisons operating in the state that they will have at least 96 percent occupancy, and if they don’t house that many inmates, the state pays them that much, anyway.”