• Bridge work may be package deal
BATON ROUGE -- The state Department of Transportation and Development is considering bidding out several bridge-repair projects all at one time next year, allowing the design and construction contracts to be awarded almost simultaneously and reducing the building time and costs, the head of the agency said Wednesday.

• LRA seeks latitude with federal recovery money
BATON ROUGE -- The Louisiana Recovery Authority will ask Congress for latitude in spending whatever is left of a $3 billion federal appropriation that is legally obligated to the Road Home program.

• Incentives for farmers markets explored
BATON ROUGE -- The state may be asked to come up with cash and other incentives to help entice farmers markets or grocers to provide healthier foods to underserved urban and rural areas, the chairwoman of the panel studying the problem said Tuesday.

• Properties' transfer to parish OK'd
BATON ROUGE -- The Louisiana Recovery Authority gave final approval Tuesday for the transfer of at least 137 properties from the Louisiana Land Trust to St. Tammany Parish government, leaving environmental reviews as the last hurdle before local officials take control of the hurricane-damaged parcels.

• Shreveport officials join pitch for auto industry aid
WASHINGTON -- Representatives of the Big Three U.S. automakers made their pleas for government aid Tuesday on Capitol Hill, cheered on by rallies at the Shreveport GM plant and outside the Senate office buildings where its fate likely will be decided.

• Audit attacks Citizens rate cuts
BATON ROUGE -- The state Department of Insurance made "improper adjustments" to rate increases submitted by Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corp. in 2006, resulting in lower premiums that may have violated state law and put state taxpayers at risk in the event of a catastrophe, according to an audit released Monday.

• Audit's demands unlawful, suit claims
BATON ROUGE -- Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon has filed a lawsuit complaining that Legislative Auditor Steve Theriot's demands for records would force Donelon to violate state and federal laws.

• Demoted workers get new SUNO jobs
Two Southern University at New Orleans employees who were demoted after calling attention to what they felt was a fraudulent enrollment scheme started new jobs Monday at the Lakefront campus.

• N.Y. fraud case has La. accent
BATON ROUGE -- A Hammond lawyer who was charged this year in a federal bribery investigation into state film tax credits has been indicted for fraud in a separate federal case in New York for what prosecutors say was his role in an elaborate tax evasion scheme.

• Tulane hails relaxing of foreign lawyer rules
A Louisiana Supreme Court order this past week that allows lawyers from foreign countries with work visas to practice law in Louisiana will help the Tulane University Law School, the school's dean said Saturday.

• BRIEFING BOOK
TOP OF THE NEWS

• Medicaid program on skids, Jindal says
BATON ROUGE -- Arguing that "doing nothing is not an option," Gov. Bobby Jindal on Friday proposed restructuring Louisiana's health-care program for the poor into a private insurance model that relies on managed-care principles to control costs and improve health outcomes.

• Medicaid program on skids, Jindal says
BATON ROUGE -- Arguing that "doing nothing is not an option," Gov. Bobby Jindal on Friday proposed restructuring Louisiana's health-care program for the poor into a private insurance model that relies on managed-care principles to control costs and improve health outcomes.

• Jindal details Medicaid revamp
BATON ROUGE -- Gov. Bobby Jindal plans to unveil today a proposed restructuring of the state's Medicaid program that would steer hundreds of thousands of low-income Louisiana residents into private managed-care plans in an effort to control costs and improve the state's historically poor health-care outcomes.

• Citizens reserves funds for claims
BATON ROUGE -- The board of the state-run property insurer of last resort Thursday set aside as much as $35 million to pay thousands of policyholders who claim the state agency was late in investigating damage claims from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005.

• Top Jindal aide gets ethics fine
BATON ROUGE -- One of Gov. Bobby Jindal's top Cabinet members violated a state ethics law before joining the administration and has agreed to pay a $1,200 fine for failing to register properly as a lobbyist in a settlement approved Thursday by the state Board of Ethics.

• Citizens audits spark probe
BATON ROUGE -- Attorney General Buddy Caldwell's office said Wednesday it is "actively investigating" allegations of questionable spending and possible theft by former officials of the state-run property insurer of last resort, based on information contained in two recent audits.

• Feds reject La.'s food stamp plea
The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Wednesday rejected Louisiana's request to provide a second month of food stamps to 13 parishes affected by Hurricanes Gustav and Ike, including three metro-area parishes -- Orleans, Plaquemines and St. Tammany.

• Spending tracked on La. Web site
BATON ROUGE -- Want to know what the state Office of Business Development spent last year on employee salaries ($4,349,216.48)? How much the lieutenant governor's office has spent so far this year on travel and training ($117,881.49)? Or the annual salary of Insurance Commissioner James Donelon ($115,000)?

• Utility regulators reject meal ban
BATON ROUGE -- Despite renewed criticism of its practice of accepting meals and drinks from regulated companies, the Public Service Commission bypassed a proposal Wednesday by one of its members that would have prohibited wining and dining of the five elected commissioners.

• Jindal says he refused possible VP run
BATON ROUGE -- Gov. Bobby Jindal said Tuesday that he "politely declined" last summer an opportunity to be on John McCain's short list for the vice presidency.

• State could help with program for families, Jindal says
BATON ROUGE -- Gov. Bobby Jindal said Tuesday that he would consider asking lawmakers to find money for a program designed to collect contributions to help the families of Louisiana National Guard and Reserve personnel called to active duty, but shied away from making a financial commitment to the program.

• Audit rips spending by ex-chief of Citizens
BATON ROUGE -- The former head of Louisiana's state-run homeowners insurance program charged taxpayers for $106,579 in questionable expenses from 2003 to 2006, including cigars, high-end wining and dining at fancy restaurants, trips, a possible prom party for his daughter and tickets to LSU football games, according to an audit released Monday.

• Road Home could still visit those who sold home early
Roughly 700 Road Home applicants who sold their hurricane-damaged homes at a loss before they could get a compensation grant were given new hope Monday.

• Education financing overhaul proposed
BATON ROUGE -- Louisiana's financing formula for colleges and universities should place a greater emphasis on graduation rates instead of being based mainly on the number of students enrolled, the state's higher education chief said Monday.

• BRIEFING BOOK
TOP OF THE NEWS