Louisiana
Louisiana senators Cassidy, Kennedy still seeking flood insurance reforms
NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Amid increasing flood insurance costs, Louisiana’s U.S. senators say they are continuing to push for reforms to the National Flood Insurance Program.
Property owners are seeing higher flood coverage premiums, on top of soaring property insurance costs.
Katherine Drezek is a Louisiana homeowner who said she has seen her flood insurance premium rise in recent years.
“Yes, I think all the insurance has gone up, not only flood insurance. Fire insurance, just the house insurance period, has gone up,” she said.
Still, Drezek has not considered dropping her flood coverage.
“No, I live too close to the lake not to have flood insurance. I mean we live in Louisiana, we need flood insurance,” Drezek said.
With Congress in recess, Republican senators Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy were speaking Tuesday (Aug. 20) in the New Orleans area.
Cassidy toured Wrstbnd, a company in the Elmwood section of Jefferson Parish, after he spoke to the River Region Chamber of Commerce. And on the north shore, Kennedy addressed the St. Tammany Chamber.
“We need to fix the flood insurance program. The first thing we need to do is expand it,” Kennedy said.
Only a fraction of the properties in the U.S. are covered through the National Flood Insurance Program. According to FEMA, the NFIP protects more than $1.28 trillion in assets through nearly 5 million policies.
“We’ve got about 5 million people across America that’s got flood insurance. That’s not enough,” Kennedy said. “That’s not enough, because the more people you have, the more risk you can spread.”
Fox 8 asked Cassidy if there should be an effort to get more properties covered by flood insurance.
“There should be,” he said. “Banks are supposed to require it if homes are at risk. One thing we know is that more homes are at risk. So, for example, more people are building next to the coast. People want to live next to the water, and so that almost inherently puts them at risk.”
But he added that high costs are keeping some property owners from either acquiring or keeping flood insurance.
“On the other hand, if the premium is so expensive people can’t afford it, it drops off,” Cassidy said.
Cassidy said he wants Congress to mandate FEMA to take into account more levees when determining flood insurance rates.
“Right now, if a levee works but it’s not federally recognized, FEMA does not include that levee in their kind of risk assessment,” Cassidy said. “But the levee works. People can show flood water on one side, dry homes on the other. So, we would require FEMA to begin taking into account these non-federally recognized levees which work.”
Kennedy said, “I’m for creating some sort of national catastrophe fund that includes flood, that includes fire, earthquake. That’s harder to do than it sounds, but you get 15, 20, 30 and 40 million people in a fund, you can spread the risk better than you can with only five million.”
Under Risk Rating 2.0, the methodology FEMA has been using in recent years to determine premiums, rates can legally be increased up to 18% a year.
“This algorithm apparently can look into the future and tell whether your home is going to flood 45 years from now. I don’t believe it. I think it was an excuse to raise premiums,” Kennedy said.
With U.S. House members and some senators up for reelection in November, pundits say Congress will hesitate to pass consequential legislation before the end of the year.
On the prospects of getting NFIP reforms approved this year, Cassidy said, “I can’t tell you that it’s going to happen, but I can tell you that we’re in active negotiation as to how we could help lower-income Americans afford their flood insurance.”
Kennedy concedes that reaching a consensus on how to change the program will be difficult.
“We need to fix it,” he said. “But it’s not easy to do, because you’ve got a lot of people who, first, don’t care. They’re in a state that’s never flooded. And No. 2, we’ve got a lot of different points of view about how to fix it.”
Drezek said she has a message for Congress.
“Lower it. Please, please, please lower the insurance,” she said.
Kennedy said Congress will not let the program expire.
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NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Louisiana State Police issued a Silver Alert Friday for a 76-year-old New Orleans man who has been missing since Wednesday.
Elbert Welch was last seen in the 1700 block of Holiday Drive on May 6 at approximately 11 a.m. State police received the request to issue a Silver Alert at approximately 6:54 p.m. Friday on behalf of the New Orleans Police Department.
Welch is a white male with brown eyes and black and gray hair. He is 5′10″ and weighs approximately 170 pounds. He was last seen wearing a khaki shirt, black pants and a blue baseball cap.
Family reports that Welch has a medical condition that may impair his judgment.
Welch is believed to be walking on foot in an unknown direction.
Anyone with information regarding Welch’s whereabouts is asked to immediately contact the New Orleans Police Department, 4th District, at (504) 821-2222 or dial 911. All questions should be directed to the New Orleans Police Department.
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Copyright 2026 WVUE. All rights reserved.
Watch UL Diamond sports HCs talk wins and losses vs Troy, Coastal Carolina
Hear from UL softball and baseball HCs, Matt Deggs and Alyson Habetz following SBC play where Cajuns softball swept Coastal Carolina and baseball loss 2-1 to Troy.
Pressure is back on for Louisiana baseball, especially on the weekend in Sun Belt Conference play.
The Ragin’ Cajuns (30-19, 12-12) dropped their final midweek game of the season, losing 9-6 to the University of New Orleans in extra innings. Now, the Cajuns are back on the road for SBC play, needing every win they can get to better their chances of snagging a regional spot. They travel to Appalachian State for what will likely be a chilly three-game series against the Mountaineers.
Seventh-year head coach Matt Deggs will go with junior Cody Brasch to start Game 1, a spot the right-hander is becoming accustomed to. Saturday’s are for Andrew Herrmann, the most reliable of the Cajuns’ arms through the year. App State will start junior righty Nick DiRito on Friday, followed by junior righty Gage Peterson and junior lefty Tanner Nolan to close out the series.
Here’s how to watch Ragin’ Cajuns baseball in its SBC series vs App State (28-18, 15-9), including time, TV schedule, live score and streaming information.
Watch Louisiana baseball vs App State on ESPN+
Louisiana baseball vs App State live score
What channel is Louisiana baseball vs App State on?
TV: None
Livestream: ESPN+
Radio: Varsity Network, 96.5 FM
Louisiana vs. App State will be available live on ESPN+ streaming service for the teams’ ninth SBC series of the 2026 college baseball season. Matt Present will provide commentary from Beaver Field at Jim and Bettie Smith Stadium.
What time does Louisiana baseball play App State today?
- 5 p.m. Friday, May 8
- 2 p.m. Saturday, May 9
- 12 p.m. Sunday, May 10
The Louisiana vs. App State series starts at 5 p.m. Friday at Beaver Field in Boone, N.C., followed by Game 2 at 2 p.m. on Saturday. The Cajuns will close out the series at noon on Sunday.
Louisiana baseball vs App State weather update
Friday’s matchup will be played in semi-cloudy weather with sunshine throughout the day. It’ll be a high of 62 degrees and a low of 44 degrees. Winds will get up to about five to 10 mph, and there is less than a 7% chance of rain in the afternoon. Saturday’s game will be played in warmer weather with a high of 67 degrees, followed by Sunday’s high of 73 degrees.
Louisiana baseball vs App State history
Series record: Louisiana leads 14-9
In Lafayette: Series tied 6-6
In Boone: Louisiana leads 6-3
Louisiana’s last win: April 2, 2023 (6-0)
App State’s last win: April 1, 2023 (8-5)
Shannon Belt covers high school sports and the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns for The Daily Advertiser as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow her high school and Cajuns coverage on Twitter: @ShannonBelt3. Got questions regarding HS/UL athletics? Send them to Shannon Belt at sbelt@gannett.com.
Louisiana
Behind the Curtain: How Louisiana’s Parole System and Courts Shape Who Goes Free | The Lens
This week on Behind The Lens, the public gets a rare look inside one of the most powerful and least understood parts of Louisiana’s criminal justice system: the parole process.
In Louisiana, Parole Board hearings are sometimes held in public, offering families, victims, attorneys, advocates, and reporters an opportunity to witness how decisions are made about who is granted freedom and who remains incarcerated. But those hearings reveal more than individual cases. They expose the broader tensions shaping punishment, rehabilitation, public safety, and political pressure across the state.
Reporters Bernard Smith and Gus Bennett join editor Katy Reckdahl to examine how parole decisions are influenced not only by testimony inside the hearing room, but also by a growing wave of legal and political changes moving through Louisiana’s courts and legislature. From rulings connected to the Louisiana Supreme Court to election season politics and criminal justice reforms, the episode explores how policy decisions made at the highest levels can directly affect incarcerated people, victims’ families, prosecutors, and entire communities.
The discussion also breaks down how recent state actions involving sentencing, parole eligibility, election dynamics, and judicial oversight are reshaping Louisiana’s criminal justice landscape in real time. Together, the team examines the human consequences behind those decisions and what they reveal about accountability, power, and transparency inside the system.
Theme music by Podington Bear. Additional music “Fading Prospects” by Podington Bear (soundofpicture.com)
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
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