Louisiana
Louisiana state senator takes aim at gun-free zones around UL Lafayette • Louisiana Illuminator
State Sen. Blake Miguez, R-New Iberia, is picking a fight with the University of Louisiana Lafayette over its new off-campus gun-free zones. He believes the designated areas could lead to a lawsuit that he foresees ending firearm restrictions entirely at all schools.
Miguez is a competitive marksman who has made a name for himself in the Legislature by carrying bills to loosen gun restrictions. He’s taken issue with the university for declaring gun-free zones at a museum it operates in downtown Lafayette and at two hotels where it is housing students because its on-campus dorms are at capacity.
The gun-free zone’s radius around the museum would make it a crime to carry a firearm in most of downtown.
Miguez has asked Attorney General Liz Murrill to issue an opinion regarding the university’s position that the three sites be kept gun-free.
In an interview Friday with conservative radio talk show host Moon Griffon, Miguez said ULL’s stance could spur gun rights advocates to file a lawsuit, which he speculated could result in Louisiana’s law prohibiting guns on or near school property being struck down as unconstitutional.
The university’s announcement last week that its campus police would patrol and enforce a 1,000-foot gun-free school zone around the UL Lafayette Science Museum became a source of contention with the Acadiana senator, who believes it would be a violation of state law.
“[Lafayette Consolidated Government and the University of Louisiana Lafayette] together are making a decision to violate citizens [sic] civil rights through resuming enforcement of their position that the Lafaytte [sic] Science Museum is ‘school property’ in order to accomplish their goal of making downtown Lafayette a gun free zone,” Miguez posted Friday on X, the platform previously known as Twitter.
“To add insult to injury, ULL is now also declaring contracted private hotels used for student housing as ‘school property’ to trigger more gun free zones across Lafayette Parish,” Miguez added.
Miguez did not respond to a request for comment for this report.
Louisiana’s law prohibiting firearms in school zones defines a school as “any public or private elementary, secondary, high school, or vocational-technical school, college or university.” It defines a campus as all facilities and property within the boundary of the school property.
@LCGTweets and @ULLafayette together are making a decision to violate citizens civil rights through resuming enforcement of their position that the Lafaytte Science Museum is “school property” in order to accomplish their goal of making downtown Lafayette a gun free zone.
To… https://t.co/1u8s9BRUMV
— Blake Miguez (@BlakeMiguezLA) August 23, 2024
The two hotels ULL is using for overflow student housing are exclusively rented to the university, meaning no other guests are staying on the property. One of the hotels is within the gun-free zone of the Episcopal School of Acadiana, university spokesman Eric Maron said.
GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Murrill has previously posted online that she does not believe the museum to qualify as a gun-free zone, but she has not weighed in regarding the two hotels.
The university has not yet responded to questions about their legal reasoning for defining the hotels as gun-free zones.
In his letter to Murrill requesting an opinion, Miguez raised concerns that the university’s stance could lead to a slippery slope.
“Situations could arise where a school might assert that its ‘campus’ is anywhere where school business takes place,” Miguez wrote. “This could be a privately owned field where LSU conducts an anthropological dig, a convention center rented by Tulane to host a scientific conference, or a golf course where the university president regularly plays with potential donors.”
Louisiana law allows public officials to request opinions from the attorney general, who usually responds within 30 days. In July, Murrill issued 12 opinions, which are position statements that do not have the force of law but can influence government decision making.
Louisiana ranks among the top 10 most affordable states to retire, according to a new study from Retirement Living, a national journal of retirement research.
Researchers analyzed each state’s housing costs, living expenses and tax friendliness to compile the ranking. Louisiana, they say, is the eighth most affordable state for retirees.
In Louisiana, the median monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment is $932, the median home sale price is $255,000, monthly grocery spend per capita is $272, the average price per gallon of regular gas is $4, the average Medicare Advantage monthly premium is $13.35 and the average effective property tax rate is 0.55%.
West Virginia is the most affordable state to retire, followed by Mississippi, Alabama, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Louisiana, Indiana and Kansas. Researchers describe the South as “the sweet spot for an affordable retirement.”
The most expensive state to retire, meanwhile, is California, followed by Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Utah, New York and Minnesota.
Read Retirement Living’s full report here.
BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – With hurricane season approaching, the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority is bringing the community together to prepare before a storm forms.
“We can’t stop disasters from happening. We can’t stop hurricanes from happening. But what we can do is equip our communities with the resources that they need to prepare for these storms ahead of time,” said Jayda Morris, CPRA outreach manager.
The agency hosted an event featuring interactive storm simulations and a full model of the Mississippi River.
“If you do it now, like on a sunny day like today, you’re ready to go for the rest of the season,” Jay Grymes said.
El Niño may reduce storms, but Louisiana still at risk
State Climatologist Jay Grymes said an El Niño pattern may reduce the number of storms in the Atlantic but warned against a false sense of security.
“In those 25 years, Louisiana, some part of the state has been impacted by 29 storms. That’s one a year, regardless of El Niño. So that should tell you something,” Grymes said.
He said the bigger concern is storms that can form in the Gulf with little warning.
“If we’re going to get a storm, it very possibly could be one that bubbles up in the Gulf and doesn’t give us five or seven days to track it coming our way. It gives us 40 hours to get ready for a landfall. So it’s imperative that you go ahead and do it now,” Grymes said.
Preparation goes beyond stocking water
Preparing now includes walking through yards, checking trees, and knowing whether everyone in the family can survive two weeks without power.
PhD students with the LSU College of the Coast and Environment gave the community a virtual reality experience that puts users inside a storm.
“If they wear the goggles or play with the Apple Vision Pro, they can understand how high will the flood be, and they can know how dangerous is the hurricane scenario,” said Yixuan Wang.
The VR simulation uses real historical data to show users what compound flooding looks like in New Orleans and surrounding areas. The goal is to make the science real for people who can’t picture what a flood map means.
“It’s just to let you understand the environment. We will add the audios, the different sound of the wind and the storm. And you can see how tense of the rainfall around you,” Wang said.
Organizers said the event is about making sure that when a storm threatens the area, families already know their plan.
Information from the event is available on CPRA’s website. Hurricane season runs through Nov. 30.
Click here to report a typo. Please include the headline.
Click here to subscribe to our WAFB 9 News daily digest and breaking news alerts delivered straight to your email inbox.
Watch the latest WAFB news and weather now.
BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – Louisiana homeowners can get financial help to upgrade their roofs and ensure they can better stand up to strong storms.
According to the Louisiana Department of Insurance, registration for next Louisiana Fortify Homes Program lottery opens at 8 a.m. on Monday, June 1. The registration period will stay open through 5 p.m. on Friday, June 19.
Under the latest round of the program, 3,000 grants of up to $10,000 will go out. After applying, homeowners will get placed into a lottery and will be randomly selected.
There are many specific benefits of having a roof upgraded through the Louisiana Fortify Homes Program. Officials said the roofs have stronger shingles that can protect against hail up to two inches wide, sealed roof decks to help prevent water damage, and stronger edges to keep wind from getting underneath.
Homeowners with a fortified roof can also get a certificate to receive a discount on insurance premiums.
“At the end of the day, this program is about more than just roofs,” said Louisiana Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple. “It is about protecting families, it is about strengthening communities, and it is about putting Louisiana in a stronger position—both physically and economically—to face the challenges ahead.”
Only people living in Ascension Parish, Livingston Parish, Assumption Parish, Tangipahoa Parish, Acadia Parish, Calcasieu Parish, Cameron Parish, Iberia Parish, Jefferson Parish, Jefferson Davis Parish, Lafayette Parish, Lafourche Parish, Orleans Parish, Plaquemines Parish, St. Bernard Parish, St. Charles Parish, St. James Parish, St. John the Baptist Parish, St. Martin Parish, St. Mary Parish, St. Tammany Parish, Terrebonne Parish, and Vermilion Parish are eligible to apply for the latest round of the program.
People living in a newly built home, mobile home, or condominium are not qualified.
For a detailed list of eligibility requirements, click here.
If a person registered for the program previously, he or she must do so again. The person will also need to provide the following information:
- A homestead exemption on the primary residence.
- A policy of insurance that provides wind coverage for the primary residence.
- A flood insurance policy on the primary residence if it is in a special flood hazard area.
For more information about applying, click here.
Click here to report a typo. Please include the headline.
Click here to subscribe to our WAFB 9 News daily digest and breaking news alerts delivered straight to your email inbox.
Watch the latest WAFB news and weather now.
-
North Carolina4 minutes agoFormer North Carolina officer charged in beating caught on doorbell camera video
-
North Dakota7 minutes agoNorth Dakota Attorney General’s Office issues a warning on asphalt-paving scams
-
Ohio12 minutes agoOhio blogger The Rooster arrested at Statehouse for online harassment
-
Oklahoma19 minutes agoCity leaders break ground on MAPS 4 multipurpose stadium in downtown Oklahoma City
-
Oregon22 minutes agoFBI Special Agent Bobby Gutierrez named Freedom 250 Hometown Hero in Oregon
-
Pennsylvania27 minutes agoPennsylvania House approves bill to restrict cellphones in schools
-
Rhode Island34 minutes agoRhode Island Senate approves bill requiring staffed lanes alongside self-checkout
-
South-Carolina37 minutes agoSouth Carolina early voting surges ahead of primary election
