Entergy is proud to support programing on LPB and Greener practices that preserve Louisiana.

The goal of our environmental and sustainability initiatives.

Really is to ensure that our kids and future generations can be left with a cleaner planet.

Additional support provided by the Fred B and Ruth Zigler Foundation and the Zigler Art Museum located in Jennings City Hall.

The museum focuses on emerging Louisiana artists and is an historical and cultural center for Southwest Louisiana and the Foundation for Excellence in Louisiana Public Broadcasting.

With support from viewers like you.

Pregnant and postpartum women are more likely to be killed than non-pregnant, non postpartum women.

The leading cause of death for pregnant women in the U.S..

Rents going up 9%.

In the capital region.

Rent continues to climb.

We've had tremendous discussions already.

Well, a.

Meeting in the heartland helped the whole country.

But the most important thing for an economic development professional is to read the information.

Hidden help in COVID relief.

Hi, everyone.

I'm Kara St. Cyr.

And I'm Andre Moreau at the state capitol this week.

A bill that could see a woman hit with murder charges for having an abortion was set aside after legislators stripped parts of it that could have put her behind bars for ending a pregnancy or taking the wrong birth control.

It's not exactly with the bill's sponsor.

Republican Representative Danny McCormick wanted but he achieved one major goal, and that is a conversation about life beginning at conception with legal ramifications.

House Bill 813 would also heavily restrict certain contraceptives and parts of the in vitro fertilization process.

This legislation would be the most restrictive of abortion bans in this country.

If passed.

The Democrat pro-life governor John Bel Edwards, did not support the bill.

He said to suggest that a woman would be jailed for an abortion is simply absurd.

Louisiana Right to Life echoed the governor's stance, saying Our long standing policy is that abortion vulnerable women should not be treated as criminals.

It is patently unconstitutional, and it is violated above every person's oath of office in the legislature.

And it would be violating mine.

So I'm just telling you, I've never done this as your governor.

830.

And I don't think it will come to my desk.

I know it won't get off my desk.

And so I just wanted to make that announcement.

There are better ways for us to proceed.

McCormack countered that a woman who gets an abortion is the same as a woman who takes a child's life after birth.

Now, let's check on some of the other headlines making news this week.

The Louisiana Supreme Court has ruled in favor of Tony spill the central pastor who continued to hold church services in defiance of restrictions.

Governor John Bel Edwards imposed to stop the spread of COVID.

The justices overruled lower courts, saying the restrictions on gatherings and the stay at home mandates imposed were unconstitutional as they applied to spell State prosecutors charged three Louisiana state police troopers of misdemeanor battery charges stemming from the 2020 arrest of Antonio Harris.

They bragged in text messages that their weapon would give him nightmares.

This comes amid increasing scrutiny of the agency and allegations of excessive force particularly against black people.

A resolution to hold the former head of state police, Kevin Reeves, in contempt is working its way through the capitol.

Lawmakers investigating the death of Ronald Green in 2019 want to charge Reeves for defying a subpoena and refusing to turn over handwritten journals.

The lawyer for Reeves says his client cooperated and supplied journal information related to the case.

It is exceedingly rare for state lawmakers to issue a subpoena and Reeves will be able to mount a defense if necessary.

At his funeral services this week.

Louisiana Sheriff's Deputy Nick Tully was remembered as a hero.

Tulia survived an ambush by a rogue gunman in 2016 battling to overcome being shot in the head and stomach.

At the time, it seemed unlikely he would live another day.

A procession took Tulia his body from Baton Rouge to Denham Springs, where he was buried with full honors.

Deputy Nick Tulia was 47 The state's top school board, Bessy, voted to waive traditional graduation rules for more than 1400 students because of Hurricane Ida's impact But a vote to grant waivers for about 2400 pandemic affected students statewide failed by one vote The deadline for state income tax filing is upon us.

The State Department of Revenue reminding us Monday is the day taxpayers can file returns at a Louisiana file online or submit with commercially available tax prep software or through your personal account.

Also in headlines, a shortage of baby formula has parents and pediatricians worried.

With more than 40% of formulas out of stock around the United States.

The crisis is months in the making.

It's a result of widespread pandemic supply chain issues, exacerbated by the closure of a major production plant, which happened this past February.

This week, President Biden announced that the federal government is working with manufacturers to increase production of formula and help families access existing stock.

But many predict the shortage will last several more months.

And it appears there is some very positive news for downtown Lake Charles.

We need to hear that, don't we?

The biggest daily reminder of Hurricane Laura, the owner of the storm ravaged Capital One tower, gave a statement this week saying there are plans now to start construction of the first phase of the rebuild that tower.

The year and a half battle with the insurer of the building has made headway.

But there is a trial date in June between the two parties In the United States, a pregnant woman or one whose postpartum is two thirds more likely to be murdered than a woman who wasn't.

Homicide is the leading cause of death for expectant mothers in the U.S. and the third leading cause of death in Louisiana.

May Wallace, a reproductive and perinatal epidemiologist, researched this disturbing trend.

Tonight, she gives us insight from 2016 to 2017.

The Maternal Mortality Review Board recorded 16 homicides targeting pregnant women in Louisiana.

These deaths weren't individual crimes, but a small piece of a larger, more disturbing trend.

My research has been following this issue for quite some time, probably a decade.

Now, and showing that homicide is always among the leading causes of death among pregnant and postpartum women, both here in Louisiana, but also nationwide.

So we look at homicide rates collectively and sort of identifying both that it is a leading cause of death among pregnant postpartum women and that pregnant and postpartum women are more likely to be killed than non-pregnant, non postpartum women.

Maybe.

Wallace is a reproductive and perinatal epidemiologist at Tulane University.

She's one of the authors of a study published by Obstetrics and Gynecology highlighting the trends of maternal mortality.

We sort of look at maternal mortality as being death during pregnancy or up to one year post-apartheid one year from the end of delivery.

And in terms of homicide, it's about 5050.

And in the latest national analysis, we did about 50% of the deaths occur to women who are pregnant and 50% occur within that first year after delivery.

Wallace's research shows that these women are usually murdered by an intimate partner where the father of the baby Nationally, about 60 to 70% of these cases start out as domestic abuse.

In terms of the individual characteristics, we see trends that show that adolescent women, so women and girls aged ten to 19 have a much higher risk of being murdered.

Compared to adolescents who are not pregnant or not postpartum.

It was a 66 times higher homicide rate among pregnant adolescents compared to non-pregnant adolescents there's also extremely higher rates of homicide among black women who are pregnant compared to black women who are non pregnant.

And so that sort of added risk that pregnancy confers is really acute for both adolescents and black women in particular.

And it's likely the number of homicides reported is undercounted.

It's hard to know a lot of times when you're looking just at the death record whether or not the woman was pregnant.

And so the certifier, who is the person who fills out the death record, would have to find evidence of a pregnancy during autopsy.

But in cases that the pregnancy was super early weeks, they might not notice that and then classify the woman is not having been pregnant or if it was a postpartum case and perhaps the woman wasn't in custody of her children.

So, you know, people show up and they don't see that there's this woman has a baby under one, wouldn't classify her as postpartum.

The 20, 28 statistics haven't been released yet, but Wallace says it's likely that the deaths have increased since the pandemic crime surge.

And we know 2020 was a year that saw increases in homicide rates of the general population, increases in gun violence increases and economic disruptions because of the pandemic.

So it wasn't surprising, but it was a larger increase in homicide rate among pregnant women compared to the increase that was smaller among non pregnant women and a big increase in the number that involved guns.

So it was up to 80% of the cases that occurred nationally in 2020 were life like gone.

For things to change improvements must be made outside of the hospital walls says research shows that restricting access to guns and individual carry can reduce instances of homicide.

Domestic violence screening is also an effective measure.

Wallace is continuing her research and focusing on preventative measures to reduce the number of homicides rent hikes, said the majority of the country following trends of inflation and supply chain issues.

Louisiana is no different, and Baton Rouge rent increase 9% in one year, though that number may seem small in comparison to other places and she.

Fitzgerald, an economic analyst with the Baton Rouge area Chamber of Commerce, says the hike is a considerable increase for a midsize city.

When you think about rent increases, you probably think of big cities like New York, Los Angeles or San Francisco.

But the price hikes are happening in Louisiana to Andrew Fitzgerald is an economic analyst with the Baton Rouge Area Chamber of Commerce.

The housing market falls into his line of research he says that the rent increases, though small in comparison, are significant to the people who live here.

The data shows that from quarter one 2022 this quarter quarter one 2022 rents going up 9% in the capital region.

Let's say you're paying about $1,000 per month for a one bed, one bath.

That would be almost an 1100 dollars a month after the increase.

And because of inflation, which is about 1200 dollars a year.

The 9% increase in Baton Rouge may sound like a small uptick, but on average rent usually increases one to 4% each year.

There's a few contributing factors.

What we're seeing really is that a lack of availability for housing generally is hurting both the rental and the home purchase markets.

What happens generally is when someone graduates for college or leaves their parent's home, they get a rental to start and eventually saves up to put a down payment on a home.

What's happening is there's a lack of housing available, so those renters are unable to enter the housing market.

So it's creating a backlog apartments are saying there's more demand for my unit than there ever been before.

And with supply and demand, you can simply charge more and people have no choice but to pay.

A number of parishes in Louisiana are facing a tight housing market.

Last month, Ascension Parish only had about 15 days of housing stock, meaning that if no new houses popped up on the market in 15 days, there wouldn't be any homes to sell.

It's happening around the capital region generally for the Metro.

We have about a month to month and a half of housing stock, which is down almost 50%.

40 to 50% from last year.

The lack of availability in housing is a problem within itself.

I'd love to tell you that there's an easy answer to it.

There isn't.

Leslie Moore, real estate appraiser with Cooke.

Moore Davenport and Associates, says the number of people in one household is shrinking.

Plus, home ownership is more difficult to come by.

When there's more cash in the market through peep money, through the stimulus payments, it just flooded all that cash.

And we're talking about the money supply, increasing the US money supply, increasing by more than 50% since Kovac started.

Less houses available for sale forces, more people to rent dropping apartment vacancies and ultimately raising the price Fitzgerald says that shifting rent downward will take a while, but it can even itself out.

The federal government is doing one thing in terms of raising interest rates by the Fed.

If it costs more in terms of interest, there'll be a higher monthly mortgage payment.

Everybody would have said discourages people from purchasing homes.

In addition, just getting more supply out.

There are both apartments to rent and houses to purchase.

So there's a demand side you can lower by making credit more expensive is how I would phrase that there's a supply side.

Also, where have we increased the supply of housing?

There's not that bottleneck like there is in the in the the rental business right now.

And, you know, landlords would then most likely have to go back to charging lower rates.

Moore says that apartment complexes need to stay at a 93% occupancy level to bring in more tenants and compete with other complexes.

But because of rent increases, more people are staying put, continuing the cycle all over again.

I don't want to tell you that we are living in unprecedented times, times of inflation, gas, milk going through the roof.

If you can get it.

And also at a time when pandemic relief money from Washington is pouring into the state in big numbers, the revenue estimating conference has just presented a rosier forecast for Louisiana for next year.

So that means more money in the budget, not money that we've ever seen before.

Michael Olivier is the CEO for the Committee of 100 for Economic Development.

And you have said, Michael, welcome, by the way, that local economic development groups should really dove deep into these programs.

To see what they say, because there could be other things that could be helped by it.

I do a lot of work in terms of the International Economic Development Council, our professional association nationwide in training people in the economic development world.

One of the things we are telling them now is they need to read all of the acts that have this abundance of money that not only is coming to Louisiana, but is going to every state.

Yeah, and it's an amazing number.

It's overwhelming.

In fact, some of the money goes directly to the state government, some goes directly to the municipality, some goes to the county or parish government, some goes directly to schools.

But the most important thing for an economic development professional is to read the information and glean from that so they can assist their stakeholders in what they can do best and how to apply those moneys.

Because too many times, many of our smaller communities in particular don't have the capacity to be able to wade through these thousands and thousands of words.

But there are opportunities that exist for them to let their stakeholders know how these moneys can be applied.

And these are coming from the CARES Act and some of these other many, many COVID relief acts.

It's astounding the numbers in the American rescue plan, $1.9 billion, the infrastructure plan.

$550 billion build back America, 1.7.

$5 trillion COVID relief.

$900 billion the CARES Act and they're going to be and there could be more.

The point is we have some of our people that received money last year haven't spent it.

That money's going to be returned back to the federal government one time money.

It's one time money so these are these local government agencies and businesses and organizations.

Well, they're supposed to be reading this right to let people who go to them and say, Can I get a loan for something or could I get help with my business perhaps?

Well, are we talking about that?

Not in some cases, yes.

Because some of these acts have information that leads to business development opportunity.

Much of it, though, is to lead communities to build back better use their time.

Right?

Right.

So they can improve the broadband system, so they can improve water and sewer systems, infrastructure, roads, bridges.

Well, that means business opportunity, right, for people in construction, people in technology, all sorts of jobs can be created from that.

So it's an economic development project.

And broadband money is earmarked for broadband.

Absolutely.

But there could be even more than that.

You're saying there is more than OK.

There is more than that.

There is more than that.

And it's amazing to me the things that you find in there.

Some of them, you scratch your head saying, why is that in there?

You said you've never seen this before.

Never.

I've been in the business for 40 years.

I've never seen this much and it's overwhelming, this much that is coming in terms of assistance to help us spring forward so we can have a better economy.

OK, so what's good about it?

What concerns you about it?

What's good about it is it's it's an it's like the program that was under the Eisenhower administration to advance the United States highway system.

Yes.

To build the interstate.

Right.

Right.

It's going to be that kind of an effect.

The big deal is how in the heck are we going to pay for this, how we pay for it?

OK, yeah.

How do we give it to you?

It's being given to us, but somebody's got to pay for it.

All right.

Which means my grandchildren, yours, the burial, they're going to be paying for it later.

Washington printing money is what you're saying.

Yeah.

Yeah, ultimately.

But it does come into the state one time deal.

Huge opportunity.

But again, people who need to know these things really need to know it so they can tell the community and take the greatest advantage otherwise the money go someplace else.

And this is not much of this is not money that is requiring a match.

Some of it is, but some of it is not.

It's just a direct grant some.

And by the way, you don't have to make the grant application.

It is just it sent to you.

Right.

But there will be things you have to fulfill absolutely.

There strings, any grant.

Absolutely.

Michael, thank you so much.

Thank you for having me.

This if you want to read what's in these plans, you can do a keyword search for COVID relief.

Funds or pandemic relief.

There is plenty of detail about the CARES Act and the other plans well, this week found business and thought leaders converging on northwest Arkansas for an event called the Heartland Summit.

Heartland Summit is the flagship event of Heartland Forward.

That's a think and do tank that is based in Bentonville, Arkansas.

This is an area that boomed years ago.

It's when Walmart expanded its world headquarters, which were already there.

Governor John Bel Edwards was one of the governors at the event this was a part Ted Talk, part entertainment, part Arkansas Tourism Expo Hi, Governor.

Glad you could join us from this expo.

You're the heartland region is the middle.

20 states of America why is it said that this region is the epicenter of our biggest challenges but also biggest potential?

Well, I know as it relates to Louisiana, we know that the best way to get materials in and out, goods in and out of the center third of the United States is through the Mississippi River.

Obviously, we are strategically positioned at the mouth of the river.

We have six class one railroads, the only deepwater port in the country to have six class one railroads.

We have the interstate system in the river itself to move goods up by barge and otherwise.

And so we are here in Bentonville, Arkansas, as I talk about the heartland and the opportunities that it presents for more investment and job growth, career opportunities here and just enriching the lives of the people who are already here, but also bringing people from elsewhere in the country and from around the world to settle in America's heartland.

There's tremendous opportunities for Louisiana as well.

And so that's why we're here.

At the invitation of the Walton family this afternoon, I get an opportunity to sit on a panel with Governor Hutchinson the governor here in Arkansas, my friend, to discuss ways that we work together, both as it relates directly to our states, but more broadly speaking as well.

So this is a great opportunity, I think, for me to try to position Louisiana to be in a better place going forward and take advantage of all that's happening here and elsewhere in the heartland of America.

Yeah, of course.

And, you know, one thing about that part of the country, Northwest Arkansas, is that it's not on a coast but it fashions itself as hip and with it.

And it's where Wal-Mart decided to put its roots.

And since then, that area has grown tremendously of course, the University of Arkansas is not far from there in Fayetteville.

But what is it that it would take for Louisiana to attract a Wal-Mart type business?

And is that what's essential to bring to a region to see such growth that they've had there?

Well, obviously, that would be very helpful if we were able to to attract more businesses like Wal-Mart to Louisiana.

But what we have to do is we have to grow the businesses that are already here that's what happened with respect to Wal-Mart.

Wal-Mart didn't come in from somewhere else to Bentonville, Arkansas.

It was a business that started here.

And in fact, the very first Walton store, it wasn't even called Wal-Mart.

It sits about a block from where I am.

It was a five and dime store.

So growing the businesses that we have and taking advantage of those opportunities.

But also playing up the unique opportunities we have in Louisiana and how you can move there, be successful no matter what your field is it could be advanced manufacturing, it could be tech, whatever.

But there's no place with with the more unique and better history and the culture, the food, the entertainment, all of that in Louisiana, I think, will help us to to continue to draw people in and grow our economy that way organically.

Even as we do reach out and try to get companies to invest, especially in clean energy, which we are having tremendous success with right now, because we want to be an energy leader for five, six decades from now, as we have been over the past hundred years.

But we know that landscape is going to change and the transition is underway away from fossil fuels and to renewables and clean energy.

So we're trying to make sure that we're we're bringing in companies to take advantage of that.

And those skill sets and the experience we have in Louisiana transfer directly.

Yeah.

Governor, give you a feel for just what is happening from hour to hour there and what you're seeing with business leaders, governors, entertainment.

It's a big show that's being produced there.

No, it is.

And so the Walton family has done a wonderful job.

They've been doing this since 20, 18, took a couple years off for COVID.

But we've had tremendous discussions already and we've heard from people like Jamie Diamond, folks who are venture capitalists, people who are Grammy Award winning artists, who now are involved in education, some of the top CEOs who are practicing physicians talking about transforming health care in the United States so that we can both save money and be healthier and happier.

You know, all of these things, we're having discussions about the environment.

But one of the things that I think is most important about this particular summit is there's ample opportunity for one on one conversations with all of these same people because it's a relatively small group of people here that have been invited.

So you have an opportunity to meet with them all.

And I get the chance to sell Louisiana to them and hopefully get there, get them interested in investing and helping us.

And Louisiana, where we have a particularly challenging thing, you know, set a set of challenges that we're dealing with, especially as it relates to the five hurricanes during the COVID period.

You know, so this is just a tremendous opportunity.

And then world class entertainment as well, best of success, bringing back some great ideas and maybe some investors to our state, but I think we're working on it.

Yes, sir.

Thanks for the talking to us.

I appreciate it.

Thank you, Andre and everybody.

That is our show for this week.

Remember, you can watch anything else, any time, wherever you are with our PBS app.

You can catch OPB News and Public Affairs shows, as well as other Louisiana programs you've come to enjoy over the years and place likes on Facebook, Twitter, TikTok and Instagram for everyone.

Here at Louisiana Public Broadcasting, I'm Andre Moreau.

And I'm Kara St.Cyr.

And so next time that's the state we're in.

Entergy is proud to support programing on LPB and greener practices that preserve Louisiana.

The goal of our environmental and sustainability initiatives.

Really is to ensure that our kids and future generations can be left with a cleaner planet.

Additional support provided by the Fred B and Ruth B, Zigler Foundation and the Zigler Art Museum, located in Jennings City Hall.

The museum focuses on emerging Louisiana artists and is an historical and cultural center for Southwest Louisiana and the Foundation for Excellence in Louisiana Public Broadcasting.

With support from viewers like you.