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T h u r s d ay, a p r i l 24, 2025
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Metro Council, St. George agree on tax revenue deal
2025 LEGISLATURE
Louisiana could ban or regulate kratom Legislature is taking up the debate
BY MEGHAN FRIEDMANN Staff writer
STAFF PHOTO By JAVIER GALLEGOS
St. George Mayor Dustin yates speaks during the East Baton Rouge Parish Metro Council meeting on Wednesday.
Some members fear lawsuit over past years’ collections BY PATRICK SLOAN-TURNER
Staff writer
After a year of contention, leaders of East Baton Rouge City-Parish and St. George governments finally came to an agreement over tax revenue and services Wednesday night — though it didn’t happen without some last-minute conflict. The Metro Council approved the agreement to disburse sales tax revenue collected in St. George’s boundary since April 2024 despite efforts to release the city-parish from a potential $100 million liability. District 6 council member Cleve Dunn
“If we approve an item ... that does not have that in there, I don’t think we’re doing our fiduciary duty. I think we’re protecting the interest of something other than the parish.”
tecting the interest of something other than the parish,” Dunn said. St. George officials like Mayor Dustin Yates, City Council member-elect Andrew Murrell and others have contested that St. George was incorporated in 2019. If that date is set, rather than CLEVE DUNN, East Baton Rouge Parish the 2024 date argued by former MayorMetro Council member President Sharon Weston Broome, St. George could sue the city-parish for an estimated $100 million of tax revenue Jr. called the agreement “incomplete,” collected over the five-year period. pointing out that it lacks a defined incorThe agreement approved Wednesday is only over sales tax revenue collected poration date for the city. “If we approve an item ... that does not in St. George since April 2024. Starting have that in there, I don’t think we’re doä See TAX, page 4A ing our fiduciary duty. I think we’re pro-
Louisiana lawmakers are currently grappling with what to do about kratom, an unregulated herbal substance that causes stimulating or sedating effects and can be purchased over the counter at gas stations, convenience stores and smoke shops. This spring, the Legislature is considering two competing bills. One would ban kratom; the other would regulate it. State Sen. Jay Morris, R-West Monroe, wants kratom banned outright. He said he believes the products are too dangerous to be allowed, and he has won support from many law enforcement officials. His proposal, Senate Bill 154, would make it a crime to possess or distribute kratom. If his bill passes, those in possession of less than 14 grams of kratom would be fined $500. Possessing more than that, or distributing kratom, would carry a penalty of between one and five years in prison or a fine of over $2,000. Meanwhile, state Rep. Chad Boyer, R-Breaux Bridge, is sponsoring House Bill 253, which would restrict what types of kratom products could be sold to prevent what experts say are dangerous, synthetic products from being on the market. It would also ban the sale of kratom to people under 21, require that products be registered with the Louisiana Department of Health and set standards for kratom product labels. With HB253, which is backed by some in the kratom industry, Boyer says he
ä See KRATOM, page 5A
Former House speaker Henry dies at 89 BY TYLER BRIDGES
Staff writer
E.L. “Bubba” Henry, a self-described country lawyer who rose to the top echelons of Louisiana politics by serving two terms as speaker of the state House during the 1970s, died Wednesday in Baton Rouge. He was 89. Henry, who served while Edwin Edwards was governor, also played a pivotal role by chairing the 1973 convention that wrote the Louisiana Con-
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stitution. Henry sought to parlay his powerful roles in state politics by running to replace Edwards in 1979, but he finished fifth in a race won by David Treen. Henry remained an influential figure over the next four years by serving as Treen’s top government adviser. Henry then joined the Adams & Reese law firm in Baton Rouge, where he lobbied the Legislature for insurance companies for decades. “He was a people person and had a
good sense of humor, very easy to talk with, very intelligent,” said former House Speaker and Senate President John Alario, who was a young House Democrat from Westwego when Henry was speaker and also a delegate to the 1973 constitutional convention. “He always seemed to have a vision of where we were going and a plan to accomplish what we wanted to do. He helped shepherd the constitution
Low Medalist
STAFF FILE PHOTO By BILL FEIG
ä See HENRY, page 4A
Business ......................6A Commentary ................5B Nation-World ................2A Classified .....................6D Deaths .........................3B Opinion ........................4B Comics-Puzzles .....3D-5D Living............................1D Sports ..........................1C Salma Ibrahim
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Bubba Henry, left, shares a laugh with John Alario at a 2017 gathering of the people who wrote the constitution in 1973.
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