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T u e s d ay, J u n e 17, 2025
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Voters to decide on teacher pay raises
Legislature OKs bills that allow for permanent increase ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By JOHN McDONNELL
Committee Chair Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-Baton Rouge, left, greets Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. before Kennedy testifies at a hearing on May 14.
Cassidy silent on RFK Jr.’s moves
Vaccination committee appointments draw questions BY MARK BALLARD Staff writer
STAFF FILE PHOTO By LESLIE WESTBROOK
Third grade teacher Taylor Wallace works with students in her math class at Baranco Elementary in Lafayette. Voters will be asked to approve a constitutional amendment to permanently raises salaries for teachers and support staff. BY ELYSE CARMOSINO Staff writer
Louisiana voters will return to the polls to decide whether to approve a constitutional amendment that would permanently raise teacher salaries by $2,250 and support staff salaries by $1,125 under a pair of bills that received final passage in the Legislature on Thursday. House Bill 466 by Rep. Josh Carlson, RLafayette, and HB473 by Rep. Julie Emerson, R-Carencro, will ask voters to approve eliminating multiple constitutionally protected education trust funds in favor of giving raises to Louisiana teachers, who make roughly $5,000 less on average than educators in other southern states and about $15,000 less than the national average, according to data from the Southern Regional Education Board. If voters approve the amendment, teachers will receive the raises in the 2026-27 school year. The raises are slightly higher than the $2,000 and $1,000 pay bumps the bills originally proposed. The Louisiana House of Rep-
resentatives unanimously approved the additional increase Thursday. Both pieces of legislation now head to the governor’s desk for his signature. “I brought this bill on behalf of our teachers,” Carlson said in a statement. “We wanted to ensure that we did all we could to provide a permanent pay raise.” The bills, which repackage part of a constitutional amendment championed by Gov. Jeff Landry that voters shot down earlier this year, are the state’s latest effort to increase educators’ compensation. Lawmakers failed several times in recent years to increase their pay, opting instead for one-time stipends three years in a row. If signed into law, the bills will turn the stipend amount teachers currently receive into a slightly larger permanent pay increase. Emerson’s bill eliminates three trust funds that funnel millions annually toward state K-12 education initiatives, including early childhood education, student testing help
“I brought this bill on behalf of our teachers. We wanted to ensure that we did all we could to provide a permanent pay raise.”
ä See TEACHER, page 7A
REP. JOSH CARLSON, R-Lafayette
WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-Baton Rouge, is mostly keeping quiet on Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s recent appointments to a top vaccination advisory committee, including three new members who have made a splash in conservative circles for their opposition to the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and for spreading vaccine misinformation. Last week, Kennedy said he “retired” all 17 scientists on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, known as ACIP, which advises the federal government on vaccine policy. Kennedy, a longtime skeptic of vaccinations, said the Trump administration wanted members more closely aligned with the president. “A clean sweep is needed to reestablish public confidence in vaccine science,” he stated. All 17 members of the nonpolitical scientific committee had been appointed during the Biden administration. As chair of the Senate Health Education Labor and Pensions Committee, Cassidy, more than any other senator, is responsible for confirming Kennedy as the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. Several Republican senators withheld their support of Kennedy until Cassidy, a physician, weighed in. In a speech explaining his vote to confirm Kennedy, Cassidy said the nominee had promised not to encourage parents to stop vaccinating their children and work closely with the senator
BRPD officer struck by vehicle Police arrest driver, say act was intentional BY AIDAN McCAHILL
Staff writer
Authorities on Monday arrested a man accused of intentionally ramming a Baton Rouge police motorcycle, badly injuring the officer. Sgt. Caleb Eisworth was in critical condition Monday afternoon after undergoing surgery, authorities said. Sheriff’s deputies booked Gad Black, 41, of Baton Rouge, with at-
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tempted first-degree murder of a police officer. Someone using the name Gad Black posted on social media minutes after the crash Monday: “Check Him Out On Joor Rd. Stretched One.” The crash occurred on Joor Road near Prescott Road about 11 a.m. Monday. Police said Black followed the officer for a short distance before striking Eisworth with his pickup. Sheriff’s deputies and other law enforcement agencies found Black’s vehicle in the Monticello subdivision and apprehended him near the 8400 block of Airline Highway about 12:30 p.m. Eisworth has been with the Ba-
ton Rouge Police Department for 23 years, joining the motorcycle division in 2008. He has received multiple awards for heroism in the line of duty, including the Medal of Valor — the highest honor bestowed by the Police Department. Police Chief T.J. Morse said the department is rallying around Eisworth. “Making it home after each shift is what I pray over every one of my officers each day,” Morse said. “I’m asking everyone to join me in that prayer now. Let’s fervently pray Officer Eisworth back home to his loved ones.” East Baton Rouge Parish
ä See CASSIDY, page 7A
Baton Rouge Police Department Sgt. Caleb Eisworth was badly injured Monday when he was hit by another vehicle in what police say was an intentional act. STAFF FILE PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK
ä See OFFICER, page 7A
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