CAJUNS DEFENSE MAY BE ASKED TO CARRY LARGER LOAD 1C THE
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“When providers don’t have the staff they need, classrooms remain closed, families stay on waitlists, and young children miss out on important learning opportunities.” LIBBIE SONNIER, CEO for the Louisiana Policy Institute for Children
La. child care centers struggle to stay afloat
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Higgins wants health groups defunded Congressman fights promotion of COVID-19 vaccine for kids
BY MARK BALLARD Staff writer
WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Clay Higgins, R-Acadiana, is urging his colleagues to ban funding to organizations that promote the COVID-19 vaccine for kids. “I urge the subcommittee to protect our children and adolescents by prohibiting federal funding to state health departments and national associations that promote the COVID-19 shot,” Higgins wrote in a letter Saturday to the House Appropriations subcommittee that is working on a bill to fund the Departments of Labor, Health and Higgins Human Services, Education, and related agencies for the fiscal year that begins October 1. Higgins’ letter expands on a statement he made
ä See HIGGINS, page 4A
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STAFF FILE PHOTO By LESLIE WESTBROOK
A survey of Louisiana early child care providers found that nearly 8 in 10 of 728 respondents worry about being able to operate their business over the next six months due to rising costs.
Operating costs rising, survey finds BY ELYSE CARMOSINO
Staff writer
Louisiana’s early child care providers are struggling to keep their doors open amid rising operating costs, according to a new survey that could spell trouble for a state where thousands of families lack access to affordable child care. About half of providers said their monthly revenues don’t always cover their expenses, according to an
online survey conducted in June by the advocacy group Louisiana Policy Institute for Children. Nearly 8 in 10 of 728 respondents said they worry about being able to operate their business over the next six months. The providers cited rising costs of food, cleaning and classroom supplies and insurance, with premiums increasing by an average of more than $7,000 last year, the survey found. At the same time, the Louisiana Legislature has cut early childhood funding, resulting in the loss of 720 state-funded seats in 2024. Now, many child care providers are struggling to keep their services high quality and affordable, said Shannon Johns, owner of Cenla
Christian Childcare Centers, which operate six centers throughout the state. With “insurance and operating costs climbing so quickly, we cannot afford to pay the wages that our high-quality teachers truly deserve,” she said during a recent webinar on the survey results. “While another tuition increase might help, it would put already struggling families into an even worse position.” Louisiana has a child care shortage, with more than 100,000 children lacking access to affordable or quality child care, according to the Louisiana Policy Institute for Children.
ä See CENTERS, page 4A
Complaint filed against library board member BY CLAIRE TAYLOR
Staff writer
An ethics complaint has been filed against Lafayette Public Library board member Robert Judge alleging he continues to raise money to pay his legal fees associated with a lawsuit after the lawsuit was settled and his legal fees were paid by Lafayette Consolidated Government. Melany Champagne, of Lafay- Judge ette, filed the complaint with the Louisiana Ethics Administration. Judge did not return messages Tuesday seeking comment.
ä See LIBRARY, page 5A
Fast internet will reach rural La. under revamped rules Some communities feel left out
BY JENNA ROSS Staff writer
Fast, fiber internet is coming to Buras in Plaquemines Parish, fulfilling a federal grant aimed at bringing high-speed connections to more rural areas. But after a rewrite of rules for the program, fiber internet no longer being planned for Lake Providence, in the state’s northeast corner. In August, the state Office of Broadband Development and Connectivity released the new awardees of a highly anticipated, highly debated federal grant program meant to fuel broadband availability across the country. Most
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of the $499 million headed to Louisiana will go to fiber companies, including Cajun Broadband, the homegrown company set to build in Plaquemines and several other areas. The Trump administration rewrote the rules for the $42 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment grant program earlier this year. Some internet companies and activists feared that rural Louisiana residents would be left with few options beyond satellite service already available. And while some areas will now see satellite services instead of fiber, it’s only a small slice of overall funding. SpaceX, the company expected to benefit from that rewrite, will receive just $7.7 million of Louisiana’s grant allocation, or 1.5%. The state’s draft plan still needs approval from the National Tele-
communications and Information Administration. Cajun Broadband, based in Broussard, will get $18.2 million to bring fiber to 4,000 locations. That’s less than the $26.2 million it would have received before the program’s revamp because the company, knowing that its previous winning bids were now public information, lowered its bids this time around “to protect ourselves,” co-founder Chris Disher said. “The goal of it was to save the government money, and it did,” Disher said. “And we can still build what we want to.” In addition to rural Plaquemines, Cajun will be running new fiber in North Vermilion and West St. Mary, Disher said. The Louisiana
STAFF PHOTO By JENNA ROSS
Wanda Manning, a retired teacher, has been pushing for broadband in ä See INTERNET, page 5A Lake Providence.
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