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BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA
T h u r s d ay, J a n u a ry 15, 2026
High natural gas bills draw complaints
BR residents attend tense town hall with Delta Utilities
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Landry headed to D.C. for Greenland talks
Governor’s invite to dogsledding event may be in peril BY MEGHAN FRIEDMANN Staff writer
STAFF PHOTOS By JAVIER GALLEGOS
Attendees pass each other Delta Utilities information handouts during a town hall meeting on Tuesday.
Gov. Jeff Landry is heading to Washington, D.C., for talks about President Donald Trump’s push to acquire Greenland, even as his invitation to the Arctic territory’s most prestigious dogsledding race may be in peril. Landry, Trump’s freshly tapped “special envoy” to Greenland, still plans to visit the country and has meetings ä Top Danish in Washington on Thursday official says and Friday, said Shane Guidry, ‘fundamental a businessman and close ally of the governor who said he disagreement’ went hunting with Landry on over Greenland remains with Wednesday morning. Kate Kelly, a spokesperson Trump. PAGE 3A for Landry, confirmed that he was headed to Washington to discuss Greenland and “state-specific issues.” The governor’s visit is set to take place one day after officials from Greenland and Denmark went to the White House to meet with Vice President
ä See LANDRY, page 7A
BY IANNE SALVOSA Staff writer
In a packed room at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center, East Baton Rouge Parish residents demanded answers from Delta Utilities representatives over high energy bills. At least 150 people showed up to a town hall Tuesday evening hosted by District 3 Public Service Commissioner Davante Lewis, with Baton Rouge Metro Council members Twahna P. Harris, Cleve Dunn Jr. and Carolyn Coleman to discuss complaints about bills. The event was marked by vocal discontent from attendees, who accused Delta Utilities of lying and raising rates for profit throughout the event. Delta Utilities representatives said charges for natural gas service have remained the same, but the bills are presented differently. Patty Merrick, a resident and homeowners association president of the Concord Estates subdivision, said her bill has risen from $30 to $230 in the past two months. She regularly uses her water heater and furnace but said the lofty increase in her bill still doesn’t make sense. “That is ridiculous and uncalled for,” she said at the town hall. Merrick has attempted to call
Cassidy and Murrill oppose abortion pills by mail East Baton Rouge Parish Metro Council member Carolyn Coleman shouts into the mic to gather all the senior citizens in the next room over during Tuesday’s meeting. Delta customer service for assistance but said she has been met with no response. In some instances, she said she reached a representative on the other line, but they later hung up on her. And after hearing from Delta and local officials Tuesday evening, she is not satisfied with their explanations. “It wasn’t large enough,” she said of the meeting. “There’s too much
chaos. There was not any monitoring. They let it get out of hand.” Attendees, many of whom were older adults, shouted questions and concerns to Lewis and the Delta representatives during the meeting, bringing up the charges they have paid in the past two months and their disagreement with the
ä See BILLS, page 4A
BY EMILY WOODRUFF and ALYSE PFEIL Staff writers
A U.S. Senate hearing Wednesday placed Louisiana at the center of a national debate over abortion pills, highlighting a clash between Republican state officials seeking tighter restrictions and Democrats who say it is an effort to cut off one of the last remaining paths to abortion access for many women. Also on Wednesday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom denied Louisiana’s request to extradite a doctor who faces criminal charges in Louisiana for mailing abortion pills to a St. Tammany Parish woman. Both developments highlight how red states
ä See ABORTION, page 7A
Two charter schools opt for state oversight BY CHARLES LUSSIER Staff writer
Taking advantage of a new state law, private groups running two charter schools in Baton Rouge have successfully jumped ship, landing more attractive operating deals with the state of Louisiana. In the process, they are leaving behind short-term agreements struck previously with the East Baton Rouge Parish school system. “We made this decision with our families’ best interests at heart,” said Steve Corbett, CEO of New Orleansbased Audubon Schools. Audubon and Colorado-based Third Future Schools began operating their
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respective Baton Rouge schools in July. They took over large F-rated schools that were opened and operated for the seven previous years by Texasbased IDEA Public Schools. They have renamed them Audubon Baton Rouge and Bridge Academy. Starting this summer, both charter organizations will have a new boss: the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, or BESE. On Wednesday, without discussion, BESE voted unanimously to grant Type 2 charters to Audubon Baton Rouge and Bridge Academy, which allows them to enroll students across Louisiana. Heretofore, both schools operated under Type 1 charters that allowed them to enroll only students who
lived within the boundaries of the East Baton Rouge Parish school district. Charter schools are public schools run privately via charters, or contracts. As a general rule, Louisiana charter schools can’t start operating without first applying for a Type 1 charter with the local school board. Last year, however, the Legislature added an exception. A charter organization can now bypass the local school board and apply directly to BESE if it enlists a “corporate partner.” That is just what Audubon Schools and Third Future Schools have done. They are the first charter applicants
STAFF PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK
Third Future Schools hopes to purchase the former IDEA ä See CHARTER, page 4A Public Schools Bridge campus at 1500 North Airway Drive.
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