U.S. GAS PRICES TOP $4 A GALLON, HIGHEST SINCE 2022 3B
ADVOCATE THE
T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M
BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA
|
W e d n e s d ay, a p r i l 1, 2026
$2.00X
Tiger Stadium concert boosts BR economy
STAFF FILE PHOTO By LESLIE WESTBROOK
Jack Montoucet, former secretary of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, pleaded guilty to one federal felony count on Tuesday.
Ex-LDWF official pleads guilty Zach Bryan drew about 70,000 for his show in Tiger Stadium Saturday as part of the Death Valley Live concert series. STAFF FILE PHOTO By CHRIS GRANGER
STAFF FILE PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON
Death Valley Live event generates $25M in visitor spending BY IANNE SALVOSA
Staff writer
Tiger Stadium’s newest concert series raked in big bucks for the Capital City. The Death Valley Live concert series, which began Saturday with a performance from Grammy award-winning country music singer Zach Bryan, generated an estimated $7.6 million economic impact on the city, according to a Visit Baton Rouge estimate. A crowd of about 70,000 filled 75,000 available seats on Saturday, directly spending about $17.5 million on tickets, parking and concessions and $7.6 million outside of the event on needs like hotels and meals. That’s a total of $25.1 million in visitor spending for the concert. Most of the
“The energy of 70,000 music fans in Tiger Stadium on Saturday was infectious — but the impact stretched far beyond Death Valley. A concert of this scale boosts small businesses and elevates Baton Rouge’s cultural profile.”
“The energy of 70,000 music fans in Tiger Stadium on Saturday was infectious — but the impact stretched far beyond Death Valley,” Laura Cating, senior vice president for marketing and communications for Visit Baton Rouge, said in a statement. “A concert of this scale boosts small businesses and elevates Baton Rouge’s cultural profile.” LAURA CATING, senior vice president Visit Baton Rouge has said that a big LSU home football game adds $18 milfor marketing and communications lion to the local economy. for Visit Baton Rouge City-parish sales tax revenue collected from event-related sales on Saturday event-based revenue, including tickets, and the May 23 Post Malone and Jelly concessions and parking, went back to Roll concert will be given back to the the university’s athletic department, artists’ entertainment promoters, thanks LSU Athletics Chief Revenue Officer ä See CONCERT, page 6A Clay Harris said.
Sentencing set for Montoucet in kickback scheme
BY CLAIRE TAYLOR
Staff writer
Former Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Secretary Jack Montoucet, of Lafayette Parish, pleaded guilty Tuesday to one federal felony count for his role in a kickback scheme while he led the department. Montoucet, 78, was indicted in May 2025 on one count of conspiracy to commit bribery and wire fraud, three counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. He pleaded not guilty in June 2025 to all charges. On Tuesday, he appeared in U.S. District Court in Lafayette, where he changed his plea to guilty on one count of conspiracy to commit an offense, namely to receive a bribe. Federal Judge David Joseph set sentencing for June 30. Montoucet faces a maximum sentence of five years and a $250,000 fine. U.S. Attorney Zachary Keller, in a news conference following the court hearing, said prosecutors entered a plea deal where four of the five charges were dropped because the sentence they’ll get with the plea will be appropriate. Federal prosecutors, he added, will advocate for prison time for Montoucet.
ä See PLEADS, page 5A
Legislative efforts to regulate AI stall
Eminent domain bill fails in committee
Known as the Louisiana Measure would Landowners Protection Act, House Bill 7 is first of more have barred than 20 bills addressing cartaking property for bon capture and sequestraa hearing. CO2 pipelines tionTheto receive technology would
BY DAVID J. MITCHELL
Staff writer
A bill barring companies from taking private property for carbon dioxide pipelines and underground storage areas failed Tuesday in committee as industry and legislators voiced concerns about stymying carbon capture and storage infrastructure planned across the state.
WEATHER HIGH 84 LOW 69 PAGE 8B
pump carbon dioxide emitted by industrial processes deep underground and store it there permanently to cut emissions of climate change-inducing gases. The prospect, however, has riled up parts of rural Louisiana where pipelines and massive storage sites encompassing tens of thousands acres are planned. State and industry leaders
ä See DOMAIN, page 6A
employers can use AI when makTrump administration ing hiring and firing decisions. Those are two of myriad meathreatens sures, sponsored by Republicans broadband funding and Democrats, that have shown
BY MEGHAN FRIEDMANN
Staff writer
STAFF FILE PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK
Sen. Jay Luneau, D-Alexandria, said he has ‘parked’ Senate Bill 246, which would regulate how insurance companies could use AI, after learning it could put federal funds in jeopardy.
A slew of bills filed in the Louisiana Legislature this year aims to grapple with the rise of artificial intelligence, but some are being placed on hold amid opposition from President Donald Trump’s administration. One proposal would bar health insurance companies from relying solely on AI to deny coverage. Another would restrict how
Business ......................3B Commentary ................7B Nation-World ................2A Classified .....................7D Deaths .........................5B Opinion ........................6B Comics-Puzzles .....4D-6D Living............................1D Sports ..........................1C
signs of bipartisan support. But now those proposals are hitting a roadblock: the White House. Officials have been told Louisiana could lose federal funding for high-speed internet in rural areas if certain bills pass, according to multiple legislators. In December, Trump issued an executive order saying his administration would attempt to pull federal funding for
ä See STALL, page 5A
101ST yEAR, NO. 275