The Army Corps of Engineers says it's getting $802 million to repair levees and other structures damaged by the historic flooding on the Mississippi River this year - work considered urgent before the next spring flood season starts.

Police said two men died and 59 people were hurt in a predawn pileup of about 40 vehicles that closed heavily trafficked Interstate 10 in eastern New Orleans through rush hour and beyond.

West Feliciana Parish sheriff's detectives have arrested two Louisiana State Penitentiary employees accused of stealing a large amount of copper wire from a prison warehouse, cutting it up and selling it for scrap.

Highly recruited Indiana high school quarterback Gunner Kiel has decided to head to Louisiana to play for LSU.

A new law could provide financial relief to thousands of Gulf Coast residents who received debt notices from the Federal Emergency Management agency six years after Hurricane Katrina.

A program designed to help some senior citizens avoid quick return trips to the hospital is expanding from the Baton Rouge area to Lafayette, Hammond and Covington.

The Allstate Sugar Bowl Committee has announced plans with oil giant BP for a two-week promotion of Gulf Coast seafood and culture.

State Wildlife & Fisheries agents have released more whooping cranes into the wild, as part of an attempt to repopulate the species here in Louisiana. Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries spokesman Bo Boehringer says the birds were set free yesterday, at the White Lake Wetlands Conservation Area.

Consumers, manufacturers and fuel suppliers so far haven't shown much interest in natural gas-powered cars, even though the United States has record supplies of the fuel.

Two Loyola University faculty members have developed an electronic method of taking roll that has been adopted by three other universities.

Schwan's home food delivery service has shut down all operations in Louisiana. The Minnesota based company closed all distribution centers in the state--citing the poor economy. All delivery truck drivers and route salesman have been laid off. Fans of Schwan's foods can still order them online and have them shipped.

The 2011 sugar cane harvest is close to wrapping up, and industry watchers say Louisiana farmers should produce record levels of raw sugar this year.

The litigation and liens that have held up the expansion and renovation of the parish Courthouse Annex in Gonzales have just about been wrapped up.

LSU's upcoming BCS Championship game is a tide that's lifting all boats at the university, it seems.

Silverfish, fungus gnats, and pantry pests -LSU AgCenter entomologist Dennis Ring says those are only a few of the critters that may invade your house during the holidays. He says many hitchhike on Christmas trees, firewood, and potted plants.

The state of Louisiana is suing the federal Interior Department over the redrawing of boundaries in the Gulf of Mexico that determine how states receive petroleum royalties.

Officials at Entergy Corp.'s nuclear power plant near Baton Rouge say they have notified the Nuclear Regulatory Commission about a leak of radioactive hydrogen.

The Education Department says Louisiana is one of seven states to win a share of $200 million in federal "Race to the Top" dollars to improve K-12 education programs.

Many holiday travelers are boarding their pets in kennels while they're out of town. With that in mind, state Agriculture Commissioner Mike Strain urges you to be aware of the risks of your pet contracting Canine Flu, also known as H3N8 influenza.

The Education Department says seven states have won a share of $200 million in federal "Race to the Top" dollars to improve K-12 education programs.

State education leaders hope to move Louisiana from next-to-the-last nationally to the national average for students earning college credit in high school.

Louisiana is demanding nearly $10 million from the former contractor of the Road Home program for alleged overpayments to homeowners.

Louisiana Insurance Commissioner James Donelon says he will ask the state's highest court to reconsider its reinstatement of a $92.8 million judgment against state-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corporation. The ruling was for its slow adjustment of policyholder claims after hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

Unemployment in the state has fallen to its lowest level since the summer of 2009, as employers add more new jobs. Louisiana Workforce Commission Executive Director Curt Eysink says that's the 15th lowest in the US; 6.9 percent compared with the federal unemployment rate of 8.6 percent.

The Foundation for Louisiana, a grant-giving organization, announced its award of $843,000 to 22 nonprofit groups in the state at the beginning of December. One of those was Louisiana State University's E. J. Ourso College of Business, which received $50,000 to promote minority-owned business in the state. WRKF's Tegan Wendland had a conversation with President and CEO, Flozell Daniels, and Dr. Sonja Wiley-Patton of the LSU School of Business. 

LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW

The East Baton Rouge Parish school system is replacing its first-come first-serve registration for prekindergarten with a lottery for schools where demand outstrips supply.

Halliburton is accusing BP of cherry picking facts and testimony to create "an illusion" that Halliburton intentionally destroyed evidence about the quality of cement slurry in an oil well that blew out in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010, killing 11 workers.

Royal Dutch Shell says it has shut down an offshore drilling rig off the coast of Alabama following a leak of drilling fluid.

Mississippi state officials have published regulations to lease state waters in the Gulf of Mexico for oil and gas drilling.

Officials say a $29 million project getting underway to rebuild beach, dunes and marsh along West Belle Pass near Fourchon Beach will help protect the oil and natural gas hub of Port Fourchon, an important port for the Gulf of Mexico oil fields.

Private health plans are offering a wide array of incentives to get Medicaid recipients to enroll with them.

A state economist says Louisiana's annual public school funding formula is built on outdated student count projections, leading to repeated midyear funding shortages.

The Louisiana Department of Revenue will begin issuing state income tax refunds on debit cards next year.

The strawberry crop in Louisiana is coming earlier than usual this season. LSU AgCenter horticulture agent, Sandra Benjamin, says some growers have been picking berries for a month already. She says that's partly due to new varieties of the fruit being planted.

The Louisiana Department of Education submitted its application to compete in round three of the federal government's Race to the Top program. Only nine states that were runners-up in phase two are eligible to apply for phase three and a share of the $200 million education grant

Southern University Board of Supervisors has approved a reorganization plan that will lead to nearly 90 faculty and staff termination notices going out early next year.

Public colleges, health care and transportation are taking the largest hits from the Jindal administration's deficit-closing plan, which has been approved by lawmakers. A drop in tax forecasts and a shortfall in public school financing left the governor facing a $251 million deficit.

BP says it has reached a settlement with the maker of the blowout preventer that failed to stop oil from spewing out of its well in the Gulf of Mexico.

A new report has downgraded its rating of the Baton Rouge area for economic recovery. The Brookings Institution attributes the drop to declines in employment, gross metropolitan product and housing prices in the third quarter in the Capital Region. The quarterly MetroMonitor list tracks economic recovery in the nation's 100 largest metros since the recession.

Medicaid recipients whose health care will be overseen through private managed care networks have started enrolling in the new program.

Stray animals are a big problem in Baton Rouge. Animal Control picks up about 9,000 cats and dogs every year. WRKF commentator Renee Bacher is a dog lover and has recently gotten involved with trying to save as many as she can.

A new statewide poll says the top priorities for 2012 should be bringing jobs to Louisiana and improving education.

LSU has issued a cease-and-desist order warning vendors to stop selling goods depicting a honey badger if they are connecting the image in any way to cornerback Tyrann Mathieu.

Louisiana's income forecasting panel has cut the state's revenue projections by $198 million this year, a move that will force a new round of budget reductions in the middle of the fiscal year.

The federal government is moving ahead with the first auction of offshore petroleum leases in the Gulf of Mexico since the Deepwater Horizon disaster, despite a lawsuit challenging the sale.

A federal judge has refused to issue a preliminary injunction allowing "Occupy New Orleans" protesters to continue camping out in a park across from City Hall. On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Lance Africk also rescinded a temporary restraining order that permitted protesters to stay in Duncan Plaza while they sought an injunction.

Due to high river conditions, the Army Corps of Engineers has activated the first phase of flood fight procedures to monitor levees along the Mississippi River.

Louisiana's 41 new lawmakers, who will begin their first terms in January, are having orientation sessions at the state Capitol this week.

Environmental groups are trying to block Wednesday's planned sale of offshore petroleum leases in the western Gulf of Mexico - the first auction in the Gulf since the Deepwater Horizon disaster in 2010.

U.S. Sen. David Vitter urged conservative Republican lawmakers to "act boldly" and to work to keep the majority in Louisiana's Legislature.

A state district judge has denied a motion for a new trial requested by a Grosse Tete truck stop owner who keeps a tiger in a cage near Interstate 10.

A lawsuit alleging the Army Corps of Engineers ruined property in St. Bernard Parish and the Lower 9th Ward by building a shipping channel that turned into a conduit for storm surge during Hurricane Katrina will be heard in court this week.

LSU, Southern University and other colleges are beginning to add new academic programs now that the state's two-year moratorium on creating new degrees is over.

East Baton Rouge Parish Prison records show that State Commissioner of Administration Paul Rainwater was arrested for driving while intoxicated.

The governing board of the University of Louisiana System has chosen Peter J. Fos as president of the University of New Orleans by a 13-0 vote.

A federal jury is deliberating in the case against two New Orleans police officers charged with lying about a man's fatal shooting outside the city's convention center in Hurricane Katrina's aftermath.

A nonpartisan government watchdog group is suggesting lawmakers should set up a special commission to monitor the Jindal administration's plans to run part of the state Medicaid program through private managed care networks.

Louisiana's top higher education board has backed the budget for Southern University's main campus in Baton Rouge, after delaying approval in September because of questions about spending cuts.

Louisiana's largest insurer of homes has received state approval to boost rates by an average 7.8 percent.

Lawmakers have backed a new job evaluation system for state employees, a revamp that is under consideration for use starting in 2013.

A federal judge has granted a temporary restraining order allowing a group of protesters to return to the site where they have camped since early October.

The state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education has decided how it will tie teacher evaluations to student performance scores.

Presidential politics come to Louisiana this week, with the candidate sign-up period running from Wednesday to Friday for the March 24 presidential preference primary.

The $6 million statewide election allows registered Democrats and Republicans to vote for who they want to get their party's presidential nomination.

In a high-stakes court filing BP is accusing Halliburton of destroying damaging evidence. It says the company destroyed proof of the quality of the cement slurry that went into drilling the oil well that blew out last year in the gulf.

Two Ohio tourists imprisoned for a month on public drunkenness charges in New Orleans' notorious Orleans Parish Prison in the chaotic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina may get $650,000 in damages if a federal appellate court rules in their favor.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture will give $50 million to restore seven Gulf Coast river basins as part of a plan put together after last year's catastrophic oil spill.

A federal analysis shows that last year's BP oil spill probably won't push the troubled bluefin tuna Gulf of Mexico population over the edge as some scientists had worried.

LSU and Alabama have both secured a spot in the BCS National Championship.

A realignment proposal will be considered by the LSU Board of Supervisors on Dec. 9.

With the holiday season now in full force, retailers are luring customers into stores to shop. Many people will use credit cards whether employed, underemployed, or unemployed. Getting in debt can negatively affect credit scores and have bigger implications than one might think, like gaining employment.

Mayor Mitch Landrieu has ordered Occupy New Orleans protesters to remove tents and other gear from the park across from City Hall.

With the holiday season now in full force, retailers are luring customers into stores to shop. Many people will use credit cards whether employed, underemployed, or unemployed. Getting in debt can negatively affect credit scores and have bigger implications than one might think, like gaining employment.

With the holiday season now in full force, retailers are luring customers into stores to shop. Many people will use credit cards whether employed, underemployed, or unemployed. Getting in debt can negatively affect credit scores and have bigger implications than one might think, like gaining employment.

The Justice Department is appealing a judge's ruling that CITGO Petroleum pay only a portion of the amount sought by attorneys. The company would pay $9 million out of the more than $240 million in penalties sought after by government attorneys after a 2006 oil spill CITGO's Lake Charles refinery.

Former LSU System President Allen Copping, has died after a lengthy illness at the age of 84. Copping guided the establishment of the Pennington Biomedical Research Center and LSU's management takeover of the state's public hospitals.

After a string of losses and the inability to field a slate of statewide candidates this fall, Louisiana's Democratic Party is retrenching.

All 265 employees and management personnel at a Lafayette call center will be laid off in early 2012. The notices were given to Transcom employees on Tuesday. Company spokeswoman Caroline Spivak said their last day of work will be Jan. 29.

A new report says Louisiana ranks low for funding anti-smoking campaigns. The state ranks 22nd in the nation in funding programs to prevent kids from smoking and to help smokers quit, according to a national report released on Wednesday by a coalition of public health organizations.