Thanks to a new law, Louisiana homeowners can now get a $10,000 tax credit if they install a fortified roof on their home. That’s in addition to the $10,000 Fortified Grant Program. 

Capitol Access reporter Brooke Thorington spoke with state Sen. Kirk Talbot (R-River Ridge), who authored the legislation, about the program and some of its limitations.

A rare election for the  Crescent Soil and Water Conservation District Board drew an unexpectedly high level of interest for a governing body that is accustomed to operating in the background.

Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCDs) help landowners implement practices that protect natural resources. There’s 44 of them in Louisiana, and they rarely hold elections. The June 14th election was the first in the New Orleans district and only the seventh statewide.

Erica Johnson is an urban farmer at Petit Jardin in New Orleans, and the newly-elected member of the Crescent Soil and Water Conservation District Board in New Orleans. She joins us to discuss  her new role and the historic voter turnout.

Over the past year, more than 24,000 students in Louisiana read more than 82,000 books and voted on their favorites for the Louisiana Readers’ Choice Awards. For 26 years, the program has worked to engage young readers  and giving them a voice. And more middle and high schoolers participated this year than in years past. 

Louisiana state librarian Meg Placke tells us more about the program and what the awards revealed.

___

Today’s episode of Louisiana Considered was hosted by Adam Vos. Our managing producer is Alana Schreiber. We get production support from Garrett Pittman and our assistant producer Aubry Procell.

You can listen to Louisiana Considered Monday through Friday at noon and 7 p.m. It’s available on Spotify, the NPR App and wherever you get your podcasts. Louisiana Considered wants to hear from you!

Please fill out our pitch line to let us know what kinds of story ideas you have for our show. And while you’re at it, fill out our listener survey! We want to keep bringing you the kinds of conversations you’d like to listen to.

Louisiana Considered is made possible with support from our listeners. Thank you!