Simonette leaving WAFB for Charlotte station

Nick Simonette, who has been general manager of WAFB-TV since 2001, is leaving the CBS affiliate to become president and general manager of WBTV-TV in Charlotte, N.C. WBTV is a CBS affiliate that was recently acquired by Raycom Media, which owns WAFB, WBTV and 44 other stations. Raycom Executive Vice President/COO Wayne Daugherty announced Simonette’s departure this morning in Baton Rouge. "This all happened very quickly," Daugherty says. Simonette has 30 years’ experience in broadcast news, including a previous stint as news director of WAFB and management jobs in San Antonio, Louisville, Ky., and Cincinnati. Simonette will split his time between Baton Rouge and Charlotte—moving from the No. 94 market to No. 25 according to Nielsen Media Research—for the next few weeks. “It was one of those things that was too good to pass up,” Simonette says. “I couldn’t say no.” Jim Serra, the general manager of KPLC in Lake Charles, also will help out at WAFB. Serra is not a candidate for the WAFB job, Daugherty says.--Timothy Boone and Stephanie Riegel

Bush overhauls not 'Big Brother,’ LSU prof says

Although the Bush Administration’s newly unveiled sweeping plan to overhaul U.S. financial regulations is drawing criticism, Kelley Pace, Louisiana Real Estate Commission Chair of Real Estate at LSU's E.J. Ourso College of Business, says he doesn’t see “Big Brother” in the plan. “We’ve been through various cycles of regulation in this country so I don’t know that this is anything unusual,” Pace says. “I’m sure the financial industry can handle it and, I doubt at the end of the day, it will necessarily make a huge difference on a lot of things. We’re all going through this conservative mode anyway.” Ignited by the subprime meltdown, White House officials say the move would give the Federal Reserve new authority over investment banks and more power to clamp down on unscrupulous practices to protect consumers. Pace says he doesn’t foresee the Federal Reserve as being "bent in some sense on killing private enterprise. They just want to make sure we don’t have essentially terrible things happen.”--Anna Thibodeaux

Construction spending falls in February

Construction spending fell again in February as home building tumbled for a record 24th straight month. The Commerce Department reported this morning that overall construction activity dropped 0.3% in February, reflecting weakness not only in home building but also in nonresidential activity. Only government building projects showed a gain in February. Residential construction fell by 0.9 percent in February. Residential activity has fallen every month since March 2006, a record period of declines that underscored the severe downturn going on in housing. Analysts believe housing will keep falling until a record glut of unsold homes is reduced. That effort is being hindered by the fact that mortgage defaults have soared to record levels, reflecting the abuses that occurred in lending activity at the height of the housing boom.

LSU fraud task force becomes model

A federal task force set up at LSU to deal with cases of Hurricane Katrina-related fraud has become a model for the U.S. Justice Department. The task force, staffed by LSU student workers, has turned over more than 14,500 leads to law enforcement agencies. To read the 225 magazine article about the program, click here.

Louisiana scores 'very weak' in health care report

The quality of health care in Louisiana was "very weak" when compared to other states, according to a new report by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The report, done by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, found the state was measured better than average in six categories and below than average in more than 60 categories, including cancer deaths, infant deaths and survival rates for dialysis patients. Among neighboring states, Mississippi, Arkansas and Tennessee were ranked in the weak range, while Alabama, Texas and Oklahoma were listed as average. Click here for the report.

A gold standard for medical records?

Gov. Bobby Jindal’s primary focus during the ongoing regular session will pertain to workforce development issues, so it might be easy to miss his $18 million commitment to assist physicians and rural hospitals with the implementation of electronic medical records. The challenges with paper documents became particularly acute in Louisiana following the 2005 hurricane season, when wind and floodwaters destroyed important medical records that often mean the difference between life and death for a seriously ill patient. Even when there’s not a disaster, antiquated recordkeeping can still prove disastrous. Studies show that as many as 100,000 Americans die every year from avoidable medical errors. The goal of Jindal’s program would be to avoid errors and help physicians make more informed decisions. “The development of the Louisiana Health Information Exchange will provide a seamless flow of patient data from hospitals, insurance companies and physicians across the state to ensure the highest level of patient care,” Jindal says. Despite being a priority at the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals for several years, Jindal’s multimillion-dollar commitment could thrust Louisiana into the national spotlight once more. That’s because there are fewer than 10% of hospitals nationwide that have even begun to implement similar health-information technology, according to the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy.--Jeremy Alford

Real Estate Weekly: Former Kia site to be sold

Real Estate Weekly is out with news about the upcoming sale of the old All Star Kia of Baton Rouge dealership. There’s also news of a Plank Road site hitting the market, an office building sale along Jefferson Highway and the latest columns from Tom Cook and Brian Andrews. To read the newsletter, click here.

Poll: Most against higher LSU fees

Most Daily Report readers are against a plan to raise LSU student fees by $250. Fifty-six percent of the people who responded to the online survey say they don't think the Legislature should pass the measure, while 35% say they back the push for higher fees. Nine percent are undecided. Nearly 1,250 people participated in the survey.

Today's question:Which of the finalists should be selected as LSU's next athletic director?

News roundup: Entergy buys Calcasieu power plant; toll roads not paying their way in Austin; Congress has questions for Big Oil

Powered up: Entergy Gulf States Louisiana has purchased a power plant in Sulphur for about $57 million. The utility company bought the gas-fired plant from Dynegy in a deal that closed today. Entergy says the additional power will help meet customer demand. Roads operating in the hole: Three toll roads in Austin, Texas, which had been projected to generate money for the region are underperforming so far, The Austin American-Statesman reports. According to figures from the Texas Department of Transportation, the three roads (one of which is a loop around Austin) are projected to bring in $8.7 billion in toll revenue through 2042. At the same time, debt payments, operations costs and maintenance is expected to total $9.4 billion. The roads are also running behind the initial first year revenue projections. Read the article here. Seeking answers: Top executives of the five biggest U.S. oil companies said this morning they know high fuel prices are hurting consumers, but deflected any blame and argued their profits—$123 billion last year—were in line with other industries. “On April Fool’s Day, the biggest joke of all is being played on American families by Big Oil,” said Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., as his committee began hearing from the oil company executives. Lawmakers were looking for answers to the soaring fuel costs one day after the Energy Department said the national average price of gasoline reached a record $3.29 a gallon and global oil prices remained above $100 a barrel although supplies of both gasoline and oil seemed to be adequate.