Shreveport GM plant to shut by June 2012
General Motors Corp. will close its assembly and stamping plants in Shreveport no later than June 2012, the company says. GM spokesman Chris Lee says the Shreveport operation, which employs 950 people, was added to nine permanent plant closings, along with the idling of three others, announced when the company filed for bankruptcy reorganization June 1.
Shreveport will continue to assemble Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon pickup trucks based upon market demand, but with production ending no later than June 2012. The plants "will not be allocated any new products," Lee says.
The plants also assemble the commercial Hummer H3 and H3T pickup truck. GM has tentatively agreed to sell the commercial Hummer brand to Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Co. during the third quarter. A Hummer spokesman earlier said the buyer had planned to move the annual production of about 10,000 Hummers from South Africa to Shreveport.
Lee says if the deal goes through, Hummer production in Shreveport would continue for a yet-to-be determined period of time that will be decided by the new owner.
It had been widely hoped that the operation would continue after it escaped an initial plant closure list when GM filed for bankruptcy protection June 1. But Doug Ebey, president of the United Auto Workers Local 2166, says the union had been "hearing rumblings for some time."
Gov. Bobby Jindal, who spoke with GM's North American president today, says many options are still on the table for Shreveport, including the possibility of GM operating the facility or selling the plant to another buyer. "We are continuing to aggressively work with both GM and Sichuan Tengzhong to help secure the best possible outcome for the GM-Shreveport facility –- and the people of northwest Louisiana," Jindal says.
Pennington shuts down fountains for cost-saving measure
The fountain in the front of Pennington Biomedical Research Center has been shut off as part of a cost-saving measure. Jerry Blanchard, director of facilities management for the center, says the fountain facing Perkins Road and one in the middle of Pennington were turned off in anticipation of the budget cuts the center is facing. Pennington gets $16.2 million in annual higher education funding from the state and staffers were told to plan for a 10% cut and a 15% cut in the fiscal year that starts July 1. One way to save money was taking steps to reduce the energy usage at Pennington. "We're raising the thermostats a little bit and trying to be as efficient as we can with air conditioning and lighting," Blanchard says. Blanchard says the fountains were just shut down a few days ago, so it isn't known yet how much center will save on utilities through the move. "We won't know until we get our utility bills," he says.—Timothy Boone
Corridor political districts could soon be unrecognizable
Every 10 years, the feds sweep into Louisiana to study the possibility of yanking the rug from under a few select members of Congress and the state Legislature. Such reshufflings have ended careers, given birth to new ones and confused voters to no end. It’s a political headache known as the U.S. Census, which resurfaces again next year. While it chiefly will be the responsibility of the Legislature to draw the updated congressional district lines in 2011, special interests and constituencies from every nook and cranny and the democratic process are already jockeying for input. Since population estimates fuel the fire, you probably won’t be surprised to discover that South Louisiana -- the region ravaged by practically back-to-back hurricane seasons the past decade -- has been targeted for the most substantive changes. And few politicos can relay that story better than U.S. Rep. Charlie Melancon, D-Napoleonville. To read the full story, click here. For the rest of 10/12 Weekly, click here.—Jeremy Alford
Fed says recession easing, inflation not a threat
The Federal Reserve says the recession is easing, but that the economy likely will remain weak and keep a lid on inflation. Against this backdrop, the Fed held a key bank lending rate at a record low of between zero and 0.25%, and pledged again to keep it there for "an extended period" to help brace activity going forward.
Even though energy and other commodity prices have risen recently, the Fed says inflation will remain "subdued for some time." This new language sought to ease Wall Street's concerns the Fed's aggressive actions to revive the economy will spur inflation later on. The Fed also decided to stay the course on existing programs intended to drive down rates on mortgages and other consumer debt. Instead, the central bank again kept the door wide open to making changes if economic conditions warrant.
Jindal-backed records bill approved
A bill opening more of the governor's records to public scrutiny has won final legislative passage in the Senate after weeks of debate. The bill, approved 28-8 today, alters a longstanding exemption the governor's office enjoyed from the state public records law. But it only passed after Gov. Bobby Jindal's forces successfully fought off efforts during the legislative session to require that he make public his schedule or that he preserve documents for eventual storage in archives. The bill also keeps secret documents related to the governor's "deliberative process" and puts budgetary advice that state departments submit to the governor off-limits for six months.
New ABR principals announced
Advance Baton Rouge today announced the new principals for the five charter schools it operates in the Capital Region for the upcoming school year. Daniel Perry is coming from Behune Middle School in Shreveport to become Prescott Middle's principal; Kimberly Germany is coming from Maplewood High School in Nashville, Tenn., to be the new principal at Pointe Coupee Central High; Averil Sanders Jr. leaves the Algiers Charter School Association to take over Glen Oaks Middle; Afreda Hygh comes to Lanier Elementary from Capital Pre-College Academy in Baton Rouge; and Ronnie Harrison comes from Grambling State University Middle Magnet School to serve as Dalton Elementary's new principal.
Advance Baton Rouge and the other local charter school operators -- Pelican Educational Foundation, 100 Black Men and Crestworth Learning Academy -- will hold a family recruitment day from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the S.E. Mackey Community Center. The event will allow parents and children to meet with the charter school operators and register for classes.
Credit union service organization joins with AppOne
Credit Union Acceptance Company has joined with the AppOne platform, making it easier for members to provide auto and marine loans to independent dealers. CUAC is a Houston-based service organization that helps 130 credit unions with member auto loan retention and loan acquisitions. Baton Rouge-based AppOne provides software that bridges independent dealers with lenders, reducing risk. Lee Domingue, CEO and founder of AppOne, says more people are buying used vehicles from independent dealers because of the recession and the agreement with CUAC will help the lots connect with more lenders.
News roundup: Oscars doubling number of best picture nominees ... Missing S.C. governor admits to affair
And then there were 10: The Academy Awards are doubling the number of best-picture nominees from five to 10. Academy President Sid Ganis says the academy's board of governors made the decision to expand the slate. Ganis says the decision will open the field up to more worthy films for the top prize at Hollywood's biggest party. The change takes effect with next year' Oscars on March 7. The move is a return to Oscar traditions of the 1930s and '40s, when 10 nominees were common.
Lied about whereabouts: South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford admitted today he's been having an affair with a woman he visited on a secret trip to Argentina and he'll resign as head of the Republican Governors Association. Sanford, a rumored 2012 presidential candidate, refused to say whether he'll leave office. "I've let down a lot of people, that's the bottom line," Sanford said at a news conference. Sanford, a 49-year-old father of four, choked up during remarks to reporters. Sanford says his wife has known about the affair for the past five months. Sanford revealed this morning that he'd gone to Argentina for a seven-day trip. For two days after reporters starting asking questions, his office had said he had gone hiking on the Appalachian Trail.
Less than a week for Top 100 nominations
Business Report is asking privately-owned companies in the Capital Region to submit information to qualify for its annual Top 100 Private Companies list to be published July 28. Business Report ranks companies by gross revenue. Based on past numbers, companies with less than $15 million in revenue are unlikely to make the Top 100 list. For more information, e-mail jgennaro@businessreport.com. The deadline to submit information is 5 p.m. Tuesday.
