Bluebonnet TIF passes Senate, heads to House

The Senate has passed a bill to set up a special taxing district to turn a partially completed dorm at Jimmy Swaggart Ministries into a conference hotel. The bill, by Senate President Pro Tem Sharon Weston Broome, D-Baton Rouge, passed the Senate by a 34-1 vote and is headed to the House. The measure would set up a tax increment financing district, or TIF, to direct sales tax revenue from the Bluebonnet Boulevard hotel. The state hotel-motel tax revenue would be used to back bonds to pay for construction of the hotel.

Chrysler moves to eliminate 17 La. dealers

Chrysler wants to eliminate roughly a quarter of its 3,200 U.S. dealerships by early next month, saying in a bankruptcy court filing today that the network is antiquated and has too many stores competing with each other. The company, in a motion filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York, said it wants to eliminate 789 dealerships by June 9. The list includes 17 dealerships in Louisiana, including New Roads Motor Company and Hood Motor Company in Amite. For a list of all the Louisiana Chrysler dealerships targeted for elimination, click here. Many of the dealers' sales are too low, the automaker says. Just more than 50% of dealers account for about 90% of the company's U.S. sales. Dealers were told today via a United Parcel Service letter if they would remain or be eliminated. The move, which the dealers can appeal, is likely to cause devastating effects in cities and towns across the country as thousands of jobs are lost and taxes are not paid. Ralph Sellers, who owns a Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep dealership in Gonzales, says today was "a horrible day." "I lost some very good friends," he says. "There are some good dealers who just lost their livelihood." For a list of all the U.S. dealerships Chrysler plans to cut, click here.—Timothy Boone

House opens debate on $27 billion budget bill

The Louisiana House opened what was expected to be a lengthy debate today on next year's $27 billion budget proposal, which would make large cuts to public colleges, health care services and government jobs to cope with a steep drop in state revenue. The spending plan for the fiscal year that begins July 1 uses $1 billion in federal stimulus money. The House budget-crafting committee also nearly drained an expired insurance incentive fund, cut planned pay raises for state employees and tapped into an expected windfall from a proposed tax amnesty program to fill some gaps. But the money doesn't cover all the shortfalls. Lawmakers are struggling to balance the 2009-10 budget with a projected $1.3 billion drop in state general fund revenue. Louisiana's coffers are shrinking because of the recession, plummeting oil and gas prices and a slew of large tax breaks approved recently by lawmakers. "It's an unfortunate situation, but it's the hand that we've been dealt," says Rep. Jim Fannin, D-Jonesboro, who as chairman of the House Appropriations Committee handles budget bills in the chamber. The House started its debate this morning, slowly going through the 291-page bill department by department. Next, the budget proposal will head to the Senate for debate, where many more changes are expected.

Economists say recovery will take years

A Wall Street Journal survey of economists found while most think the recession will end in August, it will take years for the economy to fully recover. The depth of the recession, coupled with shifts in how much Americans save, will prolong the recovery. "This is a very deep and defining recession that is going to lead to a transformed U.S. economy, and these transformations don't take place overnight," says Paul Kasriel of the Northern Trust Corp. A majority of the economists say Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke has played a key role in stabilizing the economy. Bernanke's moves mean President Barack Obama is likely to reappoint him when his job becomes open next year, the economists say. Click here to read the article. (Registration required)

CVB gets international accreditation

The Baton Rouge Area Convention & Visitors Bureau has been accredited by the Destination Marketing Accreditation Program for meeting or exceeding industry standards. The Baton Rouge CVB is one of 85 tourism organizations worldwide to earn accreditation. The accreditation is good for four years. The Southwest Louisiana/Lake Charles Convention & Visitors Bureau also earned the designation this year.

LSU professor: Big-city residents have higher risk of late cancer diagnosis

People who live in major cities may have a higher risk of getting a late stage cancer diagnosis than people who live in small cities or rural areas, according to a report from an LSU geography professor. Fahui Wang co-wrote the study with Sara McLafferty of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign that appears in the journal Cancer. Based on four years worth of data from the Illinois State Cancer Registry, they found Chicago residents had the highest likelihood of late-stage diagnosis. The risks were lower in other metro areas and large towns. Wang and McLafferty say their findings show the need for more urban-based cancer screenings and education programs, targeted especially to vulnerable groups.

Venezuelan government seizes 11 Tidewater vessels

Venezuela seized 11 vessels belonging to a U.S. ship company that serves oil producers, say Tidewater executives. Venezuela's state oil company said earlier this week that it had taken control of 90% of oil contractors on western Lake Maracaibo, and named Tidewater as one of the targets. Officials with New Orleans-based Tidewater confirmed earlier in the week that some of their vessels had been seized, but did not say how many. Tidewater's chief financial officer, Quinn Fanning says that in addition to losing the ships and an operations base, the company is owed $40 million in unpaid bills. Venezuela is nationalizing 60 oil contractors as President Hugo Chavez seizes control of the industry. The state oil company, Petroleos de Venezuela SA, or PDVSA, has begun to take assets as it tries to reduce costs with crude prices falling. The new Venezuelan law authorizing the takeover calls for companies that had assets seized to be compensated, Tidewater officials say. Along with the value of the vessels, Tidewater also has the unpaid bill, along with the loss of contracted business, Fanning says. Tidewater officials say it is too early to tell how the seizure might affect the company's bottom line. Fanning says the seized ships accounted for about 3% of Tidewater's vessel revenue in March.

Leo Kottke brings finger-picking skills to Manship

It’s a special week for music in Baton Rouge, as several great concerts give music-lovers plenty of choices. Tonight, Athens guitarist Leo Kottke performs an acoustic set at the intimate Manship Theatre, delivering influential sounds of jazz, blues and folk. The Pal Productions show starts at 7:30 p.m., and tickets are $35 and available via manshiptheatre.org. Soulful R&B band Jive Train delivers dance inspiration at Live After Five downtown Friday from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., and Grammy nominee Cedric Watson gives an exhilarating Creole performance from noon to 3 p.m. at Sunday in the Park.

Finishing off the weekend, the Music Club of Baton Rouge celebrates 100 years of existence with a special centennial concert at 3 p.m. Sunday at First Baptist Church downtown on Convention Street. The concert will feature classics, from Chopin to 19th century African-American spiritual music—with a finale of the Battle Hymn of the Republic. Discover the history behind the group that through the years has helped lead music culture in this city and mold its gifted young artists via LSU music scholarships. Find out what else is going on this weekend by reading 225 Select here.

Sports roundup: LSU ends regular season baseball at Miss. State ... SI columnist raps Russell's work ethic

Going to Starkvegas: LSU closes its 2009 regular baseball season this weekend at Starkville, Miss., against Mississippi State. The Tigers take a half-game lead over Alabama into the final league weekend and a one-game lead over Florida and Ole Miss. The easiest path to the Tigers' first SEC regular-season championship is to win all three games. If LSU wins all three, it claims the crown. If the Tigers match whatever Alabama does, they are the SEC champions. LSU can lose one more game than Florida and Ole Miss and still win the title. The Bulldogs are eliminated from the SEC Tournament field for the second year in a row.

Tough sledding in Oakland: Former LSU star JaMarcus Russell has struggled during his season and a half as the starting quarterback for the NFL's Oakland Raiders. Jim Trotter of Sports Illustrated says part of the problem has been the chaos around the Raiders, with new coaches coming in, and the team's failure to snag a veteran receiver. "At the same time Russell cannot be absolved of blame should he struggle," Trotter writes. "Elite QBs are usually gym rats who are consumed with the game. No one has ever described Russell in that manner." The controversy around Russell's work habits increased earlier this year when he reportedly skipped voluntary workouts to relax. Read the article here.