Forearmed: The National Center for the Prevention of Home Improvement Fraud is conducting a free workshop titled “Protecting Yourself from Home Repair Contractor Fraud and Scams” at the Louisiana State Museum, 660 N. Fourth St., from noon to 1:30 p.m. Saturday. “It’s so frustrating to get calls from area homeowners who have already been scammed. It breaks my heart because by then, often, it’s too late. What we talk about in our workshops would have helped every single one of them,” says NCPHIF Executive Director Phae Howard. Complete details and registration are available here.
All 7 and we’ll watch them fall: The number of rigs actively exploring for oil and natural gas in Louisiana dipped this week to 120, down from 127 a week ago. Houston-based oilfield services company Baker Hughes Inc. also reports today the number of rigs across the United States is down this week by five, to 1,966. Compared to the same week a year ago, Louisiana has 48 fewer rigs. The national count is up 84 rigs on the year. The U.S. rig count peaked at 4,530 in 1981 and bottomed out at 488 in 1999. You can access the complete report from Baker Hughes at its website here.
Pardon my French: Democratic Acadiana lawmakers including state Reps. Jack Montoucet, Vincent Pierre and Stephen Ortego say one of Gov. Bobby Jindal’s budget vetoes harms a Lafayette-based agency that promotes French language and culture. Jindal stripped $100,000 planned for the Council for the Development of French in Louisiana, or CODOFIL, which oversees programs designed to nurture the French language and promote cultural and business ties with French-speaking countries. The lost funding cuts more than a third of the annual operating budget for CODOFIL, which will seek private donations to try to fill the gap. Jindal wrote in his veto message that CODOFIL was “adequately funded.” His office has thus far declined further comment.
