TOPS recipients who lose their state-funded scholarships would have to repay them, under a bill that barely got out of the House Education Committee. Bossier City Representative Dennis Bamburg says that under HB 385, TOPS students would be exempt from repayment if they had to drop out of school due to a life event or extenuating circumstances.
The meningococcal vaccine will remain on Louisiana’s required vaccine schedule after an effort to remove it failed to make its way through the legislature. The House Education Committee voted 8 to 4 against HB 737, after hearing emotional testimony from individuals who survived meningitis. Earlier this year, the federal government removed the vaccine from its recommended schedule. Since then, some Republican-led states have followed.
And, a bill that would redefine simple battery to add the use of sound to cause physical pain or harm, HB 132, received unanimous support in the House on Wednesday.
With your Capitol Access Minute, I’m Brooke Thorington.
