- According to Gallup Healthways' annual index tracking well-being
nationwide, Louisiana improved 6 places, and is ranked 11th in
the nation in the life evaluation indicator, which looks at how good
respondents feel their current life situation is (Department of Health and
Hospitals, February 2012).
- Louisiana scored a perfect 100 on the Centers for Disease Control and
Preventions (CDC) evaluation of the state's public health emergency
preparedness and response capabilities for the second year in a row
(Department of Health & Hospitals, September 2011).
- The Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) was
given a $1.4 million bonus award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture
(USDA) for outstanding and timely customer service in providing Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, also known as food stamps.
This is the third consecutive year Louisiana earned the timeliness bonus
(Department of Children and Family Services, September 2010).
- The 2010 Recognition Award for Excellence in Human Services Information
Technology was given to the Louisiana Department of Children and Family
Services (DCFS) by the 2010 American Public Human Services Association. DCFS
was awarded for their Disaster Food Stamp Program which allows low to
moderate income residents who think they could be impacted by a disaster to
pre-apply for benefits online or by phone (Department of Children and Family
Services, September 2010).
- Louisiana has the highest number of people registered as organ donors
through the Louisiana Department of Motor Vehicles, according to statistics
compiled by Donate Life America, a nonprofit group promoting organ donation.
68 percent of people say yes when asked if they would like to register as
organ and tissue donors when obtaining a license or state ID. The national
average is 38 percent (The Advocate, June 2010.)
GOVERNMENT/MISC
- The U.S. Public Interest Research Group ranks LaTrac, the state
government's website and online state spending database, as fourth of its
kind in the nation for a second year in a row, giving it a score of "A-" for
its transparency. The study annually rates transparency initiatives for all
50 states (Governing.com, March 2012).
- The Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (GOHSEP)
was honored with a "Gold Award" from the 2011 MarCom Awards, an
international marketing and communication competition, for its work in
producing materials and holding a special education and outreach event to
teach local governing authorities, eligible private non-profits and tribal
governing authorities how to properly procure contacts and other services,
"Getting it Right, The Practice of Procurement." (GOHSEP, January 2012).
- According to a study conducted by the Office of Emergency Communication
(OEC), Louisiana "has achieved one of the most sophisticated levels of
communications usage in the nation," when it comes to interoperable
communications among state and local entities. The Louisiana Wireless
Information Network (LWIN) allows local and state agencies to communicate on
the same radio system (Governor's Office of Homeland Security and
Preparedness, September 2011).
- Lake Charles has been selected as one of the top best 25 places in the
United States to retire by CNNMoney. The report credits the city's ranking
to its outdoor appeal, numerous festivals and growing arts community (The
American Press, September 2011).
- The Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) set a
record for the third consecutive year in collecting child support payments -
more than $365 million was collected for Fiscal Year 2010 (DCFS, February
2011).
- The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) was
one of seven states to be recognized with an outstanding transportation
project award given by the Southeastern Association of State Highway and
Transportation Officials for the department's Louisiana TIMED Program, which
has resulted in almost 500 miles of improved roads, a new port, airport
upgrades, and two bridge projects spanning the Mississippi River (DOTD,
September 2010).
- The Reason Foundation, a nonpartisan research group, ranked Louisiana's
state highways 36th in highway performance and cost-effectiveness
based on information from 2008, moving it up seven spots compared to its
previous year's ranking. Since Governor Jindal took office, the state has
invested a total of $3.5 billion in roads and reduced the backlog of highway
projects by $1.5 million. The state's overall improvement in its roads was
noted by the foundation (The Lake Charles American Press, September 2010).
- A national study titled "Volunteering in America," an annual 50-state
review by the Corporation for National and Community Service, shows that
more than 707,000 Louisiana residents volunteered during 2009. Their
volunteered labor totaled 103.5 million hours and provided an economic
impact of nearly $2.1 billion. The volunteer rate increased 21 percent from
the year 2008 to 2009 (The Town Talk, June 2010).
- Stacey Simmons, head of the Baton Rouge Area Digital Industries
Consortium and creator of the Red Stick International Animation Festival,
has been selected by the magazine Fast Company as one of the 100 Most
Creative People in 2010 for her creation of Omnicademy, a new Web portal
that enables colleges and universities to exchange courses and materials
over the Internet (The Advocate, May 2010).
PREPARED BY THE SENATE COMMUNICATION OFFICE
P.O. Box 94183
Phone (225) 342-9737 Fax (225) 342-0617
websen@legis.state.la.us
Updated May 4, 2012