Higher ed changes

By Elise Plunk | Reporter

News for today is full of switch-ups, from laws affecting higher education to the Louisiana attorney general backing out of a lawsuit on marijuana classification. Read more below.

By Piper Hutchinson

Louisiana’s colleges and universities are walking away from the 2026 legislative session with more authority to increase tuition and fees and more ability to punish violent hazing. Lawmakers also opened the door to Louisiana leaving its traditional higher education accreditor and possibly joining a conservative alternative.

By Greg LaRose

Attorney General Liz Murrill has pulled Louisiana out of a case that her counterparts in Nebraska and Indiana had brought against the U.S. Department of Justice. At the prompting of an order from President Trump, federal officials have moved to designate marijuana as a less harmful drug.

By Natalie Mclendon, The Current

Residents have questioned whether the state should issue a permit allowing Venture Global to discharge wastewater from its proposed liquified natural gas facility into the Calcasieu Ship Channel, which is connected to Lake Calcasieu.

By Wesley Muller

The proposal is one of several Attorney General Liz Murrill brought to lawmakers this session. She and its sponsor in the legislature described it as a bill to end “judge shopping” and protect the public from supposedly lenient judges who ignore evidence and let criminals escape justice.

By Kelcie Moseley-Morris

Increasing costs of fuel for cars and airplanes are adding extra strain to abortion funds that help people pay to travel for care in other states, leaders of several funds said this week.  

Thanks for reading Morning Look. Did you know our weekend digest is also free? Sign up here. And if you enjoyed today’s edition, please forward to a friend. Increasing our readership helps us cover more news.