There is no doubt: Ed Orgeron is what’s best for LSU
November 27, 2016
Louie Blanchard was big at everything he did
November 30, 2016
The Lafourche Parish Public Works Department just saw its workload increase after the parish council added more projects to its ledger.
Parish council members passed a number of amendments to Lafourche’s 2017 budget, and then approved the entire budget as amended, during last Tuesday’s council meeting. The amendments added parish projects, replaced an eliminated employee position and restored the parish’s BP settlement money.
The parish’s proposed total operations and maintenance budget was set to spend $98 million in the upcoming year, down about $1 million from the original 2016 budget. The projected 2016 budget expenditures are set to come in at about $80.3 million, according to the proposed 2017 budget.
The council approved taking more than $66,000 from the executive professional services fund to be used for the salary of a legal assistant. The position was removed by former Finance and Human Resources and Director Tommy Lasseigne. According to Councilman Jerry Jones, who proposed the amendment, the position should have always been in the budget.
“This position is a civil service position. It should have never been taken out without going to Civil Service Commission,” Jones said.
The council also voted together to protect the money Lafourche Parish received from BP oil spill settlement. The parish received almost $8.2 million, and ended up with more than $6.1 million after legal fees. Cantrelle’s proposed budget would have moved $5.5 million of the remaining money out of the settlement fund. The general fund was set to receive $1 million, a multi-year drainage project in northern Lafourche would have received $3.5 million and the parish’s solid waste fund would have received another $1 million.
The council voted on three amendments to put the entirety of that money back in the BP settlement fund to be used at a later time. Parish Council Chairman Jerry LaFont said the previous council had a gentleman’s agreement to let the current council decide what to do with the money, and he advocated for more money to go toward south Lafourche, which was affected more by the oil spill. Councilman Daniel Lorraine, who also represents the southern part of the parish, said the council wanted to take more time figuring out what to do with the windfall.
“It was put in different accounts in this new budget, and it seems everybody feels we should put it back where it belongs and we’ll talk among ourselves to see where it should be spent instead of just blowing it,” Lorraine said. “I can tell you right now, looking at all these speakers where all this money is being spent, we didn’t have a penny in South Lafourche. Not a penny. But, I thank my comrades, because I think we’re going to do it the right way.”
While council members removed funding for the drainage project, they did move money around for 10 other projects. Council members tapped into the state of emergency fund to help foot the bills on the projects. The SOE fund received a $1 million deposit from the parish’s oil and gas royalty fund, which would have doubled its fund balance. Lorraine, a 32-year council veteran, said he has seen the parish survive storms and hurricane seasons with much less than $1 million, citing the assistance available from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
“$1 million [in State of Emergency] is very sufficient. There’s many years we didn’t have $1 million,” Lorraine said.
Here is a full list of parish projects the council agreed to fund with amendments, noting what funds money came from and what council member presented it:
1. Diplomat Way Drainage Improvement: $350,000 from State of Emergency. (Presented by Jerry Jones)
2. Abby Lakes Drainage Improvement: $200,000 from State of Emergency. (Jones)
3. Waverly Road/Magnolia Landing Bulkhead Study and Design: $150,000 from Drainage Fund and $100,000 from Royalty. (Luci Sposito)
4. Leeville Handicapped Fishing Pier and Pavillion: $100,000 from State of Emergency. (Lorraine)
5. Drainage South of West 107th Street: $250,000 from Road Sales Tax District 2. (Lorraine)
6. Drainage on North Side of West 217th Street, Culverts and Catch Basins: $200,000 from Road Sales Tax District 2. (Lorraine)
7. Raising Sidewalk and Culvert and Catch Basin to West 124th Street: $125,000 from General Fund. (Lorraine)
8. Handicapped Playground Equipment at Cut Off Youth Center: $100,000 from State of Emergency. (LaFont)
9. Air Conditioner and Hood Vent System at Cut Off Youth Center: $50,000 from State of Emergency. (LaFont)
10. Bleachers and Upgrade Sewer Treatment at Raceland Recreation Center and Lighting Repairs at Lafourche Parish Roping and Riding Arena: $150,000 from State of Emergency. (Corey Perrilloux)
