2007 Legislative Regular Session had share of wins, losses

The Tri-Parish area legislators were asked to highlight their successes and failures this legislative session. Here’s a breakdown of what they had to say.

Rep. Warren J. Triche Jr., D-Thibodaux

Due to newly imposed term limits, the 2007 session marks the end of Triche’s 20 years of service in the Louisiana House of Representatives.

Victories:

Triche sits on the House Appropriations Committee and sees much of his success this session coming from his work on the committee.

“The funding was there to get a number of items, which I have to vote on in the appropriations committee to be able to get them into the House Bill 1,” he said. “So my successes were more in committee.”

Triche said the numbers of bills he could introduce was very limited, and only two of his five passed. But he cites his amendments that made their way into the appropriations bill and capital outlay bill as successes.

He also said he was able to get funding for one of the oldest education buildings on Nicholls State University’s campus, Beauregard Hall, as well as funding for other projects on the university’s campus.

Defeats:

Triche said he had three defeats. The most notorious was, of course, the slaughtering of his bill that would have put a half-cent per-ton fee on pet food manufactured in Louisiana.

A typo in the bill’s digest, along with help from some zealous lobbyists, led many to believe Triche’s bill wished to impose a 20-cent per-ton fee on the state’s pet food industry.

The revenue generated by the defeat would have gone equally to each of the parishes for animal control purposes and to provide coupons to people for pet related expenses like rabies shots.

His other defeats were his bill to band convicted felons from owning dangerous dog breeds and his bill to legalize, in a limited way, Texas Hold ‘Em Poker tournaments in bars and restaurants.

Grade:

Triche graded himself an “A+,” for the simple fact he responded to everybody and everybody’s needs.

“I’m going to give myself an ‘A+.’ I don’t care what number of bills I didn’t pass. If I didn’t pass a bill it wasn’t my fault,” he said. “These bills were requested of me by constituents to be brought up.”

Sen. Reggie P. Dupre, D-Houma.

Victories:

Dupre said every bill he brought out either passed or with one exception, was added to a House bill that passed.

“I was able, for the first time in 12 years, to bat 1,000,” he said.

Dupre cites his big administration bill as the formation of the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Financing Corp. to securitize the onslaught of OCS revenues coming to the state.

Defeats:

Dupre said his biggest disappointment with the session was the failure to securitize the remainder of the tobacco settlement to generate more funding for coastal projects.

“We did not have the resolutions in order to authorize the securitization of the tobacco settlement,” he said. “I think that getting $64 million that we could have immediately done some significant barrier island restoration work of state only money would have been great.”

Dupre said the overwhelming majority of people in the state have voted twice to take 20 percent of the remaining tobacco trust and put it toward coastal protection issues.

Had the settlement been securitize, it would have generated $330 million for such projects. Twenty percent of the $330 million, $64 million, would have gone to barrier island work.

Grade:

Dupre graded himself an “A.”

“Compared to the other 11 years I was in the legislature, this one went very well. I’m very pleased with the outcome,” he said. “We finally did some good, significant insurance reforms.”

Dupre on the end of Warren Triche’s 20 years in the House:

“I wish him the best,” said Dupre.

Rep. Gordon Dove, R-Houma

Victories:

Dove said the $200 million for coastal restoration was a huge victory, especially with the 35 to 65 federal match on it.

“I think that was number one, as far as our area,” he said.

The $55 million for the Morganza project was also a big victory.

He also said the repealing the Stelly Plan back to 57.5 percent like it was before the plan. And it will be phased out over three years 100 percent on itemized deductions.

“That’s going to give a lot of people a refund to help them pay their insurance,” said Dove.

And L.E. Fletcher Community College will be getting $21.8 million.

Defeats:

He said he believed more should have been done with insurance reform.

“I really believe more money should have been put up into the catastrophic fund. I told the governor that myself,” he said.

Dove said the fight over the tobacco settlement money isn’t over, even thought it didn’t sell this session. “That was a defeat on coastal restoration, but it wasn’t, financially, a good deal for the State of Louisiana,” he said.

Dove doesn’t consider the loss of the funding from the settlement to be a defeat, as nice as it would have been to have an extra $330 million for coastal projects with a 35 to 65 federal match.

Grade:

Dove graded himself a “B+,” justifying it with the funds allocated to coastal restoration and protection and the repeal of the Stelly Plan. He said to get an “A,” he would have needed to have gotten the $330 million from the tobacco settlement for coastal restoration.

Dove on the end of Warren Triche’s 20 years in the House:

“Warren has been great to work with, great to serve with,” Dove said.

He credited Triche for getting in appropriations for $64 million on putting dredges out on the barrier islands. The appropriation is contained in House Bill 1, but was contingent on the tobacco sale, which is up in the air at the moment.

Dove also said it was Triche’s bill that redirected their slush funds to Chabert Hospital.

“Warren Triche was the one who took our slush funds and gave our slush funds two years in a row to Chabert Hosptial, which was the first time that was ever done in the history of Louisiana,” said Dove. “And that was Warren Triche’s idea and I thought it was fantastic. Give it to a charity hospital.”

Calls to Rep. Damon J. Baldone, D-Houma, Rep. Loulan Pitre, R-Cut Off, Rep. Carla Blanchard Dartez, D-Morgan City and Sen. Butch Gautreaux, D-Morgan City, were not returned by press time.