Candidates agree on coastal issues

The three candidates running to fill former state Sen. Reggie Dupre’s open District 20 seat in the upcoming Aug. 1 election all agree on two things: coastal restoration is the most important issue facing the district and succeeding the legislative veteran Dupre will be a large task.

But they differed sharply on Louisiana receiving federal stimulus money during a debate held in Houma last week.

Brent Callais, 29, a Republican and former Lafourche Parish councilman from Cut Off, said people in the district had taxed themselves to erect levees and contended local levee districts could do the work cheaper than the Army Corps of Engineers.

“If we can put a man on the moon, we can restore the coast,” said Callais, who does consulting work and is executive director of Concerned Citizens for the Community. “It’s bureaucracy. As Americans we can do anything.”

Damon Baldone, 44, who is currently serving as a state representative for parts of Terrebonne and Lafourche, said he has secured $140 million for levees during his tenure in the House beginning in 2001.

Baldone and Norby Chabert, 33, who formerly worked in Nicholls State University’s marketing department, both indicated that Louisiana will begin receiving royalties from oil and gas drilling on the Outer Continental Shelf in 2017.

“That money is predicated on the price of oil,” Chabert said. “If it’s high, we get a lot. But it has come down.”

Besides coastal restoration, Chabert said the high cost of property insurance for area residents and businesses is a concern.

“You can’t live below the Intracoastal Canal on a fixed income …We have a great economy, but we still have a lot of low-income people who struggle to make ends meet because they have to have insurance on the house,” he said.

Callais also focused on high insurance rates as a major issue, and added the four-laning of La. Highway 311 and New Orleans Boulevard as priorities.

“Without insurance and education, companies will not relocate here,” he said.

State’s education woes injected into the debate

Baldone, an attorney, real estate developer and former biology teacher, sees supporting Nicholls and Fletcher Technical Communi-ty College in Houma as one of the most important issues facing the area. Businesses wanting to relocate point out that the area has a lack of manpower and an oversupply of work, he said.

“We’re losing degreed programs from Nicholls,” Baldone said. “It’s unacceptable.”

At the K-12 level, Baldone said teachers have received raises in the seven of the past eight years. Funding of schools is adequate, but the money has not necessarily gotten into the classroom. He said he would like to see every student have a laptop.

Callais spoke against educators “teaching to the test” and pushed for students who are not going to college to enter mechanical trades.

“There’s nothing wrong with being a welder or a mechanic,” he said. “Not all kids are made for college.”

Chabert feels that the federal No Child Left Behind education policy started under former President George W. Bush’s administration has had negative effects. Holding teachers accountable is a good idea, he said, but following the policy has undermined teachers’ ability to educate.

‘We take care of the cats and dogs, but what about grandma?’

All three candidates agreed that the safe evacuation of the elderly before hurricanes needs to be a higher priority. Callais said, “We take care of the cats and dogs, but what about grandma?” Callais said he stayed in Lafourche Parish while he was a councilman when Hurricane Katrina hit and praised parish officials for quickly restarting services.

Baldone emphasized that buses need air conditioning when transporting the elderly and said he has worked out reciprocity agreements with neighboring states for evacuation. He said officials are applying for $25 million in federal grants to build a safe house in Terrebonne Parish to shelter key personnel during storms.

Chabert, who is from Chauvin, called the district a family-oriented community that should be more effective at evacuating the elderly. He recommended that no one should stay for a Category 5 hurricane and said Terrebonne’s reentry program following storms should be reprioritized.

“The eighth persons allowed back in are medical employees,” he said.

Trio parts ways on federal stimulus money

The three candidates had varying views on the state accepting federal stimulus money, but had similar positions on the unionization of local industry.

Chabert and Baldone agreed that Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal should not have turned away some federal stimulus funds. Jindal asserted the state would have to raise taxes once the stimulus money ran out.

“The governor did it as a political ploy,” Baldone said. “We lost $90 million.”

But Callais said taxes would have had to be raised eventually while businesses are already taxed heavily.

Callais came out decidedly against the unionization of local industry, though he said unions may have been needed at one time.

“If union bosses come in, it will have a bad effect,” he said.

Chabert praised the strength of local shipyards. He and Baldone said, where unions exist, workers cannot perform jobs different from their own, possibly slowing production.

“I support the LAE (Louisiana Association of Educators) but I would discourage the unionization of shipyards,” Baldone said.

Both Chabert, the son of the late Democratic state Sen. Leonard Chabert, and Baldone called themselves southern Democrats who adhere to many conservative values.

“Most of us in south Louisiana are not liberal. We’re pro-life, pro-business,” Chabert said. “Democrats have the good of everyone in mind. What’s wrong with trying to give people healthcare and the best education? I will help people who are down when I’m in Baton Rouge.”

Baldone, who favors the right to bear arms, said he and Republican state Rep. Gordon Dove of Houma voted the same 90 percent of the time.

“Contrast that with the national Democratic Party,” Baldone said. “But they (the Democrats) fixed education and healthcare. Without healthcare, you can’t provide a healthy workforce.”

Callais presented himself as a straightforward conservative alternative.

“I believe in lower taxes. I’m a fiscal conservative,” he said. “Protect the unborn. I’m pro-business, lower business taxes.”

In their closing statements, Callais called the Senate race the most important election in recent years and touted Republican Gov. Jindal’s ethics reforms.

“We have impossible shoes to fill with Dupre,” Callais said. “We need someone in Baton Rouge who won’t tow the line.”

Chabert said the next few years will be challenging. “We rode an economic wave but our flood protection remained stagnant,” blaming the lack of flood control on ineffective leadership and lack of foresight.

Baldone touted his legislative experience and his work to fund levee-building in the area. “I want to continue Reggie’s work,” he said. “I’ll go straight to the Senate and work from day one. I know the budget better than any other candidate.”

State Rep. Damon Baldone addresses a Houma crowd as fellow District 20 Senate seat candidates Brent Callais and Norby Chabert look on during last Tuesday nights Liberty Senatorial Debate. The three are vying for former state Sen. Reggie Dupre’s open seat in the Aug. 1 special election. * Photo by KEYON K. JEFF