Lawmakers: TEDA, SLEC should mend differences

The Terrebonne Economic Development Council’s split from the South Louisiana Economic Council in November threatened to permanently alter the way economic development was carried out in the area.

State legislators Joe Harrison and Gordon Dove stepped in at last week’s TEDA executive committee meeting in an attempt to heal the rift between the two organizations. In the end, the changes to the region’s economic development mechanism could be drastically altered.

In the past, SLEC had acted as the regional economic development agency representing Assumption, Lafourche, St. Mary and Terrebonne parishes, which follows a statewide model. When TEDA withdrew from SLEC, it became unclear whether SLEC would continue to receive funding for Terrebonne Parish and whether SLEC would continue to work in the area. This would have made TEDA the only agency of its kind without a regional authority.

Local parish presidents began to cry foul, as a regional approach is viewed as the best way to handle economic development.

“We were content with the situation prior to this and therefore feel that we will no longer be working in cohesion for the good of the region,” said Lafourche Parish President Charlotte Randolph. “Sometimes Lafourche cannot provide what Terrebonne can or Assumption may not be able to provide what we can, but if we have economic growth in the region, that’s a boost for all of us.”

Harrison said that by not working as a region, TEDA could be jeopardizing the future of the whole region.

“I’m trying to understand how we can regionalize our area, because we’re getting our heads kicked in by other parts of the state,” said Harrison. “Regionalization is the only way we’re going to survive.”

TEDA initially split from SLEC because it could not reach a “cooperative endeavor agreement,” which outlines the relationship between the two groups, with SLEC. TEDA has alleged that SLEC wouldn’t return their letters requesting a new agreement. TEDA was attempting to change the way it dealt with SLEC before negotiations broke down.

TEDA members said that the reason it was trying to change its relationship with SLEC was because it had little input and no representation in how SLEC divvies up public funding.

“We’re invited to monthly marketing meetings, where basically we’re told how they’re going to spend the money, but not asked how to spend the money and not asked what’s the best interest,” said TEDA’s outgoing chairman Mike Voisin.

In 2008, SLEC received more than $4 million in government funding and grants according to an audit filed with the state’s legislative auditor, but because SLEC is a private, non-profit organization, it’s nearly impossible to trace exactly how those funds are spent.

SLEC’s power structure is also hard to crack because, again, as a private group, their bylaws are not made public. Vic Lafont, SLEC’s longtime executive director, did not return repeated calls to his office, and others declined comment.

Charles Gaiennie, who performs much of SLEC’s public relations, said that the private structure of the group was necessary to the nature of its business.

“SLEC is intentionally formed as a not-for-profit organization, not subdivisions of the government, so that industry, which is private and for-profit, feels comfortable coming into those environments. The state of Louisiana set that up,” he said.

SLEC members have also alleged that SLEC’s largess is not evenly distributed.

“It all boils down to money. They get appropriations based on multiple parishes, when they essentially act as the agency for Lafourche, and do whatever they want with the money. There’s no accountability,” said TEDA’s treasurer, Don Hingle.

Gaiennie, however, said that most of the businesses helped by SLEC are in Terrebonne.

“Almost 50 percent of the companies that we helped this year were Terrebonne residents. As a practical matter, there is no barrier, there is no division. There is a lot of cooperation. There are a lot of resources being delivered to Terrebonne companies, including mine,” said Gaiennie.

The other three parishes in SLEC have one economic development officer for their parish who largely works through SLEC to accomplish their economic development goals.

TEDA, on the other hand, is its own freestanding branch of Terrebonne Parish’s government with a staff dedicated to luring business to the parish.

On its own, TEDA would have acted as a lone gun promoting Terrebonne Parish alone. Now that Harrison and Dove have stepped in, all four of SLEC’s parishes could see major changes in how they interact with SLEC.

TEDA members said they need a more structured method of input, possibly even a vote, with SLEC.

“What we need to do is strongly suggest that [Lafont] meet with TEDA at least once a quarter, and it needs to start right away,” said Dove. “From what I’m being told, he’s not reacting to Terrebonne. Let’s face it, he pushes Lafourche… I believe the core of the problem lies with Vic [Lafont].”

TEDA members floated ideas of trying to equally represent each parish on SLEC’s board and finding some way to give everybody input to SLEC’s decision-making process.

“If this issue is going to be solved, it’s going to have to be solved for everyone, not just Terrebonne,” said Charles Adams, TEDA’s secretary. “If we solve the structural problem, you solve the whole problem.”

In the end, Dove and Harrison tended to agree with TEDA, and promised to take their complaints to SLEC.

“We’re going to make it happen. Gordie and I are going to force the issue. We can change the whole structure of everything, and they’re either going live with it, or they’re going to live without,” said Harrison.

Although Harrison and Dove have yet to act on their harsh words, it seems to have at least brought TEDA back to the negotiating table.

“Now, I think, we’re in the position to force the way SLEC is organized,” said Hingle.