Historic period gives LA ruling GOP great chance

With the second inauguration of Republican President Donald Trump, Louisiana enters an unprecedented period that has the potential for maximal policy change from an eccentric past that still inflicts woes on the state to this day.

With Trump taking the executive branch helm, after at the start of the month the GOP taking full control of Congress, it became the first time since 1993 that one political party held all of the levers of power in both Louisiana and the federal government. Then, it was Democrats, which historically had not been unusual. As Louisiana had its first Republican governor only starting in 1980, and Republicans until 32 years ago had just a handful of members in the Legislature – never mind ever coming close to a majority – in roughly half of the years from the birth of the modern party system not long before the Civil War to then the congruence had been in place whenever Democrats controlled the White House and Congress.

But from then until now, with GOP ascendancy in Louisiana that has had one of its own in the Governor’s Mansion for 18 of those 32 years and since 2011 control of the Legislature, the various shifts in power at the national level prevented the congruence – until today. The historic part, of course, is that now it’s Republicans rather than Democrats who have all of the control.

Playing water politics harms Monroe ratepayers

The penny-saving, dollar-wasting Monroe City Council majority might pose as saving residents money by forgoing water rate hikes now, but that action likely will end up costing ratepayers even more in the future.

At its last meeting, the Council rejected increasing rates by 2.7 percent, as recommended by the independent Mayor Friday Ellis Administration. Until this year, that hadn’t been an issue, as by ordinance rates were to increase annually by the rate of consumer price inflation in order to satisfy conditions attached to a 2018 water reserve bond issue of more than $35 million. According to that issuance, the city had to have net water revenues building a reserve at least equal to 125 percent of the principal and interest payable on the bonds each fiscal year and on any additional parity bonds hereafter, with the series terminating in 2049.

But last Sept. 24, after as a result of elections Democrat Councilors Rodney McFarland and Verbon Muhammad joined Councilors Democrat Juanita Woods and Republicans Gretchen Ezernack and Doug Harvey, the newcomers joined with Woods to pass Ordinance 12,243 cancelling the automatic increase and setting up an annual vote whether to change rates. The majority Democrats said the Council should have the flexibility to set rates as needed.