Recent act adds impetus for jettisoning RTOs in LA

And this is why, even if it became the first state to adopt an anti-renewable portfolio standard, Louisiana isn’t out of the woods from its energy policy being affected in negative ways by other states’ faith in the existence of catastrophic anthropogenic global warming.

This summer, the state passed a law that essentially made it state policy to pursue the most reliable and inexpensive energy as possible. By doing so, it disallowed the Public Service Commission if it ever desired to do so from trying to impose an RPS on power utilities operating in the state. An RPS would force production of that power through the use of renewable resources to reach a certain proportion of all produced. Almost half of states have one, and in some the eventual target as early as 2040 is 100 percent.

As the higher the proportion of renewable sources reaches the more average expense is attached to that production for consumers, because of both the technology required and the vastly higher degree of production unreliability endemic to relying on renewable resources, Louisiana’s new law guards against consumers having to bear this burden just to kowtow to the myth of CAGW that increased renewable sourcing theoretically alleviates. But, as a recent incident illustrates, state boundaries can’t stop foisting the unneeded RPS costs onto ratepayers’ power suppliers not even subject to an RPS.

New LA bishops bring hope to resolving bad pasts

It’s been an interesting month for Louisiana Catholics in the state’s southeastern corner, hopefully presaging the beginning of the end for turbulent times.

The pederasty – and make no mistake, that’s what it is as 75-80 percent of all sexual abuse cases known against priests involved male minors – that was tolerated among a small coterie of priests (about four percent of the total) claimed an unfortunately high total of victims in the Archdiocese of New Orleans. So much so that the archdiocese declared bankruptcy to avoid financial ruin and shamefully has been lowballing a settlement.

But earlier this month a new offer of $230 million was made to the several hundred members of the affected class. If enough accept, the settlement will become official.

Prudent BC budget still must avoid landmines

Bossier City’s 2026 executive budget exemplifies a greater commitment to transparency, and in doing so highlights the sins of its policy-making past and warnings to avoid their consequences  in the future.

The budget doesn’t see much increased spending past the expected 2025 baseline, although reviewing general fund numbers might belie that. This is because of an accounting change that moves expenses for all of the ancillary functions attached to the sanitation fee on utilities bills that the general public mostly associates with trash pickup. That became a controversial point over the rate increases instituted this year where apartment complexes that previously had been billed for only a few addresses, or even just one, the city began to bill for all units. Complex owners argued that they had their own waste removal and so shouldn’t have to pay, but they discounted the ancillary functions the fee covers such things as mosquito abatement, sweeping and mowing, beautification, and animal control.

A compromise was reached that billed at 80 percent of total units. Perhaps as a result, the Republican Mayor Tommy Chandler Administration now plans to budget separately for those items and transfers their functions to Public Works. Thus, the portion of the sanitation fee that covers these functions for bookkeeping purposes now appears in the general fund, inflating year-over-year spending. It’s the right move to make for greater transparency and accountability.

Bizarre postcard incident defies obvious motive

A bizarre incident involving Louisiana legislators leaves perhaps only one thing for certain: the sender(s) of so-called “lynching postcards” seem to have caught a case of Trump Derangement Syndrome that makes the act appear inexplicable using reason and logic.

Recently, several representatives – all Republicans except for a Democrat and apparently chosen in alphabetical order, various reports reveal – received in their official mail two kinds of postcards depicting lynchings, with one identified as nearly a hundred years ago in Indiana and the other over a century ago in Minnesota. They state “Thank you” have Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem’s name attached to them, and were sent from Denver.

This raises many questions. Why Louisianans? Why only representatives? Why just names close to the beginning of the alphabet and sent to official addresses as if plucked from the website? Why is Noem’s name attached? Why depicting lynching? Why the scrawled sarcastic message? Perhaps these and others will be answered as the Federal Bureau of Investigation has gotten involved because this could be construed as a threat using the postal service. Even if no threat is determined to be present, the Comstock Act as amended makes it illegal to send these through the mail.

Monroe Council Democrats play race card on pick

As always when it’s dealt, the majority Democrats on the Monroe City Council played the race card from the bottom of the deck, exposing their misbegotten and counterproductive agenda.

Last week, Republican Gov. Jeff Landry announced that Monroe’s new fire chief would be Timothy Williams. A new law gave him the power to do this, breaking a stalemate between the Council majority and independent Mayor Friday Ellis stretching past a year where the Council rejected two of his appointees.

The majority gave somewhat conflicting reasons for their rejections. Ellis’ first choice, Monroe Fire Department’s Daniel Overturf scored middling on the civil service exam and the majority said the city could do better, despite his strong rank-and-file backing. Williams, Bastrop’s fire chief, scored highest on the exam, as well as had a strong record in Bastrop, but then the Democrats switched their objection to he didn’t have managerial experience in a larger department. But besides having their candidacies sidelined by the Democrats, who are all black, the two had something else in common: both, like Ellis, are white.