LA should pile on rout of intolerant NCAA

Democrat Gov. John Bel Edwards and other opponents of SB 156 just struck out.

The bill by Republican state Sen. Beth Mizell would disallow biological males from competing in intercollegiate, interscholastic, and intramural sports in sports designated for females. In essence, unless a biologically-born male has had the obligatory surgery and takes the necessary drugs to be classified as a biological female, the bill would prohibit that person from competing as a female.

Dispensing with arguments over the morality of encouraging healthy but mentally and emotionally immature children from taking life-altering drugs with long-range side effects and to accept mutilation, a talking point opponents use against it deals with politics and economics. For collegiate athletes, they say the National Collegiate Athletics Association may refuse to sponsor its championship tournament events in states that have such laws. They point to NCAA statements that events should occur where “hosts can commit to providing an environment that is safe, healthy and free of discrimination,” as well as a 2016 incident where the organizations yanked tournament games originally set for North Carolina after that state passed a law mandating that in ordinary situations sex-specific restrooms be used only by biological members of that sex.

Reform BC bid practices for better governance

The deed was done. How can Bossier Citians avoid the possibility of wasted taxpayer resources in the future?

This week, the lame-duck Bossier City Council rammed through its controversial no-bid, three-year contract with Manchac Consulting to run water and sewerage operations that will cost $4.6 million, with only no party Councilor Jeff Darby in opposition. While that scaled-down version demonstrated that earlier, more expansive ones would have spent needlessly tax dollars (with an initial five-year term violating city ordinance), citizens still can’t be sure they received the best deal possible because no competitive bidding occurred.

That can be fixed. Section 2-152 of the city’s ordinances states sealed bidding must occur for “services … exceeding the amount established by applicable state law or any lesser amount established by a management directive of the mayor.” State law fixes the threshold to require public works contracts at $250,000 and $30,000 for materials, but none for professional services for political subdivisions, which Sec. 2-151 echoes by only requiring Council resolution to approve of such regardless of amount without any competitive bid requirement.

Bill fate to test futures of governor, speaker

Over the next month, one bill will impact profoundly the careers of a couple of high-profile Louisiana politicians.

That potentially redefining instrument comes in the modest form of Republican state Sen. Beth Mizell’s SB 156. The bill would clarify in scholastic, collegiate, and intramural athletics, that for single-sex sports only students of that biological sex may participate in those, except that females could opt for participation in sports designated for males.

In over half the states such a bill has been introduced, becoming law already in several. Even the least favorable national polling shows more people support measures like this than oppose, with strong support leading strong opposition by double digits. No comparable Louisiana statewide polling on this has occurred, but likely support would be much higher.

Charles Elson "Buddy" Roemer III, 1943-2021

My employer Louisiana State University Shreveport only recently passed the half-century mark in age. Today, it lost its most famous instructor, Republican former Gov. Buddy Roemer.

Little known is that Roemer taught as an adjunct instructor at LSUS early in its history, in computer science as I recall, before his electoral political career (All the oldest hands from that era at LSUS who could give a few more details, one way or the other, are no longer around here.) For that reason, we could get him to come to campus from time to time.

In the fall of 1993 or spring of 1994 (I can’t quite recall which semester), he stopped by to give a speech largely attended by faculty members and a few students. With me being the political scientist who taught our classes related to elections, when afterwards I introduced myself to him he was interested in having a chat. We drifted down the hallway to my (very small) office where for 15 or 20 minutes we (he, mainly, as was my desire) talked a bit about where he thought Louisiana and American government were headed. I confess I don’t really remember any of the details.

GOP leaders must deliver on sensible bills

Largely out of the headlines, Louisiana’s Republican-led Legislature has made quiet inroads on some do-over legislation that stand a good chance of becoming law – if its GOP leaders get with the program.

Last year in the second special session, the GOP chambers sent bills to create a more accountable and responsive emergency governance regime (in part prompted by a poorly-reasoned but highly-activist court decision on the existing statute defining this) and to prevent election interference through donations by private interests during emergency periods. Democrat Gov. John Bel Edwards vetoed both.

Fortunately, legislators didn’t give up and two similar bills look likely to reach the desk of Edwards this session, all other things equal. HB 149 by GOP state Rep. Larry Frieman would clarify emergency powers law to ensure even the most activist judge can’t misinterpret the law other than its explicit wording to give each chamber a veto power over gubernatorial assertions of authority in a declared emergency, in whole or part, taking effect when the next governor assumes office. HB 20 by GOP state Rep. Blake Miguez makes for an even tighter regulation of private election conduct donations, removing the language from his previous version limiting it only to those held under emergency conditions.

Simple changes can rescue unwise LA budget

While in most cases going one-for-two is really good (unless you’re this team, where that’s not much above average), the Republican-led Louisiana House of Representatives really couldn’t afford to miss one on its budgetary matters.

Last week, the chamber dealt with two significant money bills: the fiscal year 2022 budget that in part depends upon and a supplemental spending bill wholly dependent upon federal government revenues rained down courtesy of borrowing that edges the country closer to financial crisis. Only on the latter did it act wisely, mostly.

HB 642 would take a quarter of an estimated $1.6 billion in largesse to refill belatedly the unemployment trust fund, while $300 million would contribute to fixing local government water woes mostly an artifact of declining population bases and deliberate consumer underpricing. Another $55 million would enhance port infrastructure and $50 million would make up for small business losses. The questionable part of the bundle, $119.5 million, would go to special interests in broadband (most of it, including boosting the Legislature’s technology even though for this purpose a separate $180 million from the federal government already is in the pipeline), logging, and movie theater operations. Sensibly, the remaining $676 million would be parked to await future demonstrated need throughout the year, allocated by the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget.

LA must remove idleness incentive payments

Louisiana needs to join the job stimulation party, and Democrat Gov. John Bel Edwards needs to get with that program – even if forced to by the Legislature.

Over the past few days, state after state has announced ends before their expiration date of expanded Wuhan coronavirus pandemic unemployment payments, backed by economic data demonstrating not only have these long outlived their usefulness, but also have short- and long-term harmful effects. The federal government, whipped into doing so by Democrat Pres. Joe Biden through narrow party-line votes in Congress, in March extended through Sep. 6 $300 per week payments to people not working; states pay only the administrative costs.

Part of the reason, if not the most influential explanation for, why the latest economic numbers show rising wages, rising unemployment, rising inflation, and relatively few jobs created is these extra payments – which on top of existing payments which vary from state to state average $638 a week with the maximum in Louisiana more than doubled to $547 weekly – discourage work. Keep in mind this means in the state  $14.22 an hour for not working.

Rookie Shreveport GOP councilors hit headwinds

Even though they have passed the halfway mark of their rookie terms in office, the two freshman Republicans on the Shreveport City Council haven’t quite gotten the hang of homework, yet.

When it meets later today, the Council will have on its agenda an items fronted by Councilor John Nickelson, and another by Councilor Grayson Boucher, with another couple by Nickelson in the bullpen. Those almost certainly won’t even come up, while Nickelson’s other may but likely face defeat, and Boucher’s may well pass but ends up more trouble than it’s worth.

Nickelson got into hot water last month, along with this Democrat counterpart Jerry Bowman, for introducing pay raise ordinances that would kick in for the mayor and councilors taking office in 2023. For mayor, a full-time job, the nearly $30,000 boost would push that salary to $125,000 a year, while for councilors this pay for a part-time gig would rise over $10,000 to a base $25,000 annually.

LA medical ganja law change = legalization

What’s all the fuss about legalizing marijuana use in Louisiana? Intended changes to medical marijuana laws would get the state there anyway.

Since the House Administration of Criminal Justice Committee last week sent to the floor HB 699 by Republican state Rep. Richard Nelson, which would make legal marijuana cultivation, sale, and purchase, as regulated by the state, public debate has focused on the wisdom of the drastic change. Some suspect this will become inevitable while others say to hold off because the regulatory regime will botch any salutary criminal justice and economic effects, and the most traditional point out the negative effects that will outweigh any positive ones.

But the fate of this bill doesn’t matter much given the impact another bill has on the question of legal availability of weed. HB 391 by GOP state Rep. Tanner Magee would complete a multi-year process that began with limited distribution of marijuana for medical purposes that largely provided for (defined a bit generously) genuine needs that was not easy to abuse to one where about anybody who wants it for any reason can find it, as long as they have the cash.

New woke LSU president may need restraining

So, the Louisiana State University System decided to take a chance on someone unproven and trendy as its next president. In light of this, if you care about quality higher education in the system, what is to be done?

With its announcement earlier this week of three finalists for the position, the LSU Board of Supervisors staked out significantly diverging approaches to the leadership question. University of Louisiana System Pres. Jim Henderson has extensive higher education management experience at all levels, including running a university system with more students and schools than the LSU system, plus knows well the environment in which he must operate.

More out of the box, former science and technology leader in the Republican Pres. Donald Trump Administration, Kelvin Droegemeier would provide an outsider perspective but with impressive academic credentials and long tenure at the highest levels of government.  He also served for nearly a decade at a senior level at my alma mater. In some sense this would have replicated LSU’s approach when it went with Sean O’Keefe in the first decade of the century.