The Press-Herald column, Apr. 11, 2018

BAFB interchange is a good thing
http://press-herald.com/bafb-interchange-is-a-good-thing/

Links:
http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/politics/article_226d9224-3680-11e8-8f8c-a32ae022290c.html
http://bossierpress.com/20-220-interchange-gets-fast-track-gov-edwards/
http://www.ksla.com/story/37454891/bossier-parish-puts-up-3-million-toward-new-barksdale-air-force-base-gate
https://bossierpress.com/state-committee-approves-seeking-funds-for-projects-including-new-i-20-220-entrance-to-barksdale/
http://jeffsadow.blogspot.com/2017/07/bossier-city-squanders-without-term.html

Concrete rules best to mitigate order's effect

Even if Baton Rouge or every other local government now permitted to rule on property tax exemptions always gave maximal breaks, the damage has been done for at least the next 21 months.

Within a year of assuming office, Democrat Gov. John Bel Edwards issued an executive order regarding the Industrial Tax Exemption Program. The law it addressed allows the governor to cancel local property taxes entirely for up to 10 years.

Edwards changed that, saying he would allow only five years’ worth at 100 percent and three more at 80 percent. Further, he would allow local government input that could make those numbers even less advantageous.

Wackos prove necessity of curbing their zeal

Even as they complain about the possibility, environmentalist wacko protesters prove the point of the necessity of a Louisiana law that could limit their tantrums.

HB 727 by state Rep. Major Thibaut would add pipelines to the category of critical infrastructure. The state already protects from trespassing at these various sites such as power plants, oil refineries, chemical plants, water treatment facilities, and natural gas terminals. Violators could draw as many as 15 years in prison with a $10,000 fine, going up to 20 years and $25,000 if the action could threaten human life or disrupt site operations. And, conspiracy to do so carries the same penalty.

He introduced the bill on Apr. 2, less than a week after unknown apparent protestors damaged equipment at a Bayou Bridge pipeline construction site. Environmentalist groups have vigorously fought the pipeline’s presence, ultimately losing regulatory and court battles, although many forswear the use of violence to achieve their ends.

Legislature still acting unwisely on tuition control

Here we go again with the Louisiana Legislature missing again on something commonsensical that puts it out of step with the rest of the country to the detriment of the state’s people.

Last week, the House of Representatives turned back HB 418 by Rep. Barry Ivey that would have allowed the state’s four higher education management boards to set their own tuition, subject to some parameters. Currently, Louisiana is but one of two states that require legislative input into tuition hikes.

The bill would have limited increases to 10 percent annually and no more than 20 percent total over four years. Further, it would have exempted recipients of Taylor Opportunity Program for Scholars awards, meaning during the course of the award for a student that state taxpayers would not have to increase their effort to cover any rise in tuition.

The Press-Herald column, Apr. 4, 2018

The facts behind the numbers
http://press-herald.com/the-facts-behind-the-numbers/

Links:
http://bossierpress.com/edwards-lauds-states-drop-in-unemployment/
https://www.jec.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/bcd52e05-a131-4651-a8be-341a167660b9/louisiana-employment-update.pdf
https://www.bls.gov/eag/eag.la.htm
https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LASST220000000000006?amp%253bdata_tool=XGtable&output_view=data&include_graphs=true
https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/LA/PST045216
https://www.bls.gov/eag/eag.la_shreveport_msa.htm
https://data.bls.gov/pdq/SurveyOutputServlet
http://jeffsadow.blogspot.com/2017/09/edwards-snap-policy-continues-to-hurt-la.html
https://www.alec.org/article/medicaid-expansion-reduces-incentives-to-work/
https://www.jbartlett.org/countering-the-powerful-work-disincentive-in-medicaid-expansion
https://www.sycamoreinstitutetn.org/2017/09/14/medicaid-work-requirements-what-why-who/

LA needs to ban mandatory inclusionary zoning

Despite obfuscating noise designed to stall it, SB 462 by state Sen. Danny Martiny would ensure efficient use of taxpayer dollars and maximize housing provision for all.

The bill would ban the practice of governments forcing multi-family builders to designate a certain proportion of units to lower-income families for a certain period in order to build at all. New Orleans has the power to mandate this in its zoning decision, although it doesn’t have to impose this requirement.

This causes problems for builders, as with them having to offer below-market units for years on end, given the reduced, if not eliminated, profit margin this could discourage them from building in the first place. Thus, with fewer units on offer, rents across the board actually become less affordable. However, New Orleans interests complain that the state should not hamstring local governments in deciding whether to pursue this policy.

General teacher shortage in LA illusory

Claims of a Louisiana teacher shortage rest in the eyes of the beholder.

Amid a nationwide decline in the number of teachers entering the profession, in Louisiana that has raised enough concern to produce talk of convening a legislative investigation into reversing that trend. This comes as state educational authorities (typically school districts, but also including charter schools and special state schools) continue to have difficulty in attracting science, math, and special education teachers, particularly in rural areas.

But, in reality, in most other ways Louisiana teacher supply has remained healthy and its quality has improved. Understanding how this has happened, especially in light of dramatic reforms passed in 2012 to spur accountability and thus higher quality, leads to what actions, if any, the state must take to ensure sufficient refreshment of its teaching corps.

Politics hard to remove from discipline choice

In the final analysis, authorities decided a borderline case bowing to the demands of politics.

Last week, recently-installed Baton Rouge Police Chief Murphy Paul meted out punishments to Officers Blane Salamoni and Howie Lake II. Salamoni, who shot and killed Alton Sterling in 2016, received termination from the department, while Lake, who also struggled with Sterling, received three days suspension.

Perhaps no death ever at the hands of police in Louisiana has had so much scrutiny. A federal investigation, followed by a state version, came to an identical conclusion: the policing that occurred wasn’t the best, but the officers’ actions were not criminal. Thus, officers had not even acted negligently during the incident, which involved several instances of resistance by Sterling who officers knew to have a handgun, and also actions by Sterling that conveyed reasonably that he actively sought to pull it, disregarding repeatedly instructions to stop his activities that ultimately made it rational for the officers to fear for their lives.

The Advocate column, Apr. 1, 2018

Gov. Edwards' desire for big government is understandable; his use of disabled people as pawns isn't
http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/opinion/jeff_sadow/article_3351e20e-3381-11e8-99d2-67f3f7e44569.html

Links:
http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2018/03/medicaid_recipients_losing_ben.html
http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/Law.aspx?d=96315
http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/politics/legislature/article_b2e985be-31e5-11e8-bbef-a304bc561aea.html
http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/politics/legislature/article_ba5a089c-2bb8-11e8-830e-e7b818c796ce.html
http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/ViewDocument.aspx?d=1071366
http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/ViewDocument.aspx?d=1073142
http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/ViewDocument.aspx?d=1071498
http://www.legis.la.gov/Legis/Law.aspx?d=93005

The Press-Herald column, Mar. 28, 2018

A two-front war over casinos
http://press-herald.com/a-two-front-war-over-casinos/

Links:
http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/politics/article_fb5e9b3a-2c5f-11e8-be3b-87615863204d.html
http://jeffsadow.blogspot.com/2018/02/political-intrigue-swirls-around-casino.html