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Archive for the ‘Civil Service’ Category

Return of the ‘Deduct Box?’

Posted in Civil Service, Ethics, Governor's Office, House, Senate, Legislature, Legislators, Public Records, Transparency on July 28, 2010| Leave a Comment »

            Give State Rep. John Schroder (R-Abita Springs) credit: once he got the idea that picking on state employees was popular with the general public, he has stopped at nothing to offer up State Civil Service as a sacrifice at the Altar of Bobby Jindal.

            Schroder was successful at obtaining committee approval of HB-1478 (originally HB-1296) which would mandate that state employees not be paid for up to 11 legal holidays. Legislators, however, will not be required to forfeit their pay for 37 days of the regular 85-day legislative session during which they do not meet.

            In its original wording, HB-1296 stipulated that state employees would simply be required to take annual or accrued leave time for legal holidays. Somewhere along the way, however, someone must have realized that scenario presented no savings to the state since employees would receive pay whether they worked or took annual leave. Accordingly, the bill was amended to force employees to take legal holidays without pay.

            The bill, which was changed to HB-1478, was approved without objection by the House and Governmental Affairs Committee and now goes to the House floor for approval.

            Schroder was subjected to a flurry of emails from outraged state employees after his original bill calling for employees to take leave for holidays became public. He repeatedly refused to answer specific questions, saying things like, “(I’m) not sure what games you are playing, but I don’t have the time. You have no idea what’s going on and it’s clear you have an agenda slanted to the unproductive side. Keep spewing your anger across the state. In the end, I am working to solve problems and those willing to learn and listen can contribute right along as we work to make La. a better state.”

            On another occasion, when a writer asked why he did not address questions directed to him, Schroder responded simply, “God bless you.”

            One of those questions asked if Schroder had accepted a $14 increase in per diem payments (from $145 to $159) that went into effect on Oct. 1, 2009, a 9 percent increase at a time when Schroder was leading the efforts to abolish what he called “automatic” 4 percent merit increases for state workers. Merit increases for state employees are not automatic and in fact, once an employee receives all the step increases allowed for that pay grade, there are no more increases unless the employee takes another job or is promoted to a higher pay grade.

            Another question which Schroder refused to answer was whether or not he had accepted the $159 per diem for the 37 days (12 Fridays, 12 Saturdays, 12 Sundays, and Memorial Day) during which neither the House nor the Senate convenes. The per diem for those 37 days comes to $5,883 per legislator, or $847,152 for all 144 members. Memorial Day is one of the holidays for which state employees would receive no pay next year if HB-1478 becomes law.

            Schroder was also asked, but again refused to answer, if he was the primary author of HB-753, which would abolish the State Civil Service Commission and the Department of State Civil Service, effective Jan. 9, 2012. That bill, which calls for a constitutional amendment to be decided at the Nov. 2 statewide election, would dissolve the only avenue available to state employees to address grievances. State Civil Service prohibits state classified employees from contributing to or participating in political campaigns on behalf of any candidate. One of the reasons for the existence of civil service is for the protection of state employees. In the days of the old spoils system, employees were beholden to those elected officials and it spawned what is known as the “deduct box” more commonly associated with the administration of Huey Long.

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Here’s how we got where we are

Posted in Budget, Civil Service, Economy, Education, Governor's Office, Health Care, House, Senate, Layoffs, Legislature, Legislators, Politicians, Taxes, Transparency on July 28, 2010| Leave a Comment »

            The 2010 regular legislative session stumbled to a finish this week with the usual bickering over budget cuts for education and public health and appropriations for legislators’ home districts. Only this year the cuts were deeper in an effort to offset as much as $300 million in deficits which caused the local pork projects to be even more questionable.

            Even as state property was being sold off, agencies privatized, education and health care budgets slashed, and merit increases for state classified employees frozen (because the raises would cost the state $20 million), lawmakers managed to tack on $33 million in amendments to HB-76 to fund pet projects in their districts.

Otherwise known as the ancillary fund, or the Supplemental Appropriations Bill, HB-76 passed both houses without a negative vote, passing 88-0 in the House with 15 absentees, and 37-0 in the Senate with two members not present.

            Those not voting included Reps. James Armes (D-Leesville), Gordon Dove (R-Houma), Noble Ellington (D-Winnsboro), Rickey Hardy (D-Lafayette), Lowell Hazel (R-Pineville), Nita Hutter (R-Chalmette), Chuck Kleckley (R-Lake Charles), John LaBruzzo (R-Metairie), Bernard LeBas (D-Ville Platte), Nick Monica (R-LaPlace), Kevin Pearson (R-Slidell), Erich Ponti (R-Baton Rouge), Gary Smith (D-Norco), Ricky Templet (R-Gretna), and Ernest Wooton (R-Belle Chasse), and Sens. Daniel Martiny (R-Baton Rouge), and Joe McPherson (D-Baton Rouge).

            HB-76, with the $33 million in amendments, includes but is not limited to the following appropriations:

  • Nearly $1.5 million on 50 parish councils on aging;
  • More than $3.75 million for municipalities and parishes for unspecific purposes;
  • Eddie Robinson Museum in Grambling ($20,000);
  • Festival and cultural activities ($40,000);
  • Louisiana Council on the Social Status of Black Boys and Men ($100,000);
  • Greenwell Springs Road Economic Development District ($100,000);
  • Louisiana Political Hall of Fame and Museum in Winnfield ($150,000);
  • Arts Program for decentralized arts ($750,000);
  • Jefferson Performing Arts Society ($210,000);
  • Jefferson Parish Human Services Authority ($255,000);
  • Livingston Parish for economic development studies for a parish airport ($25,000);
  • Vernon Parish Police Jury for fairground cattle fences ($20,000);
  • Tioga High School in Rapides Parish ($20,000);
  • Ouachita Parish for rehabilitation of J.S. Clark Cemetery ($30,000);
  • Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans ($100,000);
  • Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans, Foster Grandparents program ($40,000);
  • East New Orleans Neighborhood Advisory Commission ($70,000);
  • Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Department’s Cops and Clergy Program ($25,000);
  • Tipitina’s Foundation in New Orleans ($10,000);
  • Construction of an animal shelter in St. Charles Parish ($250,000);
  • Animal shelter operations, St. Charles Parish ($50,000);
  • Construction of an emergency operations center in St. Charles Parish ($100,000);
  • St. Charles Parish Hospital for emergency room equipment ($175,000);
  • Gretna Fest ($200,000);
  • Heritage Festival in Gretna ($10,000);
  • Baton Rouge park improvements ($100,000);
  • Terrebonne Parish regional military museum ($20,000);
  • Farmers’ and Fishermens’ Market in Westwego ($100,000);
  • Westwego Performing Arts Center ($250,000);
  • Northeast Louisiana Delta African American Heritage Museum ($5,000);
  • New Orleans for workforce development, cultural, and enrichment programs ($300,000);
  • Renovation of high school gym in Marksville into a community center ($200,000);
  • New Orleans recreational and cultural activities ($75,000);
  • Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carre in New Orleans ($25,000);
  • Louisiana Center Against Poverty, Lake Providence ($150,000);
  • City of Alexandria for health care related to sickle cell anemia ($35,000);
  • North Iberville Community Center ($50,000);
  • DeRidder Area Ministerial Alliance for God’s Food Box ($15,000);
  • Doyle High School in Livingston for band equipment ($10,000);

            The appropriations for municipalities and parishes, for the most part, were approved with little or no explanation or justification other than for “infrastructure improvements.”

            Other appropriations amended into HB-76 by legislators were for police and sheriff’s departments, local fire departments, voluntary fire departments, parks, libraries, water and sewer systems, airports, parks, road repair and construction, and non-profit entities.

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We don’t need no stinking discipline

Posted in Budget, Campaign Contributions, Civil Service, Economy, Education, Ethics, Golf Courses, Governor's Office, Health Care, Higher Education, House, Senate, Jobs, Layoffs, Legislature, Legislators, Lobbyist, Politicians, Transparency on July 28, 2010| Leave a Comment »

            If the recently-concluded legislative session proved anything, it’s that lawmakers have little or no self-discipline when it comes to budgetary restraint in the face of overwhelming revenue shortfalls.

            Even as higher education was groping with ways to survive up to $310 million in cuts, legislators went on their annual spending binge. As if the $4.55 billion capital outlay budget crammed with local pork were not enough, legislators raided more than $140 million from the state emergency response fund, earmarking an additional $33 million for even more local projects in the ancillary budget, also identified as HB-76.

            The cuts to the Department of Health and Hospitals and higher education seemed not to matter a whit to some lawmakers. Rep. James Fannin (D-Jonesboro), defending the HB-76 pork, sniffed, “I don’t have an LSU in my district,” apparently forgetting for the moment that he most likely has quite a few constituents enrolled at LSU as well as LSU-Shreveport, Southern University-Shreveport, Northwestern State University, Louisiana Tech University, Grambling State University, or the University of Louisiana Monroe, all within an hour’s drive from his district.

            Not that LSU helped itself in the fiscal doom and gloom dialogue.

            Even as LSU System President John Lombardi was busy identifying $46 million in potential budget cuts, the LSU Board of Supervisors approved pay increases for two associate athletic directors. While faculty and support staff layoffs were being considered across campus, Senior Associate Athletic Director Verge Ausberry was awarded a 27 percent raise from $130,000 to $165,000. Fellow Senior Associate AD Mark Ewing, meanwhile, got a pay bump of 11 percent, from $155,000 to $172,000.

            Nor did Gov. Bobby Jindal attempt to stare down lawmakers, possibly out of concern of pushing the legislature into holding the first-ever veto session. He managed to veto 32 projects in HB-76 totaling only $2 million, leaving $31 million intact, and only eight projects totaling $20.1 million of the capital outlay bill (HB-2), trimming those expenditures all the way to $4.35 billion.

            For a year or more now, the media have trumpeted impending fiscal disaster as revenue shortfalls devastated agency budgets across the board. Yet lawmakers, seemingly oblivious to it all, continued to plow local projects into a budget already strained to the breaking point. If any of the 144 legislators were worried, no one appeared to exhibit concern. So eager to bring money back home were legislators that a $100,000 appropriation for Centenary College in Shreveport, a private Methodist school, was approved.

            Among the projects legislators poured into the Supplemental Appropriations Bill (HB-76) and the Capital Outlay Bill (HB-2) were:

  • Nearly $1.5 million on 50 parish councils on aging;
  • More than $29 million for municipalities and parishes for unspecified purposes;
  • $43.7 million in arts programs statewide;
  • $600,000 for an animal shelters in St. Charles and Livingston parishes;
  • $6.9 million for the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in Natchitoches;
  • $18.7 million for professional sports facilities in Jefferson and Orleans parishes;
  • $12.7 million for golf complex facilities in Orleans and Calcasieu parishes;
  • $9.37 million in ground water reservoirs;
  • $7.5 million in local sewer system projects;
  • $19.9 million in local courthouse construction projects;
  • $17.1 million for Bayou Segnette Festival Park and Sports Complex improvements;
  • $18.5 million for recreational improvements in Jefferson, Vernon, Tangipahoa, Orleans, East Baton Rouge, and Iberia parishes;
  • $3.8 million for an activity center in Morehouse Parish;
  • $3.5 million for land acquisition in St. James Parish;
  • $4.6 million for renovations to the Baton Rouge River Center;
  • $1.4 million for baseball stadium improvements in Baton Rouge;
  • $1.17 million for renovations to the Zephyrs baseball facilities in Jefferson Parish;
  • $3.5 million for museums throughout the state;
  • $2 million for a farmers and fisheries market in Jefferson Parish;
  • $11 million for the Audubon 2000 renovations;
  • $3.8 million for tennis center improvements at New Orleans City Park;
  • $26.5 million for the National World War II Museum;
  • $400,000 for a bike trail in Orleans Parish;
  • $1.7 million for the Little Theatre of Shreveport;
  • $1.1 million for the Louisiana Military Hall of Fame & Museum in Houma;
  • $1.8 million for a multi-purpose vocational center and shelter in Tangipahoa Parish;
  • $2.6 million for the Algiers Development District;
  • $2 million for the New Orleans Music Hall of Fame;
  • $2.4 million for YMCA facilities in Orleans and East Baton Rouge parishes;
  • $2.3 million for multi-purpose facilities in Franklin and East Baton Rouge parishes;
  • $5.4 million for the Forts Randolph and Buhlow Historic Site;

            Several million in additional funding was approved for local fire districts, police departments, municipal buildings, and sheriffs’ offices, bringing the cost of local pork projects to more than half-a-billion dollars, easily surpassing the $310 million in budget reductions to higher education.

            In the wake of such a bleak financial future currently being faced by the state, the obvious question is who would vote for such reckless spending? Try 86 of 105 House members and 35 of 39 Senators on HB-2. On HB-76 (the Supplemental Spending Bill), the count was 88 House members in favor and 37 Senators. In fact, it would be easier to name those who voted against the bills. Those figures are seven nays in the house for HB-2 and zero in the Senate. Zero was also the number of votes against HB-76 in both chambers though there were some notable absentees.

            House members voting against HB-2 were Jerry Gisclair of LaRose, Juan LaFonta of New Orleans, Rogers Pope of Denham Springs, Clifton Richardson of Baton Rouge, John Schroder of Abita Springs, M.S. “Mert” Smiley of Port Vincent, Mack “Bodi” White of Denham Springs.

            Absent House members or those not voting included Elton Aubert of Vacherie, Jared Brossett of New Orleans, Timothy Burns of Mandeville, Billy Chandler of Dry Prong, Gordon Dove of Houma, James Fannin of Jonesboro, A.B. Franklin of Lake Charles, John LaBruzzo of Metairie, Joseph Lopinto of Metairie, Rickey Nowlin of Natchitoches, Joel Robideaux of Lafayette and Karen St. Germain of Plaquemine.

            Senate members who apparently were too busy to vote on the second biggest spending bill on the final day of the session included Jack Donahue of Mandeville, Dale Erdy of Livingston, Robert Kostelka of Monroe and Jean-Paul Morrell of New Orleans.

            House absentees on the vote on HB-76 were James Armes of Leesville, Dove, Noble Ellington of Winnsboro, Rickey Hardy of Lafayette, Lowell Hazel of Pineville, Nita Rusich Hutter of Chalmette, Charles “Chuck” Kleckley of Lake Charles, LaBruzzo, H. Bernard LeBas of Ville Platte, Nickie Monica of LaPlace, J. Kevin Pearson of Slidell, Erich Ponti of Baton Rouge, Gary Smith of Norco, Ricky Templet of Gretna, and Ernest Wooton of Belle Chasse.

            Only two senators did not vote up or down on HB-76. They were Daniel Martiny of Metairie and Joe McPherson of Woodworth.

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Gross Ignorance and the Louisiana Legislature

Posted in Budget, Civil Service, Education, Ethics, Golf Courses, Governor's Office, Health Care, Higher Education, House, Senate, Legislature, Legislators, Lobbyist, Politicians, Revenue, Transparency on July 28, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Gross Ignorance and the Louisiana Legislature

            In keeping with the imminent opening of the 2010 Louisiana legislative session on March 29, today’s civics lesson will consider the origins of the term gross ignorance.

            Anyone in commercial shipping, purchasing, or inventory knows that a gross is a dozen dozen, or 144. So how does that translate to gross ignorance and what could it possibly have to do with the approaching session?

            Simple. There are 144 members of the Louisiana Legislature. Next question.

            As of close of business on March 19, more than 1200 bills had been pre-filed for consideration in this year’s session. There likely will be hundreds more before the opening gavel. Many of these same bills pop up every year and are summarily killed in committee.

There are also many bills that overlap or which are redundant. And even as legislators deplore overcrowded conditions in the state’s prisons, each successive year finds a glut of bills by pro-law-and-order legislators seeking to impose stricter penalties on a wide range of crimes which, if passed, would—you guessed it—add to prison overcrowding.

Then there are the bills that are self-serving at best and inane at worst. But even the occasional bill that has merit might be misunderstood if one goes only by the summary provided by the House in the list of bills pre-filed so far. These are the ones we will look at today. Here are the verbatim summaries in italics, followed by my comments. You are free to write your own.

HB8: Provides for the disposal of noncontraband unclaimed property seized in certain criminal investigations. “You take the Rolex; I’ll take the BMW….”

            HB16: Provides for the certification of concealed handgun permit instructors. Why would we want to certify a concealed instructor?

            HB22: Deletes the requirement that all witnesses to the execution of a death sentence shall be Louisiana citizens. We believe Texans could learn from us.

            HB26: Creates the crime of simple battery during a parade. As opposed to, say, during an opera?

            HB101: Provides term limits for judges, district attorneys, and sheriffs. Some of those should be limited to zero terms.

            HB103: Creates the crime of unlawfully wearing clothing which exposes undergarments or certain body parts. About time someone criminalized bad taste. But you still can’t fix stupid.

            HB112: Creates the crime of obstructing a law enforcement officer. Obviously, this legislator has never watched COPS.

            HB133: Provides relative to the authority of members of the legislature to attend meetings of public bodies. Like maybe legislative committee meetings and floor sessions?

            HB135: Provides sanctions for frivolous appeals and writ applications. How about filing frivolous bills?

            HB149: Authorizes per diem for the members of the St. Helena Parish Tourist Commission. Has any tourist ever set foot in St. Helena Parish? On purpose?

            HB155: Allows a ticket to an athletic contest of an institution of higher education to be sold for more than face value in certain situations. Like when a legislator has a schedule conflict and wants to unload his primo tickets.

            HB159: Prohibits governing authorities from imposing civil fines for traffic violations without a vote of the people. This bill was withdrawn before its author was totally embarrassed.

            HB211: Allows off-road vehicles to be operated on state college and university streets. This would be right after the keg party at the frat house.

            HB212: Authorizes a federal judge to perform a marriage ceremony for a specified limited time period. Marriage ceremonies have always been too long anyway.

            HB256: Prohibits the Port of New Orleans from expanding its territorial jurisdiction. Like to, say, Dry Prong.

            HB257: Provides relative to academic tutoring for certain student athletes in public elementary and secondary schools. Elementary schools? Really?

            HB261: Re-creates the Department of State. Hillary will be happy to know this.

            HB270: Provides for additional tuition charges on a per-hour basis. Would a student get a rebate for cutting class?

            HB271: Creates the crime of illegally selling urine or adulterants to circumvent screening tests. A guy would hate do this only to learn that tests showed he was pregnant.

            HB296: Allows a public servant to accept certain gifts for customary social occasions. This would put civil servants on an equal footing with legislators who never gave up the gifts.

            HB298: Allows persons riding bicycles upon a roadway, which includes an improved shoulder, the option of riding on the improved shoulder. As opposed to the ditch?

            HB301: Grants the Louisiana Tax Commission the authority to manage its own budget, procurement, and general management and operational functions. Finally! The agency that takes our tax money is going to be trusted with handling its own finances. Beautiful.

            HB312: Allows minors at least 16 years of age to donate blood with parental consent. In our day, that was called discipline.

            HB320: Provides for the confiscation and destruction of a criminal instrument. That should take care of my neighbor’s guitar.

            HB348: Amends penalties imposed for a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. Be careful, he’s armed.

HB350: Increases fine for seat belt violations. Just how does one go about violating a seat belt?

            HB356: Designates an overpass. Okay, it’s an overpass.

            HB361: Creates the crime of battery of a health care provider. See HB 26 above.

            HB364: Provides relative to the Horsemen’s Workers’ Compensation Program. Wait. What?

            HB369: Authorizes DOTD (Department of Transportation and Development) to use monies from the Transportation Trust Fund to fund ferries that are not connected to state roads. Everybody knows that in Louisiana, you have to be connected to get funded.

            HB372: Repeals provisions relative to speed limits on I-10 in St. Tammany Parish. What, are they also going to rename it Autobahn II?

            HB374: Limits fines imposed for traffic offenses captured by automated traffic enforcement systems. Guess who got busted?

            HB380: Provides for the definition of “rural hospital.” That would be a facility where Jethro Bodine is the brain surgeon and they use a real live Labrador for lab tests and a real live cat for CAT scans.

            HB396: Provides for changes to the Louisiana Underground Utilities and Facilities Damage Prevention Law. For starters, make the name shorter.

            HB419: Requires law enforcement officials to undergo training on the use of tasers. Aren’t they proficient enough already?

            HB421: Provides relative to the authority of a local school board to deny admission or readmission to school of certain students.

            HB422: Provides relative to children exempted from the compulsory school attendance law. That would be the students from HB421 above.

            HB469: Provides for additional processing fees relative to the expungement of arrest records. Okay, we’re gonna clear your record on that false arrest but it’s gonna cost you.

            HB470: Prohibits a person 70 years old or older from qualifying for elective office. You may want to take a hard look at those under 70 as well.

            HB496: Merges the Fertilizer Commission and the Louisiana Feed Commission. If there’s anything the legislature should know about, it’s fertilizer.

            HB529: Requires instruction with respect to sex education in public schools. Let’s not go there.

            HB566: Requires disclosure by certain officials of information relative to employment and appointment of campaign contributors. This could be a real sticky wicket.

            HB574: Prohibits certain pest control operators from providing services.

            HB609: Provides with respect to the crime of home invasion. Would this be the pest or the pest control operator from HB574?

            HB594: Provides for traffic regulation of intersection when traffic control signal is inoperative. There’s a law for that already; it’s called a four-way stop.

            HB606: Provides for the prohibition of swine running at large. There’s a joke there but it’s better left unsaid.

            HB636: Authorizes free and unhampered passage on the Tomey J. Doucet Bridge for certain emergency vehicles of the Town of Grand Isle. Have they actually been charging ambulances a fee? Must be where they got the idea for that toll booth scene in Blazing Saddles.

            HB647: Allows publicly owned fire trucks with fire apparatuses to use blue lights. Deep down, those guys have always wanted to be cops.

            HB689: Provides for fraudulent practices during an auction. If anyone would know how to provide for fraudulent practices, it would be the legislature.

            HB700: Exempts church camps from enforcement of building code standards. I see a problem with this. Seriously.

            HB705: Requires public entities to give preference to state banks. Are there any left?

            HB731: Provides a public records exception for certain confidential reports made to the Board of Ethics. Uh, wouldn’t that be unethical?

            HB770: Requires each public college and university to readmit its graduates, without charging tuition and fees, if such a graduate cannot find or looses employment because his degree did not prepare him for employment in a profession related to his degree. How about free tuition to legislators who don’t know the difference between the proper usages of looses and loses?

            HB779: Provides relative to the Horsemen’s Benevolent Program Association. Just what in the name of Beelzebub is the Horsemen’s Benevolent Program Association?

            HB827: Provides for changes for the disbursement of monies collected for the Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association. Them again? And this time it’s a protective association.

            HB859: Prohibits certain traffic cameras on highways that receive public funding. Someone else got busted.

            HB867: Provides for the reduction of a defendant’s sentence for substantial assistance in an investigation or prosecution. I’ll talk if you let me walk. What’s wrong with this picture?

            HB969: Provides relative to qualifications for election as a member on a school board. A high school diploma would be a good start.

            HB1010: Provides for alternate means of proof that paper is manufactured in the state. Say what?

            HB1086: Provides relative to an organ donation opt-out program. I want my Kidney back.

            HB1124: Requires notices of deficiencies. Uh, can you be just a bit vaguer?

            HB1130: Creates the Louisiana Performance Horse Promotion Act. Again with the horses already?

            HB1147: Prohibits a policyholder from allowing any person excluded from liability coverage to drive the covered vehicle.

            HB1148: Prohibits the exclusion of any person from coverage under a motor vehicle liability policy. The last two bills were authored by the same legislator.

            Now you understand the meaning and the origins of the term gross ignorance.

            We hope to offer lessons in political rationale and progressive legislative in the future, but that prospect remains in doubt.

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Louisiana Legislative Salaries

Posted in Budget, Civil Service, Economy, Ethics, Governor's Office, House, Senate, Legislature, Legislators, Politicians, Public Records, Revenue, Transparency on June 12, 2010| 1 Comment »

There’s a dirty little secret your legislators don’t want you to know.

Hiding behind the misnomer “automatic,” they were quick to agree to freeze state classified employee pay raises, but considerably more reluctant to take action adverse to their own part-time legislative income. But first, let us debunk what lawmakers prefer to disparingly refer to as “automatic” 4 percent annual raises for state civil service employees. The increases attacked by the Gang of 144 are merit increases and they are neither automatic nor annual. There comes a time when an employee maxes out on his or her raises and unless the employee is promoted or takes another job in state government, the raises, no matter how well the employee performs, stop. Period.

Of course, that’s not the case with legislators. Just last October, a true “automatic” increase from $145 to $159 in legislative per diem kicked in, giving legislators an automatic–and secret–increase of 9.5 percent. That’s $159 per day for every day of the 85-day session (60 days in odd-numbered years–$13,515 and $9,540 per session, respectively) despite the fact that neither the House nor the Senate meets on Fridays, Saturdays, or Sundays. Neither do they meet on Memorial Day. That’s as many as 37 days during the 85-day session and 24 days in odd-numbered years during which they do not convene but for which they are paid nonetheless. That’s $847,152 during the 85-day sessions and $549,504 during 60-day sessions that is paid to members in abstention. Pro-rate that over 10 years and you can see how members of the legislature have ripped the state of to the tune of nearly $7 million–and that doesn’t even include special sessions that may arise.

But wait! There’s more!

Legislators draw a flat salary of $16,800 per year. Per diem for an 85-day session adds another $13,515 (60-day session per diem payments come to $9,540). Each legislator also receives an un-vouchered expense allowance of $6,000, plus up to $1,500 per month in other vouchered expenses. That comes to $50,340 to $54,315, depending on odd- or even-year sessions but not counting special sessions, for a part-time job. Either figure is considerably more than the average civil service employee makes for his or her full-time service. Moreover, each legislator receives a laptop computer for the Capitol, a desktop computer with high-speed internet service, up to three telephone lines for his or her district office, and up to $3,000 per month for the salary of a legislative aide. Finally, legislators serving on or before Jan. 1, 1997, or who were already participating in a public retirement system at that time, are eligible for retirement benefits of 3.5 percent of the member’s annual salary for each year of service. State civil service employees, by comparison, receive 2.5 percent of their annual salaries in retirement benefits.

Other Southern States.

Georgia legislators, make $49,000 a year which is comparable to Louisiana if you don’t count the perks provided their counterparts in Louisiana. In Alabama, lawmakers make about $33,110 per year and in Mississippi, the Senate took the unique step this year of voting 39-2 to lower legislators’ salaries by 10 percent. The measure, however, died in the House. Still Mississippi legislators make only $10,000 per year and in Arkansas, legislators draw a whopping $12,796 per year. Before you praise Mississippi too much, however, it should be noted that the legislature cut social welfare by 23.16 percent this year and hospitals and hospital schools by 16.68 percent. The smallest budget cut, however, was that of the legislature, which slashed its own budget by a measley 1.06 percent. Public education in Mississippi was cut by 5.73 percent and higher education’s cut was 3.42 percent and even as teachers across the state were facing layoffs, SB 2610 authorized increases of up to $8,300 per year to district attorneys in Mississippi.

Louisiana doesn’t seem to be unique when it comes to questionable legislation. Still, state civil service employees were caught off-guard when Rep. John M. Schroder (R-Abita Springs) attempted to push through legislation that would have forced them to take unpaid leave on legal holidays. As the controversy swirled around his proposed bill, he was asked to respond yes or no to a number of questions, one of which was “Have you accepted the $14 per day increase in per diem payments that automatically went into effect last October?” his response was a somewhat non-committal, “God bless you.” His bill to strip paid leave for holidays from employees failed.

Another bill that calls the courage of some 21 House members into question was HB 1390 by Rep. Jerome “Dee” Richard (I-Thibodaux).

Richard, apparently recognizing the double standard of legislators’ accepting a 9.6% increase in per diem while denying 4% merit increases for classified employees, proposed freezing the per diem rate at $159 for two years, until July 2, 2012.

Richard’s bill, when brought brfore the full House, received 51 votes with 31 voting against HB 1390–just two votes shy of the majority needed for passage.

Those voting in favor of the bill: Damone Baldone, Taylor Barras, Robert Billiot, Jared Brossett, Richard Burford, Henry Burns, Tim Burns, Stephen Carter, Simone Champagne, Charles Chaney, Patrick Connick, Patrick Cortez, George Cromer, Michael Danahay, Herbert Dixon, Franklin Foil, Richard Gallot, Brett Geymann, Jerry Gisclair, Rickey Hardy, Lowell Hazel, Cameron Henry, Dorothy Hill, Frank Hoffmann, Nita Hutter, Robert Johnson, Sam Jones, Chuck Kleckley, John LaBruzzo, Nancy Landry, Walt Leger, Anthony Ligi, Samuel Little, Nick Lorusso, Rickey Nowlin, Kevin Pearson, Jonathan Perry, Rogers Pope, Jerome Richard, Clifton Richardson, Cedric Richmond, Christopher Roy, John Schroder, Gary Smith, Jane Smith, Karen St. Germain, Charmaine Stiaes, Kirk Talbot, Major Thibaut, Wayne Waddell, and Thomas Willmott.

Voting against the bill: House Speaker Jim Tucker, John Anders, James Armes, Jerrery Arnold, Elton Aubert, Austin Badon, Bobby Badon, Thomas Carmody, Billy Chandler, Jean Doerge, John Edwards, Hunter Greene, Joe Harrison, Reed Henderson, Frank Howard, Girod Jackson, Michael Jackson, Kay Katz, Eddie Lambert, Bernard LeBas, Joseph Lopinto, Tom McVea, Nickie Montica, Jack Montoucet, Barbara Norton, Stephen Pugh, Harold Ritchie, Joel Robideaux, Scott Simon, Patricia Smith, and Ernest Wooton.

Considering the financial plight of the state as a whole and the denial of merit raises for deserving employees in particular, we’re not at all pleased with those who voted to keep their own automatic increases but those who took a walk during the vote are particularly worthy of our disdain. A vote this important demands that each member display a modicum of courage and vote his or her convictions. To do otherwise is cowardly and demands an explanation.

So, here are those who did not vote on a key issue that failed by only two votes: Neil Abramson, Regina Barrow, Roy Burrell, Gordon Dove, Hollis Downs, Noble Ellington, James Fannin, A.B. Franklin, Mickey Guillory, John Guinn, Walker Hines, Rosalind Jones, Juan LaFonta, Fred Mills, James Morris, Erich Ponti, M.J. Smiley, Rickey Templet, Ledricka Thierry, Mack White, and Patrick Williams.

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