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Times-Picayune
That’s the direct result of meddling by Gov. Jeff Landry and his unofficial aide, Shane Guidry, and it causes us great concern. The Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East was formed back in 2006, when a citizen-led reform movement spurred the creation of one regional authority for the east bank flood basin and one for the west, replacing multiple boards broken up along parish lines that have nothing to do with how water flows. This happened after the catastrophic flooding following Hurricane Katrina, and the subsequent discovery that the federally built and maintained flood protection infrastructure that guarded New Orleans was faulty. So, it seemed, was the local board’s oversight, which was often focused on other things such as managing real estate holdings and policing nearby neighborhoods. These new boards, recommended by and stacked with people with relevant expertise rather than political connections, were created via constitutional amendment by an overwhelming 81% statewide vote. But now, the east bank authority is in the sights of a governor who is looking to bring appointed boards all over the state more under his control. The first sign that something was up came at the end of last year’s legislative session, when Landry — with no explanation — refused to ask lawmakers to confirm the board appointment of Norma Jean Mattei, a professor of civil engineering at the University of New Orleans, a former president of the American Society of Civil Engineers and one of the most qualified candidates the board has ever had, according to Jay Lapeyre, the longtime chair of the nominating committees for both regional boards. Since then, Guidry, who has said he wants to streamline the agency’s operations, save taxpayer money and better utilize the board’s police force, has worked with his handpicked chair to push the board not to hire a director for the agency, but to instead allow its police chief to assume many of the director’s duties. He has called for an end to the nominating committees, and actually accused members of being “scammers who are just out for themselves,” without explaining what he means. In response to all this, four members have now resigned from the nine-member board, leaving it with the bare minimum membership to conduct some business and short of the minimum needed to approve infrastructure projects. We don’t know what the administration’s end game here is, but we know what it should be: a singular focus by knowledgeable professionals on making sure the area is as protected from flooding as it possibly can be. That’s what this newspaper supported in 2006, and what a massive majority of voters back then said they clearly wanted. That’s what they still deserve. Comments are closed.
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