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Sunday, May 3, 2015 THE LAFOURCHE GAZETTE
Tobacco From 1-A
At 5 p.m. on Friday, March 13, Jindal’s office announced the appointment of four members to a state-run corporation that oversees Louisiana’s tobacco borrowing. Four days later, the corporation’s 13member board held a hastily called meeting to approve a $750 million deal with the help of Citigroup. That didn’t sit well with Treasurer John Neely Kennedy, also a Republican, who sits on the board along with Jindal’s appointees and other statewide elected officials. “This is about the last savings account left that we haven’t taken money from,� Kennedy complained at the March session. The deal would pledge 40 percent of Louisiana’s annual tobacco settlement revenues in bond repayment that would stretch out nearly 30 years. In 2001 and 2013, the state borrowed against the other 60 percent of its tobacco settlement money, netting about $1.2 billion. Citigroup served as an underwriter in 2013. Turning recurring revenues like the tobacco money into upfront payouts is widely considered poor fiscal management. “You’re borrowing money from the future to pay today’s expenses. That’s how we got into this problem, and this is only kicking the can down the road and paying interest on top of it,� said Steven Procopio, Policy Director for Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana, a Baton Rouge research group that has studied the state’s financial woes. Firms like Citigroup get paid based on the size of the bond issue, creating an incentive for big deals. A Citigroup spokesman declined to comment. Given the size of the new Citigroup deal – it would be Louisiana’s second-biggest bond issue after the original 2001 tobacco bond sale – Kennedy wanted to bid out the underwriting and related services contracts to ensure the best price. A spokeswoman for the Louisiana Treasury said it would have been “best practice� to do so. Competitive bids aren’t mandatory under Louisiana law, state budget officials said, but the deal requires approval by the legislature, which adjourns on June 11. With pressure to meet that deadline, the state de-
cided to hire Citigroup without a competitive bidding process. A sale agreement dated June 1 has already been drafted, documents obtained through a public records request show. “This whole thing has been ass-backwards,� Kennedy told ProPublica. “It’s all about getting their hands on the money, and it is not in the best interest of the taxpayers.� Kristy Nichols, top budget officer for Jindal and chairwoman of the tobacco board, said money from the bond sale won’t be spent all at once. The bonds will be sold in three stages. Proceeds will pay for two constitutionally dedicated funds – one for state college scholarships and another for coastal restoration – over the next eight years. If the legislature decides to spend the money more quickly, Jindal’s administration won’t support the transaction, Nichols said. “It needs to be protected and it needs to be paid out incrementally over the next eight years,� she said. The downside is that the state will have to pay fees three times, once for each transaction. But Nichols said the state has locked in a good price based on an earlier transaction Citigroup and other advisors did for the state. Officials estimate about $2 million in fees for the first $300 million bond sale, which implies about $5 million in total fees for whole eight-year plan. By the ninth year, the hope is that the Louisiana’s 2001 tobacco bonds will be paid back, returning that income stream to the state budget. Kennedy – who’s served as treasurer since 2000 – isn’t so sure it’ll play out that way. “This is my worry,� he said at the March meeting: “You dangle $700 million dollars in front of the Louisiana legislature right now, and it’s going to be spent as fast as green grass through a goose.�
Give Bayou From 1-A
From 12:00 a.m. through 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, May 5, people will be able to log on to www.GiveNOLA.org and place a donation for the organization of their choice. Donations can be as low as $10 dollars allowing people from most financial back-
grounds to become a generous philanthropist. Over 550 non-profits in total will be participating across Louisiana including 40 non-profits from Lafourche, Terrebonne, and Grand Isle. Some of the non-profits present at the conference included Bayou Playhouse, The Foundation For Terrebonne General Medical Center, New Life Counseling Center, and the Bayou Country Children’s Museum. The kick-off conference last Tuesday at the Government Complex was a chance to both meet the 40 local non-profits and for the local parish presidents to show their support. Bayou Community Foundation’s Coordinator, Jennifer Armand, hosted the event and began with introducing the local nonprofits’ representatives standing behind her. “The forty organizations participating in the GiveNOLA Day for the bayou region have really inspired me as a person for the work that they do for the bayou region and also their dedication to work together on this special day to raise money for their efforts and the efforts of the other organizations in our region to really lift our bayou region community and to make it stronger, better, and more sustainable in the years to come,� said Armand Armand also explained that additional Lagniappe dollars will be given to organizations for every dollar that individuals donate for each particular organization on Tuesday. Every donation to one’s non-profit of choice will increase their Lagniappe dollars and chances to win extra awards and hourly prizes. Last year GiveNOLA Day raised $2.25 million dollars total and this year their goal is to raise at least $3 million. Lafourche Parish President Charlotte Randolph and Terrebonne Parish President Michel Claudet both came up and spoke to the audience, expressing their gratitude toward the 40 non-profits that stood behind them. “They are the day to day people who make a difference in people’s lives in Lafourche Parish,� said Randolph. “I’ve said time and time again that government cannot solve our problems. People in our community solve our problems,� said Claudet, gesturing toward the non-profits. Claudet also decided to shake things up a little at the conference by announcing that he would be sending in a $500 donation and challenging his fellow elected officials to do the
same, playfully calling out Randolph. Representatives from the non-profits jokingly asked where he would be having his lunch so that they could lobby for his donation. The government officials showed nothing but support and admiration for the non-profit organizations. “This is so very exciting because it is an opportunity to choose one or choose all to donate to. There are so many good causes out there that can help other people in our community with your ten, fifty, or one hundred dollar donation. Anything that you decide to give will make a difference in the life of someone in this community. Isn’t that a tremendous effort,� said Randolph. Locals interested in donating and learning more about their community’s non-profits are also invited to have lunch at one of the “Give Bayou Celebrations� that will also be held on May 5 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at either the Terrebonne Waterlife Museum at 7910 West Park Avenue in downtown Houma or at the Lafourche Parish Pavilion on LA 1 in Raceland. Lunches will be $5 dollars apiece which will go to the non-profits participating in “Give Bayou.� Laptops will be provided for guests to make online donations and representatives from the nonprofit organizations will be there to explain what they do. To learn more about our local non-profits and how to support them go to www.GiveBayou.org or go to Give Bayou or GiveNOLA Day on Facebook and Twitter. “We are united with you, we urge everyone out there on this very special day to give everything that they can. Those who don’t have a hundred thousand dollars can give ten dollars and if we can get enough people to give it will equal that amount. This is an opportunity for all of us to make a difference,� said Randolph.
Arrest reports
The following information is based on reports from the Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office. Those individuals have been booked with, not convicted of, the offences shown. All accused should be presumed innocent until proved guilty.
APRIL 27, 2015 Thibodaux Police Department Quincy Johnson, 32, Thibodaux. Fugitive. Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office Jmikel Verdin, 22, Labadieville. Contempt of court. Pierre Allen, 27, Cut Off. Public intimidation. Jai Fonseca, 25, Lockport. Contempt of court. Elvis Babin, 45, Raceland. Contempt of court. Kendell Dwayne Johnson, 34, Montegut. Contempt of court. Eric John Laughlin, 40, Thibodaux. Contempt of court. APRIL 28, 2015 Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office Jordan Picou, 22, Lockport. Aggravated battery w/dangerous weapon. Sonya Thompson, 25, Houma. Fail to register and notify as a sex offender. Danielle Hebert, 47, Cut Off. Contempt of court Crystal LeBlanc, 44, Lockport. Contempt of court. Allen Cuevas, Jr., 36, Galliano. Assault on a child welfare worker. Andrea Williams, 31, Thibodaux. Contempt of court.
Carleton Santiny, 45, Grand Isle. Battery of a police officer, resisting an officer, contempt of court. Michelle Folse, 45, Lockport. Contempt of court (2 cts). Aaron Guidry, Jr., 47, Thibodaux. Disturbing the peace-appearing in an intoxicated cond., poss. of marijuana 1st offense. Adrianne Legarde, 31, Raceland. Failure of sex offender to notify law enforcement of change of address/residence or other registration information (felony). Thibodaux Police Department Quincey Johnson, 32, Thibodaux. Simple battery (2 cts). Donnie Glynn, Jr., 30, Thibodaux. Resisting an officer. Emery Lassere, 51, Thibodaux. Theft of goods (felony). APRIL 29, 2015 William Massey, 24, Thibodaux. Taking contraband to/from penal institutions prohibited (felony). Sara Gaudet, 19, Thibodaux. Contempt of court. Randy Cheramie, 31, Golden Meadow. Contempt of court. Angelle Andras, 27, Thibodaux. DWI 2nd offense, driving on roadway laned for traffic. Cassondra Rodrigue, 34, Raceland. Contempt of court (3 cts). Nathan Eliot Sanchez, 42, Thibodaux. Contempt of court. Richard Hodges, 20, Florence, MS. Disturbing the peace-appearing in an intoxicated cond. Thibodaux Police Department Dalvin Smith, 21, Thibodaux. Domestic abuse battery involving strangulation w/child endangerment.
Grand Isle man sentenced for fraudulent oil spill claim NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Federal prosecutors say a 52year-old Grand Isle man has been sentenced to 41 months in prison after pleading guilty to filing a false damage claim for $30,173 after the BP oil spill. Prosecutors say Ronnie P. Vedros was sentenced Thursday. He was sentenced to 41 months in prison and three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $30,173 in restitution.
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Prosecutors say Vedros filed a damage claim to the Gulf Coast Claims Facility in the aftermath of Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion and oil spill claiming to have lost earnings as a commercial fisherman and engineer. But prosecutors say he was neither a commercial fisherman nor employed as an engineer at the time. They say the documentation backing up his claim was false.
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