bywterbro
07-03-2007, 10:16 AM
By Bill Barrow and Ed Anderson
Capital Bureau
BATON ROUGE -- With devastation still evident across the paths of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, Gov. Kathleen Blanco and many lawmakers in the storm-affected areas believe late-session activity yielded many legislative successes that will aid individuals, businesses and local governments in recovery efforts.
Even New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, who publicly blasted the governor's rebuilding efforts as recently as a June 14 rally at the Capitol, is "happier," according to a spokesman, after the Legislature put the finishing touches on a nine-week session that ended Thursday.
The list of legislation, much of which still awaits Blanco's approval or veto, includes direct investments in public rebuilding projects and flood protection for the metropolitan area, tax breaks for businesses and individuals across the region, approval of several insurance law changes that Blanco pushed and a $1 billion infusion to the Road Home, the state's deficit-bound residential rebuilding program.
"We are pleased," said Kenya Smith, the mayor's executive assistant for intergovernmental affairs. "We now have many of the tools we need, and we appreciate all the hard work of our delegation and the entire Legislature."
House Appropriations Chairman John Alario, D-Westwego, said "I think we (lawmakers) stood up tremendously" for recovery efforts while taking care of other business.
Not everyone was so effusive. Rookie Rep. J.P. Morrell, D-New Orleans, said the state could have -- and should have -- done more to speed recovery, particularly in New Orleans.
"I think we did fairly well," Morrell said. "But New Orleans did not get as much as it should, have." He said that may be a result of "very public disagreements between the governor and the mayor. ... The personality rift between the governor and the mayor affected everything and has really become obnoxious."
Smith conceded that his word choice to describe the mayor's mood -- "happier" -- is relative. "There is still plenty more to do," he said.
Among the proposals that didn't pass: anything seeking systemic changes in how the Road Home is administered. Lawmakers made an art form out of hammering the governor's Office of Community Development, the Louisiana Recovery Authority and ICF International, the private firm running Road Home. But Blanco and her allies trumped accompanying legislation using an argument she has offered since lawmakers urged her in December to fire ICF: Starting over would do nothing to help homeowners get their money faster.
The city's biggest prizes are a long-term commitment for the state to cover debt service, about $23 million annually, on more than $300 million in borrowing to help spur infrastructure projects, and a financing plan for a teaching hospital to replace the old Charity Hospital.
Smith and city lobbyist Rodney Braxton said they do not know precisely when the city will sell bonds or what projects would benefit first, but they said residents should soon see a noticeable uptick in construction activity on public structures.
Rep. Juan LaFonta, D-New Orleans, trumpeted the infrastructure investment as the premier achievement for New Orleans. "That ought to be the headlines right there," he said of the deal he helped broker as chairman-elect of the Legislative Black Caucus and an organizer of the city's delegation.
Nagin has blamed the city's slow recovery progress on what he says is an inability to front the cash needed to start projects before seeking reimbursement from the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Public Assistance Program. "It does not eliminate those problems, but it does alleviate them," Smith said.
FEMA has noted that the Public Assistance Program will pay advances for planning and design work. The mayor, however, has rejected that option, saying his overburdened City Hall staff has neither the time nor the expertise to complete cumbersome legwork required to secure the up-front money.
Public rebuilding efforts, in Orleans and surrounding parishes, could be helped further by a bill that streamlines the bidding process for public rebuilding projects in the hurricane-flood zone. The measure by Sen. Ed Murray, D-New Orleans, essentially allows one bidding phase, rather than separate, more time-consuming process of securing one contract for design work and another for actual construction.
Blanco has indicated no public opposition to the proposal.
Alario called special attention to the approval of more than $70 million for a public hospital in New Orleans, expected to be built in conjunction with a new federally financed Veterans Affairs Hospital. And, with federal officials balking at the proposal, lawmakers also wrote the remaining $226 million of the projected start-up costs into the state's five-year construction plan. That also allowed the state to shift federal block grant money previously earmarked for the hospital toward the state's $1 billion Road Home investment.
Another Murray initiative would create a special Orleans-St. Bernard Recovery Zone to offer sales tax exemptions on equipment purchased by certain new manufacturing and technology companies in those two parishes. The benefit would expire in 2010. The idea initially stood in its own bill and would have affected additional parishes, but it ended up as a Senate floor amendment attached to a separate tax bill.
Considering the plethora of tax breaks that won approval in the closing hours of the session, the measure could conflict with Blanco's constitutional requirement to balance the budget for the fiscal year that began Sunday and her stated desire not to saddle her successor with too many tax break obligations in future budget years. Blanco said after the session that she plans to review each proposed tax cut on its own merits and in the broader context of the state balance sheet.
Other New Orleans benefits include $30 million for improvements at City Park, a state agency; $8 million for improvements to the Ernest N. Morial New Orleans Convention Center as well as bonds for its expansion; and $4 million for the city's convention and visitors bureau. Lawmakers also approved what has been dubbed the "Broadway South" tax bill, which grants corporate income tax credits for shows that open in Louisiana. Blanco has expressed concern about the cost. Alario said the recovery effort is linked to the tourism industry's growth.
In the way of law enforcement, the city was a big winner in a statewide bill to improve the indigent defender system; and the state steered about $7 million to help the New Orleans Police Department recruit and staff for when State Police and National Guard pull out of the city at year's end.
Outside New Orleans, the five-year capital outlay budget also includes money for flood protection projects affecting every parish in the metropolitan area. The plan also includes projects and purchases related to hurricane prevention and response. Among them: a hurricane safehouse-storage facility and an emergency preparedness center in Jefferson Parish; and generators and a state emergency warehouse in St. Tammany Parish.
Alario noted that Jefferson Parish was appropriated $4 million of coastal protection money for levees east of the Harvey Canal; another $10 million went for levee protection near Lafitte; and St. Tammany received $2.5 million for clearing of canals, charges that FEMA did not allow.
By being designated a rural parish, hurricane-ravaged St. Bernard Parish is now eligible for federal funds to help open a hospital. The parish now does not have a hospital in operation "so this is huge," said sponsor Rep. Nita Hutter, R-Chalmette. She said there is about $17 million set aside for a proposed new 60-bed hospital in the state's capital construction budget.
Several tax breaks and insurance changes rank as the most important session outcomes for most businesses and homeowners, at least those who aren't waiting for Road Home checks to rebuild.
The largest direct benefit would grant a one-time income tax credit in 2008 equal to 7 percent of the taxpayer's homeowners' insurance premium. A separate measure would make it easier for policyholders to get their rebates for paying assessments to keep the state's insurer of last resort solvent. Instead of waiting for a tax return to be filed, policyholders could file a rebate form, to be developed by the Department of Revenue, immediately after paying their Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corp. assessments.
On other insurance matters, policyholders in hurricane-hit parishes will get a three-year reprieve from paying then 10 percent surcharge on Citizens policies. Another bill would waive the markup for at least three years whenever Citizens claims a majority of the market. And homeowners could get a carrot to meet the new statewide building code: They will be entitled to discounted insurance premiums from their insurance companies. The level of discount was not specified.
Other tax breaks include an income tax deduction equal to 50 percent of the costs of building or retrofitting an existing home to make it more storm-proof and a separate, one-time rebate for state sales taxes paid on rebuilding materials. The first deduction is capped at $5,000. The second is capped at $3,000.
Capital Bureau
BATON ROUGE -- With devastation still evident across the paths of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, Gov. Kathleen Blanco and many lawmakers in the storm-affected areas believe late-session activity yielded many legislative successes that will aid individuals, businesses and local governments in recovery efforts.
Even New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, who publicly blasted the governor's rebuilding efforts as recently as a June 14 rally at the Capitol, is "happier," according to a spokesman, after the Legislature put the finishing touches on a nine-week session that ended Thursday.
The list of legislation, much of which still awaits Blanco's approval or veto, includes direct investments in public rebuilding projects and flood protection for the metropolitan area, tax breaks for businesses and individuals across the region, approval of several insurance law changes that Blanco pushed and a $1 billion infusion to the Road Home, the state's deficit-bound residential rebuilding program.
"We are pleased," said Kenya Smith, the mayor's executive assistant for intergovernmental affairs. "We now have many of the tools we need, and we appreciate all the hard work of our delegation and the entire Legislature."
House Appropriations Chairman John Alario, D-Westwego, said "I think we (lawmakers) stood up tremendously" for recovery efforts while taking care of other business.
Not everyone was so effusive. Rookie Rep. J.P. Morrell, D-New Orleans, said the state could have -- and should have -- done more to speed recovery, particularly in New Orleans.
"I think we did fairly well," Morrell said. "But New Orleans did not get as much as it should, have." He said that may be a result of "very public disagreements between the governor and the mayor. ... The personality rift between the governor and the mayor affected everything and has really become obnoxious."
Smith conceded that his word choice to describe the mayor's mood -- "happier" -- is relative. "There is still plenty more to do," he said.
Among the proposals that didn't pass: anything seeking systemic changes in how the Road Home is administered. Lawmakers made an art form out of hammering the governor's Office of Community Development, the Louisiana Recovery Authority and ICF International, the private firm running Road Home. But Blanco and her allies trumped accompanying legislation using an argument she has offered since lawmakers urged her in December to fire ICF: Starting over would do nothing to help homeowners get their money faster.
The city's biggest prizes are a long-term commitment for the state to cover debt service, about $23 million annually, on more than $300 million in borrowing to help spur infrastructure projects, and a financing plan for a teaching hospital to replace the old Charity Hospital.
Smith and city lobbyist Rodney Braxton said they do not know precisely when the city will sell bonds or what projects would benefit first, but they said residents should soon see a noticeable uptick in construction activity on public structures.
Rep. Juan LaFonta, D-New Orleans, trumpeted the infrastructure investment as the premier achievement for New Orleans. "That ought to be the headlines right there," he said of the deal he helped broker as chairman-elect of the Legislative Black Caucus and an organizer of the city's delegation.
Nagin has blamed the city's slow recovery progress on what he says is an inability to front the cash needed to start projects before seeking reimbursement from the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Public Assistance Program. "It does not eliminate those problems, but it does alleviate them," Smith said.
FEMA has noted that the Public Assistance Program will pay advances for planning and design work. The mayor, however, has rejected that option, saying his overburdened City Hall staff has neither the time nor the expertise to complete cumbersome legwork required to secure the up-front money.
Public rebuilding efforts, in Orleans and surrounding parishes, could be helped further by a bill that streamlines the bidding process for public rebuilding projects in the hurricane-flood zone. The measure by Sen. Ed Murray, D-New Orleans, essentially allows one bidding phase, rather than separate, more time-consuming process of securing one contract for design work and another for actual construction.
Blanco has indicated no public opposition to the proposal.
Alario called special attention to the approval of more than $70 million for a public hospital in New Orleans, expected to be built in conjunction with a new federally financed Veterans Affairs Hospital. And, with federal officials balking at the proposal, lawmakers also wrote the remaining $226 million of the projected start-up costs into the state's five-year construction plan. That also allowed the state to shift federal block grant money previously earmarked for the hospital toward the state's $1 billion Road Home investment.
Another Murray initiative would create a special Orleans-St. Bernard Recovery Zone to offer sales tax exemptions on equipment purchased by certain new manufacturing and technology companies in those two parishes. The benefit would expire in 2010. The idea initially stood in its own bill and would have affected additional parishes, but it ended up as a Senate floor amendment attached to a separate tax bill.
Considering the plethora of tax breaks that won approval in the closing hours of the session, the measure could conflict with Blanco's constitutional requirement to balance the budget for the fiscal year that began Sunday and her stated desire not to saddle her successor with too many tax break obligations in future budget years. Blanco said after the session that she plans to review each proposed tax cut on its own merits and in the broader context of the state balance sheet.
Other New Orleans benefits include $30 million for improvements at City Park, a state agency; $8 million for improvements to the Ernest N. Morial New Orleans Convention Center as well as bonds for its expansion; and $4 million for the city's convention and visitors bureau. Lawmakers also approved what has been dubbed the "Broadway South" tax bill, which grants corporate income tax credits for shows that open in Louisiana. Blanco has expressed concern about the cost. Alario said the recovery effort is linked to the tourism industry's growth.
In the way of law enforcement, the city was a big winner in a statewide bill to improve the indigent defender system; and the state steered about $7 million to help the New Orleans Police Department recruit and staff for when State Police and National Guard pull out of the city at year's end.
Outside New Orleans, the five-year capital outlay budget also includes money for flood protection projects affecting every parish in the metropolitan area. The plan also includes projects and purchases related to hurricane prevention and response. Among them: a hurricane safehouse-storage facility and an emergency preparedness center in Jefferson Parish; and generators and a state emergency warehouse in St. Tammany Parish.
Alario noted that Jefferson Parish was appropriated $4 million of coastal protection money for levees east of the Harvey Canal; another $10 million went for levee protection near Lafitte; and St. Tammany received $2.5 million for clearing of canals, charges that FEMA did not allow.
By being designated a rural parish, hurricane-ravaged St. Bernard Parish is now eligible for federal funds to help open a hospital. The parish now does not have a hospital in operation "so this is huge," said sponsor Rep. Nita Hutter, R-Chalmette. She said there is about $17 million set aside for a proposed new 60-bed hospital in the state's capital construction budget.
Several tax breaks and insurance changes rank as the most important session outcomes for most businesses and homeowners, at least those who aren't waiting for Road Home checks to rebuild.
The largest direct benefit would grant a one-time income tax credit in 2008 equal to 7 percent of the taxpayer's homeowners' insurance premium. A separate measure would make it easier for policyholders to get their rebates for paying assessments to keep the state's insurer of last resort solvent. Instead of waiting for a tax return to be filed, policyholders could file a rebate form, to be developed by the Department of Revenue, immediately after paying their Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corp. assessments.
On other insurance matters, policyholders in hurricane-hit parishes will get a three-year reprieve from paying then 10 percent surcharge on Citizens policies. Another bill would waive the markup for at least three years whenever Citizens claims a majority of the market. And homeowners could get a carrot to meet the new statewide building code: They will be entitled to discounted insurance premiums from their insurance companies. The level of discount was not specified.
Other tax breaks include an income tax deduction equal to 50 percent of the costs of building or retrofitting an existing home to make it more storm-proof and a separate, one-time rebate for state sales taxes paid on rebuilding materials. The first deduction is capped at $5,000. The second is capped at $3,000.