Parish council rejects in-house mosquito control

A move by the parish administration to make mosquito control an in-house operation was defeated by the St. Mary Parish Council Wednesday.
The administration proposed applying for grant funding through a federal grant awarded by the state for five years; the funds would cover costs of set up and equipment, Parish President David Hanagriff said.
Councilman Craig Mathews said he didn’t have enough information to make a decision Wednesday night, and asked how switching the existing contract with Cajun Mosquito Control to parish control made sense. “Do we have information tonight abandoning that relationship because the current vendor is not doing a quality job?” Mathews asked.
He said the contractor, Jessie Boudreaux, has 25 years of experience in mosquito control, and that the newly-hired parish public works director Jean Paul Bourg has two years of experience. Hanagriff later corrected that Bourg has four years’ experience.
Mathews also questioned if there has been a cost comparison, present and future. He said neighboring parishes have seen large increases in costs over the years that mosquito control had been implemented.
Chief Administrative Officer Henry “Bo” LaGrange said that though the administration has never seriously considered an in-house program due to start-up costs, the $250,000 grant solves that issue. “The grant requires that we spend the money by June 30,” he said. “So we would have to order vehicles and equipment by then.”
LaGrange noted that over the years council members have asked the administration to consider taking on mosquito control. “So it’s not like the council should be shocked that we brought this proposal forward,” he said.
A $2 monthly fee charged to water bills in the unincorporated customers in the parish generates roughly $185,000, while contract costs for mosquito control are in the neighborhood of $250,000. The general fund has made up the difference.
The operating budget for an in-house program would be about $175,000, LaGrange said.
Bourg is certified in mosquito control; a certified person on the parish payroll is required by state law. Bourg ran Morgan City’s mosquito program when he was in the public works department there. Only St. Mary and one other parish have a certified person.
Hanagriff said he is tasked with balancing the parish budget, and this is one area of cost-savings. He said subsidizing the program has been going on for years, capped at $250,000. He said he had no issues with the current contractor’s performance.
“Do you want to raise the fees?” Hanagriff asked the council. “Tell the people we’ll charge you $3 instead of going forward with this?”
Current liability insurance covers the potential operation, Hanagriff said in answer to a question from Councilman Glenn Hidalgo.
Councilman Ken Singleton said while equipment is state-certified and calibrated, not all drivers are, and that the council needs to be accountable for its funding if there is an opportunity to save money.
Boudreaux said he understood there are financial savings issues, but asked Hanagriff if their work has been acceptable, and if he had offered to meet the same level of service at the projected savings. Hanagriff agreed that Cajun’s work was good, but indicated he did not think Boudreaux could meet the same level of service at that price.
But Boudreaux said he could, mostly through the use of sentinel chickens and monitoring which he said are not being fully utilized by the parish. “What price do you put on one life?” he asked.
“I don’t put a price on that,” Hanagriff said. “I’m not going to do that…I am pushing this solely as parish president, my name’s attached to this.”
Mathews pointed out that the parish is also subsidizing operation of the golf course, the animal control shelter “and every other entity that we’re subsidizing.” Hanagriff said all those issues are being studied.
The council refused the administration’s proposal on a vote of six against, three in favor, and two absent.