Road tax proposal withdrawn; public weighs in

A proposed taxing district in west St. Mary Parish to generate sales tax revenues for road construction and maintenance was shelved Wednesday by the councilman who proposed it.
Up for adoption at the St. Mary Parish Council’s second monthly meeting, was an ordinance establishing the district. The next step would have been a sales tax put before voters on an upcoming ballot.
The council had scheduled a public hearing on the ordinance before its regular meeting. At the start of that hearing, Councilman Dale Rogers announced that he was withdrawing the ordinance.
“When I started all this, the biggest complaint I was hearing was roads,” he said. “So I came up with a plan, and I had some support up here.”
Rogers said he has since “come across some additional information that I was unaware of” previously. He said there are plans in the works that would mean no additional taxes.
“The biggest thing I’ve seen in the past is that no one…has set a priority on road improvements,” Rogers said. “Now I think everybody is talking about, we need to set a priority of road improvements. I know with all of us up here, and with public input, we’ll come up with a plan.”
Some in attendance Wednesday still made their opinions known. Scotty Tibbs, Gulf Craft Inc. located on the Charenton Navigation and Drainage Canal, commended Rogers for withdrawing the ordinance. “Yeah, the roads do need to be repaired, I won’t deny that,” Tibbs said. “But right now to propose a sales tax, that’s detrimental. We’ve got 120 employees out in this sweltering heat, working their butts off, trying to make a living. We’re getting applications by the dozens every week. We have people doing what they can to keep their jobs and people looking to keep their jobs. Right now’s not a good time to propose an additional tax.”
Tibbs said the parish “needs to get back to the nuts and bolts: Just provide security and infrastructure. Stop funding fairs, runs, conventions, whatever it might be…it’s a tough job. You’ve got to cut back. We’ve done that at Gulf Craft. We’d love to do more contributions and help out. We can’t. We are struggling to find work, and the work that we’re getting is not coming from Louisiana.”
Franklin area resident Willie Peters said he was in favor of the proposal. “It’s embarrassing to have to go down Irish Bend road, where the (former) governor lives, and have to ride on roads…I stand lots of time watching cars pass, and in a couple days, they’re tearing them up,” Peters said. “The southern part of the road is good, but the section I live on is terrible.”
Peters said “It’s time to get moving.”
Craig Pellerin, Franklin, said though a sales tax is “the fairest way” it is a matter of timing for the proposal. He noted that the state instituted a special, temporary sales tax currently in effect.
He said taxes are being defeated regularly in the state. “We do need to fix the roads,” Pellerin confirmed. “What would work on the ballot…is take a poll of how many people are in favor of continuing to fund the (Atchafalaya) golf course.”
Pellerin said he applauds Rogers’ effort, but it’s “a big pill to swallow when you say tax.”