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The new Consolidated Gravity Drainage District No. 2A, which will serve Morgan City and Amelia, has its first board. But Wednesday’s St. Mary Parish Council meeting made clear that there are still details to be worked out.
On a motion by Councilman James Bennett of Morgan City, the council appointed Leroy Trim, Larry Aucoin, Charlie Solar Jr., Dr. Tim Tregle and Hanko Hoffpauir to the board of the newly consolidated district. The council had created the new district by combining the existing District 2 in Morgan City and District 6 in Amelia.
Bennett’s motion touched off a round of debate over the rules of order. Councilwoman Gwendolyn Hidalgo moved to amend Bennett’s motion by appointing Glenn Swain in place of Tregle. Councilwoman Kristi Prejeant Rink moved to amend the amendment.
In the end, the council voted for Bennett’s original slate of board members with Hidalgo and Rink voting no.
Lee Dragna, who has led the existing Drainage District 2 in Morgan City for more than seven years, had a tougher question. Under his reading of the ordinance consolidating the two districts, the existing district board loses its control over district finances on Thursday, the day after the meeting.
Parish President David Hanagriff assured Dragna that the existing board can stay on the job until the new consolidated district’s board is up and running.
The council also heard the introduction of an amendment to the consolidation ordinance to clean up the language concerning debt service for bonds issued by District and existing contracts issued by either of the existing districts.
The amendment touched off another short debate. Councilman Scott Ramsey noted that the amendment wasn’t on the agenda and objected to the procedure. But the amendment was introduced after officials said such amendments are allowed if they’re available in written form before the meeting.
The amendment won’t take effect until after council members take a formal vote on it.
The consolidation of the two districts is part of an attempt to streamline a patchwork of taxing districts across the parish.
Also Wednesday:
—Hanagriff relayed information from Coroner Eric Melancon indicating that the number of COVID-19 deaths in the parish has risen to 30. The current Louisiana Office of Public Health data put the number at 29, but deaths reported locally have sometimes taken days to be reported by the state.
—Councilman Craig Mathews used the comment time to say he is “appalled” by the death of George Floyd, an African American Minneapolis resident suspected of forgery. He died after cellphone video appeared to show a police officer holding Floyd down with a knee on his throat. The officer was later fired.
“At one time money used to separate us, the haves and the have nots,” Mathews said. “Now, it’s black and white.”

BATON ROUGE — The Senate voted 28-6 Wednesday to approve a bill to make medical marijuana more widely available across the state.
The bill would lift regulations that require doctors to register with the state to recommend it and that limit its use in treating diseases.
Under the bill, any state-licensed physician could recommend medical marijuana for the treatment of debilitating health conditions. The Senate approved several amendments to the bill, which had already passed the House, so it will now go back to the House for final consideration.
Before the vote, Sen. Fred Mills, R-New Iberia, gave a personal anecdote about the legal use of marijuana making a positive impact on real Louisianans.
He said that a few months ago, he ran into a daughter of former Gov. Kathleen Blanco in a small grocery store in Lafayette. “She was crying, and she told me that day was the first day that they could legally access medical marijuana,” he said.
“They thought that they were going to have to say goodbye to mom, but with her ability to use med marijuana, she was walking, playing cards, eating,” he said. Blanco later died from cancer.
Meanwhile, the Senate Health and Welfare Committee voted 5-1 Wednesday to advance two other bills specifying other diseases suitable for medical marijuana treatments.
HB158, proposed by Rep. Joseph Marino, I-Gretna, would authorize physicians to recommend medical marijuana for the treatment of certain neurodegenerative diseases and conditions.
HB330, proposed by Rep. Rodney Lyons, D-Harvey, would let doctors recommend it for the treatment of the chronic pain associated with fibromyalgia.
Under current law, medical marijuana can be recommended but not prescribed by licensed physicians in Louisiana. A recommendation, however, acts as a prescription.
The Senate committee also voted in favor of a resolution to request an update from the Louisiana Department of Health on COVID-19 contact tracing plans. The resolution was sponsored by House Speaker Clay Schexnayder, R-Gonzalez.
Contact tracing has been a controversial topic among Republican legislators. Some say their constituents are concerned about privacy issues even though public health experts say the tracing is essential to controlling the virus.

DEAR ABBY: My husband and I are 58 and getting ready to celebrate our first wedding anniversary. We knew each other in college, but were just friends back then. After college, we married others and raised children. We stayed married to our spouses for close to 30 years.
We reconnected eight years ago, started an affair and divorced our partners. Neither of us is proud of this. My adult children have accepted my husband. His refused to accept me, and only one of them has a relationship with him.
He was out of town recently, and I caught him in a lie about having invited a female former colleague to lunch with him. I was shocked and hurt because this is how our relationship started. He has apologized, but I can’t get over the fact he lied to me, and it has caused a rift between us. He has always been honest with me, so I wonder why he lied about this woman.
I know I’m in no position to judge others. I can’t afford counseling, and we don’t belong to a church for spiritual help. I suffer from depression and anxiety (I am under the care of a doctor and take medication) but cannot shake the sadness. How can I ever trust my husband again?
HURTING HEART IN THE MOUNTAINS

DEAR HURTING HEART: In light of the way your affair with your husband began, he may have lied because he was afraid of upsetting you. A way to start this very necessary conversation would be to tell him how shaken you are that he wasn’t truthful and try to get him to explain why he thought he had to lie. You should also ask if he thinks there is anything awry in your marriage.
If he tells you nothing is wrong and there is nothing he would change, believe him. However, if after that, you are still feeling insecure, ask the doctor who is treating your depression and anxiety to suggest some low-cost mental health/counseling services in your community.

DEAR ABBY: I need your advice about a problem I’m facing with a man I’ve been dating almost four years. When I met “Jeff,” he had two older Yorkshire terriers. Both were very territorial and relieved themselves in the house. I told him I was concerned about moving in with him because of his out-of-control dogs, and he understood. They were older dogs, and I knew one day they would pass, so I waited patiently.
Then Jeff’s neighbor passed away, leaving a dog. He adopted that dog, and it has become a bigger issue than the first two. The new dog is very aggressive. It tries to bite me and won’t let me into certain rooms in the house! I expressed my concern to Jeff, but nothing has been done.
We are currently engaged but living separately. I told Jeff that we need to live together before getting married, so I gave him an ultimatum — try to find a home for the new dog and I’ll move in.
That was two years ago, and nothing has been done. At this point, I suspect that he adopted the third dog without me knowing in order to prevent me from moving in. I feel like he chose the new dog over me! What do I do?
OVERLOOKED HUMAN IN CALIFORNIA

DEAR OVERLOOKED HUMAN: Listen to your intuition and accept that where you are concerned, Jeff has a commitment problem. If he wanted you to live with him, he would not have taken in an aggressive animal. Without saying it in words, he is sending you a strong message. From where I sit, you may have devoted enough time to a romance that’s going nowhere. Give Jeff a choice: Kennel train the dog or the romance is over.
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Monty Sullivan, president of the Louisiana Community and Technical College System, has appointed Dr. Vincent June as interim chancellor of South Louisiana Community College.
June’s appointment is effective Saturday.
June was appointed interim chancellor as a result of Dr. Natalie Harder accepting the presidency at Coker University in South Carolina. Harder served as chancellor of SLCC for eight years.
“I am pleased that Dr. June has agreed to lead SLCC on an interim basis,” said Sullivan. “Dr. June has 25 years of successful higher education experience. He is very knowledgeable of the greater Acadiana region. With the support of our Board Chairman we believe he is a good fit during this transition period.”
The LCTCS Board of Supervisors will decide on the next steps to select a permanent leader for SLCC.
June joined SLCC in 2016 and currently serves as the vice chancellor for academic and student affairs.
His higher education career spans 25 years, including 17 years as the chief student affairs-enrollment officer at three major institutions: Florida Gulf Coast University, Florida A&M University, and Georgia Perimeter College (now Georgia State University-Perimeter College).
He was a 2014-2015 ACE Fellow with the American Council on Education, where he spent the fellowship year at Cuyahoga Community College-Cleveland, Ohio.
June earned his BS in business and economics from Florida A&M University and received an MBA and Ph.D. in educational leadership and student affairs from Washington State University.