Early voting was light for Saturday election
Early voting was light leading up to Saturday’s general election, which includes a new tax for Morgan City’s hospital and renewals for property taxes that support school maintenance.
The Secretary of State’s Office reports that 1,089 people voted early in the Nov. 22-30 period, which was interrupted by a Sunday, Thanksgiving and a break for Acadian Day on the following Friday.
By contrast, more than 9,500 St. Mary people voted early for the Nov. 5 primary, which also included the presidential and U.S. House races as well as three Morgan City Council races.
The polls will be open 7 a.m.-8 p.m. Saturday. Bring a photo ID to the polls.
The major issues facing east St. Mary residents Dec. 7 involve putting and keeping buildings in shape, but with an eye toward educational development, too.
Hospital District No. 2, which roughly covers St. Mary from the Calumet Cut east, is asking for a 9-mill property tax to maintain and upgrade the building that currently houses Ochsner St. Mary.
The 45-year-old building is showing its age, proponents say, especially in its seal against moisture, leaky windows and outdated heating and air conditioning system.
Some portion of the $3.4 million the tax is expected to raise each year is also to be used for scholarships to help local people obtain training in health care-related fields, an effort to keep local talent in the local area.
Hospital Service District No. 2 has stressed that while Ochsner Health operates the hospital under lease, the building is owned by the public and should be kept in repair.
The hospital employs 250 people with a payroll of $24 million, the district says.
Residents across the parish will be asked to renew property taxes for St. Mary Parish public schools building and maintenance in the three maintenance districts, each for 10 years.
—12.42 mills in the eastern portion of the parish, expected to raise about $2.6 million a year.
—12.73 mills in District 2, the central portion of the parish, expected to raise about $2.2 million per year.
—12.53 mills in District 3, the eastern portion of the parish, expected to raise about $2.8 million per year.
Also on ballots in specific districts around the parish:
—Consolidated Gravity Drainage District No.1 is seeking a 7.81-mill renewal, raising about $1.8 million a year.
—Baldwin voters are being asked to impose a 1% sales tax to raise $180,000 a year for public safety.
—Franklin is asking voters for a 1% sales tax to raise $1.3 million to operate and maintain the police and fire departments.
Four state constitutional amendments are also on the ballot. The summaries, with analysis from the Public Affairs Research Council:
Amendment 1: “Do you support an amendment to allow the supreme court to sanction a judge upon an investigation by the judiciary commission, and provide that the recommended sanction shall be instituted by the judiciary commission or by a majority of the supreme court, and to provide for the appointment of five members of the judiciary commission?”
The state Supreme Court can’t sanction a judge for misconduct until a judiciary commission investigates the matter, and critics say the commission often moves too slowly. The amendment would expand the number of commission members to 14 to nine and give the state Supreme Court more input in the process, and allow the high court to temporarily suspend a judge during an investigation without a commission ruling.
Amendment 2: “Do you support an amendment to require that the legislature wait for at least forty-eight hours prior to concurring in a conference committee report or amendments to a bill appropriating money?” The amendment is designed to prevent an unseemly and possibly mistaken scramble to pass appropriations bills in the final minutes of a session, such as happened in 2023.
Amendment 3: “Do you support an amendment to allow the legislature to extend a regular session in increments of two days up to a maximum of six days if necessary to pass a bill appropriating money?” Again, the amendment is proposed to give lawmakers time to consider appropriation bills thoroughly before passage, even as the constitutional deadline for a session to end draw near.
Amendment 4: “Do you support an amendment to eliminate mandatory tax sales for nonpayment of property taxes and require the legislature to provide for such procedures by law; to limit the amount of penalty and interest on delinquent property taxes; and to provide for the postponement of property tax payments under certain circumstances?” PAR characterizes the amendment as an attempt to move from a tax sale system to a tax lien system to deal with nonpayment of property taxes.
Rather than an outright sale of property on which taxes are delinquent, a lien on the property would be auctioned, offering the property owner more options for getting back into compliance.