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SOCCER
St. Mary Soccer Association registration at Morgan City High School 5-7 p.m. Thursday and Friday, Aug. 10-11, and Saturday, Aug. 12. Cost $60 per player, additional family member $50. Late registration Aug. 13-16 an extra $10. Open to ages 4 by Dec. 31, 2017 to 16. Online registration available through Aug. 1 at www.gotsoccer.com search St. Mary Soccer Association. Send payment and signed printed form to P.O. Box 2019, Morgan City, LA 70381 postmarked by Aug. 1. Also need volunteer coaches and referees.

After convening three different times this year, the Louisiana Legislature isn’t scheduled to go into another lawmaking session until March 12, 2018.

That’s when the House and Senate will begin their annual regular session — just like the one that was concluded in early June.

Legislators, however, may have to gavel in sooner than that to address a $1.2 billion shortfall for the 2018-2019 fiscal year.

Gov. John Bel Edwards has publicly discussed releasing a call for what will be the fifth special session of this term, but he has offered no concrete timelines or certainties. Legislative leaders, meanwhile, believe it could be called as soon as January.

The problem for Edwards is that he needs the House and Senate to support the creation of new revenue, which his administration has found to be challenging at best over the past two years, particularly in the House.

Perhaps that’s why Edwards has been telling reporters lately that he may just skip another special session, thus allowing drastic budget reductions to take hold, if the House doesn’t start to coalesce around a revenue plan.

The bottleneck in the legislative process, specifically for tax hikes, resides in the lower chamber, where conservative lawmakers have so far refused to approve permanent revenue-raising measures.

Complicating matters is the fact that the only opportunity state government will have to tinker with revenue bills in 2018 is via a special session. By law only non-fiscal regular sessions can be held in even-numbered years.

If the governor does plan to trigger a special session next year, it’s unclear what would be in his call, or agenda.
Infrastructure money to Stokes

Supporting the proposed gas tax increase during this year’s regular session might not play well with hard-right voters and groups like Americans For Prosperity.

But state Rep. Julie Stokes, R-Kenner, is learning that it’s really popular with certain donors, which isn’t a terrible problem to have if you’re running for treasurer.

The Louisiana Asphalt Pavement Association is the latest group to come to the Stokes camp and it has scheduled a fundraiser for her.

Here’s a look at what the asphalt lobby think about the candidate, based on a recent internal email: “Rep. Stokes is the ONLY State Treasurer candidate that supported/supports infrastructure improvement. Her vote in committee and her continued vocal support was critical in advancing the infrastructure improvement legislation.”

Stokes was also endorsed on the tail end of the regular session by Louisiana Associated General Contractors.

Here’s an excerpt from a similar internal email: “Rep. Stokes is running for State Treasurer and she is the only such candidate that supported the fuel tax increase. LAGC will support Ms. Stokes for Treasurer and I encourage all LAGC members to do so also.”

Political History: Governor
runs for president

This past weekend marked the second anniversary (June 24, 2015) of former Gov. Bobby Jindal officially launching an expected bid for president of the United States.

It was an uncommon sight for Louisiana voters, seeing their governor on the national news for reasons more fitting to Rhode Island than Avery Island and to New Hampshire more so than New Iberia. Jindal generated headlines by attacking long shot candidate Donald Trump, at one point calling the future president an “egomaniacal madman.”

Alas, Jindal’s national organization ran out of steam fast and was eventually disbanded, which was also the case for former Gov. Buddy Roemer in 2012. Campaign finance reform was Roemer’s central platform and he limited donations to $100 each. It was a formula that kept his own presidential campaign in play for six months, which was one month longer than Jindal enjoyed.

These last few years represent the closest any Louisiana governors — sitting or former — have come to running for president or vice president since 1972.

That was when late Gov. John McKeithen was reportedly being considered as the vice-presidential running mate for Hubert Humphrey. Alleged ties to organized crime may have stopped McKeithen from climbing the political ladder, though, and the related accusations brought the kind of media scrutiny for which the Humphrey team had little relish.

Before Jindal and McKeithen were pulled into the Beltway orbit, it was Huey P. Long who was angling to run for America’s top political position. Long had pinned his hopes to the 1936 election cycle, when incumbent President Franklin D. Roosevelt was to seek another term.

The Great Depression collided with Long’s “Share Our Wealth” message and bought the Kingfish national prominence. Crossfire from an assassination attempt, however, concluded that high-profile bid on Sept. 10, 1935.

That’s not to say the parties and their donors haven’t had some success finding formidable candidates among the ranks of the nation’s governors. Out of all of the presidents elected to date, 17 served as state governors before moving into the White House.

They said it

“We’ve had to be magicians for many years.”
—Louisiana Community and Technical College System President Monty Sullivan, on dealing with previous budget cuts

“Look, we’re trying to create taxpayers. Not run them off.”
—Sullivan, to legislators during the regular session, regarding tax and budget policies

For more Louisiana political news, visit www.LaPolitics.com or follow Jeremy Alford on Twitter @LaPoliticsNow.

LAFAYETTE – A group of business-growth organizations is offering small Louisiana companies, including those in St. Mary Parish, a chance to take part in months-long “Accelerate Acadiana” sessions, where they’ll meet potential investors and receive expert guidance.

The first session, which runs Aug. 14-Nov. 17, will concentrate on tech firms that are on the verge of success and in the energy and health care spheres. Interested companies have until July 30 to sign up and compete for one of eight spots. Companies that are not chosen could be selected for the second session, which will start in January 2018.

Accelerate Acadiana will be facilitated by The Opportunity Machine, a business incubator located in the Louisiana Immersive Technologies Enterprise in Lafayette.

The sessions will take place at LITE.

“We’re looking for tech companies in the energy or health care space that have innovative products or services and want to take them to the next level,” said Zachary Barker, executive director of the OM.

The Accelerate Acadiana series was made possible by a $700,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration. Pools of investment money will come from the grant and also investor cash.

An additional $754,000 in program services and office space is being provided by UL Lafayette, The Opportunity Machine, and INNOV8, a Community Foundation of Acadiana company.

“Accelerate Acadiana will support the advancement of our region as a nationally recognized entrepreneurship hub, and further showcase this area as a great place for innovative new companies to launch and thrive,” said Pete Prados, INNOV8 director.

Successful firms that have benefitted from the business acceleration method in Lafayette at the OM are Waitr, the Academy of Interactive Entertainment, and Rader Solutions.

“The new accelerator will give companies the opportunity to do the same things Waitr did,” said Chris Meaux, CEO of Waitr.

After graduating from the OM, Waitr moved its technology center to an 8,600-square-foot office in Lafayette, where it directs operations across the southern U.S. and California.

“(The accelerator) can enhance some of the things we had, such as putting focus on helping raise money, access to key people, and meeting the right customers, which are all things entrepreneurs need to grow their business,” Meaux said.

UL Lafayette Vice President of Research and Development Ramesh Kolluru said innovation often occurs during downturns.

“While oil prices are still recovering and the Lafayette tech sector is booming, now is a great time to see this type of program implemented,” Kolluru said.

For more information on Accelerate Acadiana, log onto innov8acadiana.org and click on the 2017 Accelerate Acadiana tab.

Hampton Inn & Suites by Hilton Morgan City has received a 2017 TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence Award.

Now in its seventh year, the achievement celebrates hospitality businesses that have earned great traveler reviews on TripAdvisor over the past year. To qualify, a business must maintain an overall TripAdvisor bubble rating of at least four out of five, have a minimum number of reviews and must have been listed on TripAdvisor for atleast 12 months.

“It is an honor to be recognized with a TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence Award,” said Bob Harrison, general manager of Hampton Inn & Suites by Hilton Morgan City. “We are proud of our team, and we are thankful for the guests who have taken the time to review our property with excellent ratings.”

Hampton Inn & Suites by Hilton Morgan City is located at 6365 Highway 182 East in Morgan City, It offers amenities including free, hot breakfast each morning and Hampton’s On the Run Breakfast Bags, available Monday through Friday. Additionally, it provides free Wi-Fi, a 24-hour business center with complimentary printing and a fitness center.

Designed as an extension of the guestroom, the property features a Perfect Mix Lobby, with a variety of seating and lighting options for both leisure and business travelers.

Each Hampton by Hilton hotel is part of Hilton Honors, the award-winning guest-loyalty program for Hilton’s 14 distinct hotel brands. Hilton Honors members who book directly through preferred Hilton channels save time and money, and gain instant access to the benefits they care about most, such as an exclusive member discount, free Wi-Fi and a flexible payment slider that allows members to choose nearly any combination of Points and money to book a stay. Members can also redeem their Points for free nights, to gain access to unique events through the Hilton Honors auction platform or to make purchases at
Amazon.com with Amazon Shop With Points.

To make reservations, visit www.hampton.com and to read more about Hampton by Hilton, visit www.news.hampton.com.