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JANET SMITH

Fri, 02/10/2023 - 9:54am

Janet Smith, 70, a resident of Baton Rouge, died Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023, at her residence.

Visitation will be Saturday from 9 a.m. until services at 11 a.m. at Bayou Vista Civic Center. Burial will follow in Berwick Cemetery.

She is survived by two sons, Marlon and Marshane Haynes; a daughter, Latanya Haynes; four brothers, Cleave Sanford, Curtis Haynes, Wayne Haynes and Brian Sanford; three sisters, Kathy Sanford, Alma Ulmer and Vernell Jones; 11 grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; and a host of other relatives.

She was preceded in death by her parents.

Jones Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

TERRY SCOTT

Fri, 02/10/2023 - 9:50am

Terry Scott, 62, a native of Morgan City and resident of Bayou Vista, died Monday, Feb. 6, 2023, at his residence.

Visitation will be Saturday from 9:30 a.m. until services at 11 a.m. at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Morgan City. Burial will follow in Morgan City Cemetery.

He is survived by his wife, Michelle Dixon of Bayou Vista; five children, Natasha Scott and Talitha Scott, both of Katy, Texas, Acienne Sellers of Gonzales, Terry Scott Jr. of Slidell and Terrence Ruffin of
Lafayette; stepchildren, Ryan Dixon, Bryan Dixon and Anthony Dixon; two sisters, Monica Verdin and Gilda Henderson, both of Morgan City; and a host of other relatives.

He was preceded in death by his parents.

Jones Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

CATHERINE GRANGER MINGO

Fri, 02/10/2023 - 9:37am

Catherine Granger Mingo, 79, a native and resident of Morgan City, died Thursday, Feb. 2, 2023, at her residence.

Visitation will be Saturday from 9 a.m. until services at 11 a.m. at Pilgrim Grove Baptist Church in Morgan City. Burial will follow in Morgan City Cemetery.

She is survived by eight children, Adrian Daye, Karen Marshall, Leonard Allen, Verna Allen, Marva Allen, Sylvia Allen, Leslie Calloway and Anthony Bourgeois Jr.; one stepson, Leo Mingo Jr.; four sisters,
Diana Wells, Deborah Johnson, Gale Thomas and Ruby Maize; 23 grandchildren; 19 great-grandchildren; and a host of other relatives.

She was preceded in death by her husband, parents, two brothers and one sister.

State pension funds took a hit in 2022

Fri, 02/10/2023 - 9:32am

VICTOR SKINNER, The Center Square

The Louisiana Legislature’s Public Retirement Actuarial Committee approved a series of valuations on Tuesday, providing an update on how the state’s various public employee retirement systems fared in 2022.

Actuary Greg Curran told the committee active membership in the Firefighters’ Retirement System of Louisiana declined last year by about 56, while payroll increased from $249 million to $253 million, and payments hit nearly $115 million.

The system’s funded ratio stood at 80.41%, with $2.8 billion in liabilities and $2.2 billion in assets.

“Our funded ratio did increase over the year,” he said, “but obviously we’re still working toward the 100% funded level.”

The remaining unfunded balance decreased from $524 million to $491 million in the last fiscal year, and is expected to be paid off in 12 years, he said.

The firefighter retirement system’s market rate of return was negative 10.9% last year.

The Clerks’ of the Court Retirement & Relief Fund had a slight reduction in active membership, and an increase in the retired population to 1,570. Payroll grew by about $800,000 to $99.9 million, while benefits and payments grew to $47.3 million.

The plan’s remaining liability, scheduled to be paid off by 2029, was $54 million, putting the plan’s funded ratio at about 81%.

“A trend for many of our plans has been … an increase in that funded ratio, and that’s certainly the goal,” Curran said.

The return on market assets last year was a negative 9.8%, a stark reversal from the 27.2% return the year prior.

Neither the firefighters’ or court clerks’ retirement systems qualified to offer cost of living adjustments this year, Curran said.

For the District Attorneys’ Retirement System, membership was also down from 726 to 719 in 2022, though payroll increased to $63.9 million, with benefits and payments at $29 million. That plan is funded at 87.12%, with an accrued liability of $587 million and assets of $511 million, Curran said.

The plan had a negative 10% return in the market, compared to a 23% return the year prior.

The District Attorneys’ plan did provide a COLA that increased costs by 1.1%, Curran said.

The Municipal Employees Retirement System’s two plans decreased in membership. Plan A membership went from 4,611 to 4,513, as the number of retirees grew and payroll increased.

Benefits and payments increased to $76.3 million, while accrued liability stood at $1.28 billion and assets at $946 million. Plan A has an unfunded accrued liability that’s expected to be paid off by 2029.

The funded ratio was 74.09% in 2022, while the market rate of return was negative 10.1%, Curran said.

“Most of the systems actually generated larger dollar losses in 2022 than their gains in 21,” he said.

A COLA for that plan in 2022 cost just over $10 million, he said.

With Plan B, there was a slight growth in membership, and a $4 million increase in payroll to $79 million. Benefits and payments also increased from $13.5 million to $14.6 million. The funded ratio for the plan was 76.19% in 2022, up about 2%.

Market losses were negative 9.6%, Curran said.

A Plan B COLA cost a little over $1.5 million, he said.

Membership in the Municipal Police Employees’ Retirement System also declined in 2022 by about 200 to 5,269, while the retired population increased to over 5,000.

Payroll grew along with benefits, which hit $179 million. The funded ratio declined to 77.14%, due in part to a negative 10.4% market rate of return. Accrued liability stood at $3.4 billion, compared to assets of nearly $2.7 billion, Curran said.

Other retirement plans reviewed on Wednesday include the Registrars of Voters Employees’ Retirement System and the Louisiana Sheriffs Pension & Relief Fund. The committee approved all of the actuarial valuations.

Audit report: Response is slow to audit reports

Fri, 02/10/2023 - 9:29am

VICTOR SKINNER, The Center Square

A new audit examining dozens of recommended changes for nine state agencies found only about 40% have been fully implemented more than two years later.

Louisiana Legislative Auditor Mike Waguespack issued a report last week titled “Implementation Status of Recommendations From Select Performance Audits Issued During Fiscal years 2019 through 2020.”

The report provides the implementation status of 53 recommendations in seven performance audits from 2020, and five recommendations from three audits issued in 2019. They involve the Louisiana departments of Revenue, Environmental Quality, and Justice, as well as the Louisiana Attorney General, State Board of Medical Examiners, Louisiana Workforce Commission, Office of Technology Services, Louisiana Economic Development, Louisiana Physical Therapy Board and the Office of Risk Management.

“Of the 58 recommendations, 47 (81%) were either implemented, partially implemented, or are in the process of being implemented,” auditors wrote.

“In addition, 11 (19%) of the recommendations have not been implemented; although agencies indicated they intend to implement some of these in the future.”

A breakdown of the recommendations shows 39.6% have been fully implemented, while 36.2% were in progress, and 5.2% were partially implemented.

The report notes three examples of recommendations that led to notable improvements at the Louisiana Department of Revenue, Office of Risk Management, and Department of Justice.

“The Louisiana Department of Revenue’s Business Tax Enforcement division has shifted its collection focus to prioritize collection inventory by debt age to collect on the newest debt,” auditors wrote.

“Prioritizing debt collection by age is a best practice that could help LDR increase collections.”

LDR also implemented a recommendation to remove potential obstacles to taxpayers using installment agreements set up online. The agency changed its rule to allow taxpayers to establish a 36-month
installment agreement through its Louisiana Access Point self-service portal without an approval process, according to the report.

“The new process has allowed LDR to assist the taxpayer quicker, improve customer service, and reduce the wait to be assisted by a customer service representative,” auditors wrote.

The LLA also noted the Office of Risk Management has implemented a recommendation to develop a formal criteria for concurring with appointments of contract counsel at the Department of Justice.

“This helps ensure that ORM’s concurrence process, which is required by state law, is transparent and nonbiased,” the report read.

Several of the LLA recommendations that have not been implemented involved the Department of Justice and oversight of attorneys defending claims against the state.

For more than two decades, the DOJ has resisted LLA recommendations regarding policies and procedures governing its decision to use contract versus DOJ attorneys, including developing formal criteria to help guide staff. The DOJ also has not implemented LLA recommendations to consider past performance of contract attorneys, or to ensure they comply with all minimum qualifications, alleging the recommendations undermine the defense of state tort litigation and violate Louisiana Supreme Court rules.

Another example includes the 2020 LLA recommendation that Louisiana Economic Development publish the actual number of jobs created by the Quality Jobs Program, which incentivizes businesses to locate or expand operations in Louisiana.

LED did not concur with the finding and did not implement it, and has continued to report only the anticipated number of jobs created, citing state law that requires certain statutorily required reports.

“If the Legislature desires for LED to report an aggregate number of jobs created by applicants of the QJ program each year, LED would abide by the change in statute regarding reporting,” the LLA report reads.

A full breakdown of all 58 recommendations is included in the document.

Around Town for Feb. 10

Fri, 02/10/2023 - 9:26am

Happy birthday Tuesday to Veronica Smith and Sade Watts from family, friends and Ira.

Wheel House for Feb. 10: Black history, preacher's anniversary, egg hunt, color run

Fri, 02/10/2023 - 9:22am

BLACK HISTORY
Program at Good Hope Baptist Church, 908 Washington St., Patterson, 11 a.m. Feb. 19.

GOOD HOPE
Baptist Church, 908 Washington St., Patterson, celebrating the Rev. Patrick T. Jones Sr.’s anniversary at 11 a.m. Feb. 26. Guest speaker Jules Anderson.

EGG HUNT
Community Easter Egg Hunt 2-5 p.m. April 1 at Park Street Park, Patterson. School-aged children welcomed. Donations also accepted. For info call Allise Jennings, 985-992-0630.

COLOR RUN
Hosted by the City of Patterson at 8 a.m. May 6. Run begins and ends at Park Street Park. Early registration through April 15, $25, includes T-shirt. Late registration $25, no T-shirt guarantee. For entry form visit City Hall, 1314 Main St. For info call 985-992-0630.

25th annual Bayou Horseshoe Pitchers Association award

Fri, 02/10/2023 - 9:04am

The local organization recently named award-winners from its spring and fall leagues.

Submitted Photos

Locally written play wins regional awards

Fri, 02/10/2023 - 8:49am

CHRIS LANDRY, Banner-Tribune

The Teche Theatre for the Performing Arts production of The Quarters, which made its debut at the theater in March of 2022, swept all 10 awards for which it was nominated in the 2022 Broadway World Regional Awards.

It’s an honor that brings pride to playwright and director Ed “Tiger” Verdin, and the rest of the musical’s production staff and cast.

“It was an amazing day for myself, as well as the cast and crew and creative team,” Verdin said of finding out in January that the production had won the awards.

The musical play won the awards in the New Orleans region, which covers all of Louisiana as well as parts of Texas, Arkansas and Mississippi, Verdin said. The Broadway World Regional Awards are given out to productions in more than 100 cities/regions worldwide. BroadwayWorld.com is a theatre news website based in New York City covering Broadway, off-Broadway, regional and international theatre productions. Readers were allowed to vote on the awards for regional productions and touring shows which had their first performance between Oct. 1, 2021 and Sept. 30, 2022, with voting open
through Dec. 31, 2022. Winners were announced in January.

The awards that "The Quarters" won were:
--Best Musical — THE QUARTERS Musical
--Best Ensemble Performance — THE QUARTERS Musical
--Best Performer in a Musical — Adolph Davis
--Best Supporting Performer in a Musical — Jeneé Crowther
--Best Choregraphy of a Play or Musical— LaDaisha Bowles-Webber
--Best Costume Design of a Play or Musical — Tiffany Dupas
--Best Lighting Design of a Play or Musical — Mackenzie Burleigh
--Best Music Direction & Orchestra Performance — Kenneth Perry
--Best Direction of a Musical — Ed “Tiger” Verdin
-Best Scenic Design of a Play or Musical - Ed “Tiger” Verdin

The play was originally nominated for best new play or musical, but The Quarters was the only original production, so that category was eliminated.

Verdin said he wanted to make sure to utilize local talent for the play.

“I’ve been doing this for 30 years from high school to now, and 20 years with the Teche Theatre,” Verdin said. “It’s about local talent, it’s about local stories, it’s about utilizing all of the talent, which is amazing. I would put this talent up against anyone in the world.

“To be able to pull off an original show, an original production, with original music, using all local people, I don’t want to say it’s unheard of, but usually you’re looking for some type of guidance.”

There was some veteran talent involved, but also some green performers and Verdin said the first show, which was attended by people from New York, went off flawlessly.

“Winning best supporting actor, best ensemble performance, best lighting design, best costume design, best choreography, best orchestration, best scenic design, you name it, we couldn’t have asked for a better run,” Verdin said. “In my 30 years of doing theater, I have never done a more perfect show. You always have some type of snafu that’ll happen during a live performance. Our opening performance was perfect. That cast, the music, the lighting, there was not one missed cue on anything, no missed lines, no missed direction. I had never seen that in my life, and I was just blown away by the cast.”

Verdin said he grew up in the Oaklawn Quarters, and the African-Americans who lived there accepted him as family. He wanted to tell the story of slavery in the Deep South, in a way that nobody had told it before.

That includes history many people are not aware of, that the Emancipation Proclamation didn’t free slaves in St. Mary Parish. President Abraham Lincoln’s proclamation, issued on Sept. 22, 1862, freed slaves in Southern slave states, but 13 Louisiana parishes were exempt. An additional 48 counties in West Virginia and seven other Virginia counties were exempt from the proclamation as well.

Verdin said producing the play was a way of “trying to right a wrong, trying to put an emphasis on the correct history. We always hear about Juneteenth in Galveston, Texas, but that was pretty much the reason why. Everybody thinks that the Emancipation Proclamation freed all slaves at that time, and it didn’t.”

Jeremy Alford: Conservatives explore ways to gain legislative seats

Fri, 02/10/2023 - 8:44am

JEREMY ALFORD

As state lawmakers approach their final regular session of the term, outside players like donors, consultants and even other elected officials are plotting paths to gain more Republican seats in the House and Senate during the fall elections.

The effort in many ways begins and ends with the Louisiana Committee for a Conservative Majority, which was formed in 2007 to serve as a clearinghouse for most GOP efforts related to legislative elections.

Progress has been slow and steady for LCCM, culminating in 69 out of 105 House seats and 27 out of 39 Senate seats.

Donors and business lobbyists now jockey for posts on the LCCM board and candidates on the conservative spectrum aggressively seek the committee’s seal of approval.

For conservative diehards, however, the job isn’t complete. Republican boosters want to pick up enough seats during this year’s election cycle to create a supermajority in the House to match the one that exists in the Senate.

The next term of state government could be a heady one for Republicans if they elect one of their own as governor and hold supermajorities on both sides of the Capitol’s Memorial Hall.

Could it actually happen? LCCM and its board members will meet later this month for a retreat to begin the work of doing just that.

U.S. Sen. John Kennedy is now the lone chairman of LCCM, after Attorney General Jeff Landry relinquished his co-chair designation last year to run for governor. As he has done in the past, stakeholders expected Kennedy will be active not only in board meetings, but also in candidate interviews.

As for the governor’s race, LCCM is steering clear of the contest altogether.

In fact, the board plans to meet with other candidates for statewide office, but not those seeking the governorship.

While the board doesn’t want to get involved in other statewide races, either, candidates will be present at the retreat later this month for presentations.

Thus far there are conservative candidates on the agenda running for agriculture commissioner, attorney general, insurance commissioner, lieutenant governor, secretary of state and treasurer.

This will give individual board members the opportunity to meet with statewide candidates and — yes — donate to their campaigns individually and separately from LCCM. This new twist makes LCCM not only a clearinghouse for legislative strategy, but also (in a small way) a brokerage for GOP donations.

The retreat will also serve as an opportunity for the board to get together and discuss the exact races LCCM will target in the House and Senate this fall.

We’ll have to wait and see which contests make it into the crosshairs, but consultants see opportunities for House gains in Plaquemines, Pointe Coupee and Washington parishes, to name a few locales.

True believers think the GOP ranks in the House could jump from 69 currently to maybe 72 in the next term.

Back in the Legislature, Senate Republicans have already held their own retreat and their House counterparts will soon follow suit, according to House Majority Leader Blake Miguez of New Iberia. That upcoming meeting of the House GOP will focus more on policy, but will serve as a precursor to the Republican Delegation discussing its own spending strategy for this fall.

As for the Conservative Caucus, which maintains its own membership and related activities in the House, it has an upcoming planning session as well. Chairman Jack McFarland of Jonesboro said the Caucus is targeting a few different multi-day dates in March.

To be sure, Republicans are organized heading into the 2023 election year, particularly when it comes to House and Senate races. Democrats will likely to put up a good fight, but with the electorate and big dollar donations both trending Republican, good might not do the trick.

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