During the Biden administration, many political and business leaders saw the impact that offshore wind projects along Louisiana’s Gulf Coast would have on job creation and the broader state economy. But Louisiana’s push to become an “all-of-the-above” energy hub has abruptly ended as Washington came under new management. The Times-Picayune | Baton Rouge Advocate’s editorial board explains:
The death knell may have come earlier this month with the German company RWE reaching a settlement with the government to relinquish its leases, including one off the coast of Cameron Parish, which was lauded when it was announced as the first offshore wind project in federal waters in the Gulf.
Louisiana companies were at the forefront of the domestic offshore wind industry. The abandonment of this renewable energy source is a missed opportunity for workers in the state:
We hope there will be some resurrection of this important industry at a future date. But for now, we are dismayed for the workers and companies who saw a new market disappear right in front of their eyes. We hope that Louisiana skill and expertise will still be useful in wind projects around the globe. We know that our people can innovate and compete with anyone. We only wish that our own government would give them the chance to show it.
Progress – and questions – at DCFS
Department of Children and Family Services leaders testified during a Senate committee on Monday that the agency has severely reduced a backlog of Child Protection Services cases in every region of the state except Baton Rouge. But as The Times-Picayune | Baton Rouge Advocate’s Meghan Friedmann reports, lawmakers pushed back on that assertion:
Last spring, some employees were handling 75, 90 and even 165 cases, [Sen. Patrick] McMath said. Many of those employees had since left the department, according to McMath, who said he came to that conclusion by comparing lists of current and past employees. … “How has the department been able to reduce caseloads and clear backlog cases when employees leave and ship those cases to someone else who either has an equally high caseload or is too new to carry more than one or two cases?” McMath asked. “Help me make the math make sense.”
Sen. Regina Barrow questioned why Baton Rouge was an outlier:
[DCFS Secretary Rebecca] Harris said she believed it had to do with “leadership” issues there. “We have made changes in staffing within that office. We have brought in individuals and leadership from other offices that are very successful,” Harris said, adding that she hoped that the agency would soon see better results.
Fighting to be heard on SpaceX
Residents of Pecan Island are frustrated with the near silence from state officials on a rocket launch facility planned for the coastal community by SpaceX. Dean Boudreaux of the Current reports on their fight to be heard:
“I don’t think they understand that residents want to be part of these talks too,” says Brennon “Bruno” Sagrera, a ninth-generation Island local and fifth-generation rice and crawfish farmer. “We’re a democracy.” … The farmer says he for one would be open to a SpaceX facility in the area, if it creates a significant number of jobs and comes with a commitment to environmental protection, maybe even restoration. “That would be a sacrifice I think would benefit future generations,” Sagrera says. “But they haven’t made any promises like that.”
The tiny community in Vermillion Parish has already suffered from unmet promises of economic development from the oil and gas industry:
“We attracted that industry with similar promises,” says Sagrera. “And we ended up with one of the fastest-eroding coasts in the world and some of the highest cancer rates in the world.” The wealth, he points out, didn’t last long. “It was extracted from our community and our land, and it didn’t last for generations.”
The lack of transparency on the SpaceX project is the result of elected officials signing nondisclosure agreements (NDAs), which has become a standard policy in Gov. Jeff Landry’s administration:
[Brooke] Broussard, lamenting the lack of oversight from local leaders, sees it differently: “They’re drunk on dollar signs.” “With all this secrecy, no one in the community has had real information shared with us,” he says. “I don’t understand how it’s legal that our elected officials are barred by NDAs from sharing information with constituents about a project that will affect our community forever.”
States turn to tax amnesties to close budget holes
More states are looking to tax amnesty programs, which allow corporations and residents to pay past-due taxes without penalties, as they face increased fiscal pressures. Tax amnesties can be appealing to lawmakers because they allow a short-term influx of revenue without having to raise taxes, but they’re not a responsible, long-term fiscal policy. Pew’s Josh Goodman explains:
“They’re just a gimmick,” James Alm, professor emeritus of economics at Tulane University, who began writing about amnesties more than 35 years ago, told Pew. Although he noted that the harm from amnesties is sometimes overstated, Alm said that, “they don’t generate that much revenue and the long-run effects can be potentially significant and negative.”
Number of the Day
55% – Share of U.S. adults under 30 who say they’re more concerned than excited about AI, a 24 percentage-point increase since 2021. (Source: Pew Research Center)