August/September 2023

GOVERNOR’S COLUMN
Rising to the Challenge
Happy fall, y’all! I hope everyone
is doing well and is as
excited about cooler weather
and football season as I am.
It’s been a busy two months
since my last column, and
I’m looking forward to sharing
with you some exciting
announcements we’ve made
in Louisiana, from broadband
to coastal restoration to energy
investments.
Congratulations on holding
your 86th annual convention
this year. It’s an event I always
enjoy attending but unfortunately,
could not be there.
While I was able to send a
proclamation congratulating
LMA President Derrick Johnson,
Sr. and board members,
please know that I will forever
treasure your partnership
during my administration
and am grateful for all of the
things that we have been able
to accomplish together for
the people we are blessed to
serve. Although my time in office
is winding down, we have
until the end of this year to
continue our good work and
I’m looking forward to it. In
fact, I want to encourage you
to reach out to Leslie Durham
with LITACorp. She is doing
great work and is available to
assist you with information
about funding opportunities
for important projects.
I recently testified before the
U.S. Senate Budget Committee
about the fiscal impact
of extreme weather, sea level
rise driven by climate change
on our infrastructure, and
the importance of building
climate-resilient systems
to mitigate damage to our
economy and our people. The
concept of resilience means
doing everything we can to
avoid the cost of disasters to
our people, to our land, and
to our way of life, and we are
rising to the challenge.
Here at home, I was proud to
sign legislation authored by
Rep. Jerome Zeringue that
establishes the first statewide
Chief Resilience Officer. It’s a
high-level policy position designed
to ensure that successive
governors will keep Louisiana
ahead in mitigating the
impacts of climate change on
our economies and ecosystems.
And speaking of resilience, we
recently broke ground on the
largest ecosystem restoration
project in our state’s history.
The Mid-Barataria Sediment
Diversion, the first project of
its kind, that will restore and
rebuild over 26,000 acres of
coastal land and provide better
protection to our most vulnerable
communities and critical
infrastructure. I’m grateful
to the Coastal Protection and
Restoration Authority and our
federal, state, and local partners
for their decades-long
efforts to make this critically
important project a reality.
Others are taking notice of
Louisiana’s role as a global
leader in the energy transition,
and it’s bringing good-paying
jobs and historic investments
to our state. Our talented
workforce, and the embracing
of lower carbon technologies,
have attracted funding
from the U.S. Department of
Energy to create a commercial-scale
direct air carbon
capture facility in Southwest
Louisiana. Dubbed Project Cypress,
the facility is expected
to create 2,300 good-paying
jobs and remove one million
metric tonnes of carbon dioxide
emissions each year from
the atmosphere—an amount
equivalent to roughly 222,500
gasoline-powered cars.
Last month was also a historic
month for broadband
expansion in Louisiana. We
broke ground on the largest
GUMBO project to date that
will bring highspeed affordable
and reliable internet to
9,140 households and 535
small businesses in Avoyelles
Parish. With the GUMBO
grant program, along with
the $1.3 billion awarded to
Louisiana from the Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law, we will
continue to work toward our
Gov. John Bel Edwards
goal of high-speed, affordable
internet for every home
and business by 2029.
Lastly, I want to encourage
you and those in your municipalities
to visit the newly-unveiled
Louisiana Heritage
Monument. This first of
its kind monument is located
in the Capitol’s Louisiana
Veterans Memorial Park and
is a truly stunning tribute to
all of our African American
veterans, from the formerly
enslaved soldiers who fought
in the Siege of Port Hudson
during the Civil War in 1863
through modern conflicts.
It pays tribute to those men
and women who have served
our nation with distinction
and bravery.
I want to again express my
gratitude for all your work to
better the state of Louisiana
every day. Thank you, and
God bless.
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4: DIRECTOR
The mission of the LMA is to educate, advocate,
and empower progressive and
effective leadership through a united
network of municipalities. My deepest
appreciation goes to the staff members
of the LMA, LaMATS, and RMI for their
tireless dedication and teamwork. Their
efforts have ensured that even during
the most challenging times, including
storms and pandemics, the LMA will
succeed in fulfilling our calling to serve
Louisiana’s municipal leaders.
It was my pleasure to present this report
in person at our 86th LMA Annual Convention
in Alexandria in the presence of
our delegates. It is with great humility,
gratitude, and appreciation that I have
the privilege of serving as your Executive
Director. Thank you for your continued
support through attending our events,
engaging in legislative initiatives, and
participating in our programs and services.
Together we are #LMAStrong.
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LMR | AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2023