Terri Lambert (file photo)
“We’re not doing cost of living this year,” Councilwoman Terri Lambert declared on Tuesday during a Special Working Meeting of Gonzales’ City Council, a workshop called by Mayor Tim Riley intended to avert a budget fiasco like the one embarrassing the city in 2025. “What’s funny?” Lambert challenged a handful of city employees taken aback by the councilwoman’s declaration. “What’s funny?”
Nothing at all. The sniggering was a reflexive response to Lambert’s funny (curious/strange, not ha-ha) pronouncement with no one finding any humor in it. It remains to be seen if a majority-making two members join Lambert’s position as none voiced support on Tuesday.
Annual Cost of Living Adjustments (COLA) have been the norm in the City of Gonzales going back years…decades even. A 2% COLA bump, across the board for every employee, was built into the 2026-2027 fiscal year budget introduced on March 23. Rarely has the practice been publicly questioned by any council member much less declared by a member who has occupied a council seat for a mere 15 months.
The COLA bump is subject to approval by the City Council.
Who else among Lambert’s four council colleagues is included in her “we” in opposition to the traditional COLA? Lambert had erroneously interpreted updated, explanatory pay schedules provided in support of the budget numbers. She thought the 2% increase represented merit pay raises which are awarded to employees by the administration based on supervisory recommendations.
“Costs are rising faster than revenues are,” explained Faulk & Winkler’s Jacob Waguespack, the architect of Mayor Tim Riley’s second proposed budget.
It is an undeniable fact facing Riley’s administration and adjustments must be made to maintain the healthy fund balance enjoyed by the city over a decade-long boom time for all of East Ascension Parish. Ambitious undertakings, the 25,000 square foot Performing Arts, Conference & Events (PACE) Center and similarly sized Freeland Jackson Center will stress city budgets going forward.
The PACE Center, which opened in early 2024, has operated at a loss (a 2025-26 fiscal year deficit of $94,000 according to the administration) and will, more than likely, continue to do so. Freeland Jackson Center’s substantial completion is currently scheduled for May 3 and, while grant funding paid for construction cost, additional personnel will be necessary to operate the facility. $370,000 for an entirely new budget category, aimed at operation of the new center, appeared for the first time in this year’s proposed budget.
Additional police and fire personnel were approved in last year’s budget, adding to the city’s General Fund strain. All in all, the proposed budget left a relatively meager $47,000 surplus. Where is the General Fund money allocated?
Police Department: Total proposed budget is $9,059,000 is up from last year’s $8,424,4000 ($4,300,000 in salaries versus $4,002,000 in 2025-26).
Fire Department: Proposed budget – $5,024,000 up from $4,598,850 ($2,625,000 in salaries versus $2,321,500 last year).
Administration: Proposed budget – $1,150,000 which is a decrease from 2025-26’s $1,362,150 (salaries totaling $630,000, a decrease from last year’s $775,000. Several “administration” personnel are tasked with processing utilities payments justifying a shift in funding source to the Utility Fund which “is operating wonderfully.”)
Planning and Development: Proposed budget – $628,000, down from last year’s $648,000 (salaries remain steady at $270,000).
Sanitation: Proposed budget – $1,479,000, a slight increase from $1,452,000 (salaries – $110,000 up from $106,000. The big-ticket expenditure in Sanitation is the landfill contract, expected to cost $1,275,000 compared to 2025-26’s $1,250,000).
Streets and Drainage: Proposed budget – $1,777,000 up from $1,748,5000 (salaries – $800,000 versus $770,000)
General Government: Proposed budget – $1,866,500, a decrease from $2,131,100 in 2025-26 (salaries increasing to $205,000 from $175,000). General Government includes three “Consulting Fees” totaling $625,000 necessitated by a shift to privatization, All South Engineering replaced the longtime City Engineer last year, Faulk & Winkler contracted to undertake duties of a Finance Director.
Civic Center: Proposed budget – $48,000 down from $88,000 (no salaries).
City Room: Budget zeroed out after demolition in 2025.
Buildings and Grounds: Proposed budget – $936,000 versus $852,350 in 2025-26 (salaries – $425,00, up from $382,000).
Tourism: Proposed budget – $57,000, down from $64,045 (no salaries).
Recreation: Proposed budget – $1,146,000 compared to last year’s $1,105,350 (salaries spiked to $535,000 anticipating additional needs from the 2025-26 number, $316,750). The spike is offset by elimination of two private contracts totaling $170,000 (Athletic Field Maintenance – $75,000; Recreation League Management – $95,000).
Freeland Jackson Center: Proposed budget – $370,500 (salaries – $75,000). There was no Freeland Jackson Center budget item in last year’s budget.
NOTE: Items below are parts of budgets outside the General Fund.
PACE Center: Proposed budget – $621,000, a significant decrease from last year’s $933,500 (salaries saw a similar decrease, $175,000 compared to last year’s $270,000). The budget is largely funded by a perpetual 2% Hotel Occupancy Tax expected to generate $575,000 with another $175,000 in revenue from Facility Rental (Total Revenue – $914,000). If projections are accurate, it leaves a $53,000 shortfall as Expenses are anticipated to come in at $967,000 ($346,000 to satisfy the construction loan obligation and $621,000 to operate the facility).
Mayor Riley has yet to name a manager after Jaycee Gill, who was also the inaugural “Community Events Director,” resigned in late 2025. The position is not budgeted as Riley gauges the will of the council because, as Faulk & Winkler advised, any additional funds must be shifted from the General Fund and would result in that fund’s deficit without reductions (like rejection of COLA raises?).
Gonzales’ Utilities Budget paints another, much rosier, picture. With a better than $45 million proposed fund balance, revenues are anticipated to exceed expenditures in the 2026-27 Fiscal Year, continuing a longtime trend. Total Expenditures (Gas/Water/Wastewater operations) are projected at $7,982,000 with expected Total Revenues of $9,277,000.
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