President Clint Cointment and Ascension Parish Council
By an 8-2 majority, East Ascension Drainage Commission (comprised of all Parish Council members) adopted the following resolution on Monday.
RESOLUTION
A RESOLUTION OF THE EAST ASCENSION CONSOLIDATED GRAVITY DISTRICT NO. 1 TO REQUEST CHANGE IN STATE LAW TO DEFINE MEMBERSHIP OF THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
WHEREAS, the East Ascension Consolidated Gravity Drainage District No. 1 is a political subdivision of the State of Louisiana; and
WHEREAS, the East Ascension Consolidated Gravity Drainage District No. 1 comprise (sic) the representatives from the drainage district according to local ordinance and according to La. R.S. 38:1753.1; and
WHEREAS, the Ascension Parish Governing Authority hereby RESOLVES to adopt the following adjustments to state law pertaining to the East Ascension Consolidated Gravity Drainage District No. 1:
- The membership of the board of commissioners of the East Ascension Consolidated Gravity Drainage District No. 1 shall be the respective council representatives that represent the area consisting of the East Ascension Consolidated Gravity Drainage District No. 1.
- The Ascension Parish Government shall be the administrator of East Ascension Consolidated Gravity Drainage District No. 1. The Ascension Parish President shall serve as the drainage director for the East Ascension Consolidated Gravity Drainage District No. 1. The Ascension Parish President shall have all executive authority vested in the Parish President position when governing the respective drainage districts. (Emphasis added).
The “Resolution is being requested by Senator Price and Representative Brass to go with the amendments to the Bill,” according to material in Monday’s meeting packet.
“The Parish President should be the elected official that administers drainage, in my opinion, without the politics,” opined the current parish president, Clint Cointment.
Given what transpired during President Cointment’s first term in office, we understand the impetus to codify his office’s unchallenged authority when it comes to EA Drainage. We have every confidence in Cointment’s ability and commitment to improving drainage and applaud his efforts to date. But Cointment will not always be Ascension’s president.
Considering certain of his predecessors’ inability, seeming unwillingness, we cannot support this cessation of authority by a supermajority of the governing authority.
Neither of the holdouts (Councilmen/Commissioners Joel Robert and Travis Turner) said anything critical President Cointment or his administration. In fact, Robert pledged his undying support of Cointment and his directorship of EA Drainage.
Currently, a self-renewing contract between the respective governmental agencies memorializes the terms in Paragraph 2 of the resolution. Codification by state law should the Price/Brass bill is enacted, will Cointment’s successor bring the same commitment and ability to EA Drainage (and West Ascension Drainage too, we surmise)? We find that a dubious proposition and, as a general proposition, we believe retaining as much authority at the local level is optimal.
Pursuant to that agreement “I would provide identical services,” Cointment explained.
“What we’re doing is taking the politics out of this so that we don’t have the situation that happened under (Parish President) Ronnie Hughes, or me, in the past,” he added. “(EA Drainage) has always operated better with the contract in place and we’re making it state law in order to remove the politics.”
Cointment cited “testimony from Bill Roux” in support of his argument (Roux spent 17 years over Drainage/Public Works, including Hughes’ tenure, 2004-07).
It is a valid point, though EA Drainage has not always operated well under the directorship of parish presidents not named Clint Cointment. During Ronnie Hughes’ tenure the political atmosphere had gotten so contentious that another EA Drainage Commission terminated the contract whereby Ascension Parish Government administered drainage.
After Tommy Martinez reclaimed the parish presidency in 2008, the drainage agreement would be restored (and Roux would provide the necessary cover. And there have been other presidential administrations to blame for the politicization of drainage, most egregious being Cointment’s immediate predecessor.
The political dynamic shifts, oftentimes wildly, every four years. Cointment’s argument is the correct one when it is the council that goes off the rails like in his first term. Voters righted the ship on October 14 when seven recalcitrant council members retired (or were forcibly retired).
But sometimes the problem emanates from the corner office at 615 E Worthey Street.
House Bill 181, pre-filed by Representative Brass would add the following verbiage addressing West Ascension Drainage Commission in R.S. 38:1759:
(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of Subsection A of this Section, the board of commissioners of the West Ascension Consolidated Gravity Drainage District No. 1 consists of three members as follows:
(a) The member of the Ascension Parish council whose council district includes all or the larger part of the drainage district.
(b) The mayor of Donaldsonville or his designee.
(c) A member appointed by the Ascension Parish council for a four-year term.
HB 181 would also amend R.S. 38:1764, adding the following;
All services furnished and work undertaken by East Ascension Consolidated Gravity Drainage District No. 1 or West Ascension Consolidated Gravity Drainage District No. 1 shall be administered by the Ascension Parish president and executed through the parish’s regularly constituted departments and agencies.
None of the bills filed by Senator Ed Price for the current session address either of the drainage commissions, east or west.
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