NEW ORLEANS, La. – The Institute for Truth in Accounting has released a damning “Financial State of the State” report on Louisiana’s “antiquated” accounting methods and “precarious” fiscal status. Despite a balanced budget requirement, each Louisiana taxpayer shoulders a financial burden of $19,800, as of mid-2010, their share of $24.7 billion.

The IFTA is a Chicago-based, non-partisan and non-profit organization whose members seek to promote “honest, accurate, and transparent accounting at all levels of government.” Sheila Weinberg, founder and CEO, takes particular exception with a lack of commitment to balanced budget requirements.

“If governors and legislatures had truly balanced the state’s budget, no taxpayers’ financial burden would exist… A state budget is not balanced if past costs, including those for employees’ retirement benefits, are pushed into the future.”

Paul Rainwater, commissioner of administration, counters that Louisiana complies with “Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) as prescribed by the Government Accounting Standards Board (GASB) [a non-governmental organization] and the Louisiana Revised Statutes.” However, IFTA members investigated the state employees retirement system, in addition to Louisiana’s 2010 audited financial report, and found $16.9 billion in off-balance sheet liabilities.

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Fergus Hodgson is the capitol bureau reporter with the Pelican Institute for Public Policy. He can be contacted at fhodgson@pelicaninstitute.org, and one can follow him on twitter.

Louisiana has 10 state-owned, taxpayer-funded public hospitals, spread across 64 parishes and 45,000 square miles, to deliver health care to our citizens and train our medical students.  Our Charity Hospital System is not self-supporting.  It is subsidized each year with over $300 million from the state and, this year, nearly $300 million from the federal government, and that doesn’t include Medicaid and Medicare payments.  These subsidies could be reduced, and the state could save considerable money, by achieving greater efficiencies in the way we run our Charity Hospitals.

In 2009, LSU wisely hired Alvarez & Marsal Healthcare Industry Group, a national health care consulting firm, to analyze the operations of the Interim Charity Hospital in New Orleans.  Among its findings were:

1.  Per-patient costs were far above the national average.  The cost per patient per day was $5,031, versus $2,794 at similarly sized teaching hospitals.

2.  The hospital had far more employees, particularly nurses, than necessary by national standards.  There were 8.2 full-time employees per occupied bed, compared to the national average of six per bed.

3.  The hospital had one nurse supervisor for every three nurses.  The normal ratio is one nurse supervisor for eight nurses.

4.  The hospital did not have a system in place to measure worker productivity.

5.  The hospital’s system for managing medical supplies was “poorly organized, operates out of multiple locations, has cumbersome work flow processes, and is minimally automated.”

The recommended changes by Alvarez & Marsal would reduce costs by $66 million per year and generate $6.7 million in new revenues, for a total savings of $72 million.

Louisiana should commission a similar operational assessment by the Legislative Auditor for each of Louisiana’s other nine charity hospitals.  If we can save $72 million at one hospital, the savings for the entire system would likely be in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

Louisiana doesn’t need to raise taxes.  We just need to manage our money better.

“Admittedly, there is a symbiotic relationship between education and economic development, but the true line of causation is far from clear-cut. If a state cannot provide good employment opportunities for its graduates, the best educational institutions in the nation will not prevent the outmigration of human capital. In these circumstances, doubling or tripling (an institution’s) budget would not arrest the trend, so the problem must be more fundamental than mere lack of funds.”

The gentleman addresses a very valid point. Post-secondary education in general in Louisiana—and higher education in particular—are often given the status of near idolatry. The multitude of post-secondary institutions (all 65 of them, not including satellite campuses and professional schools) and five separate management boards are purported to be a primary driver of economic development in the Bayou State. Would that it were so. Unfortunately, the main economic development impact of post-secondary education in Louisiana is the payrolls within the institutions in the communities where they are located. The multiplicity of institutions and boards weighs down the potential for reaching critical mass in the partnership between post-secondary education and economic development.

Where economic development and post-secondary education have the most advantageous symbiotic relationship is in areas where the landscape isn’t overwhelmed by institutions. It is where the entire system of post-secondary institutions has a defined role—with minimal duplication—in a clear mission that attracts businesses to locate and expand in a state. We are light years away from having that approach in Louisiana.

The budget bloodbath that is now gearing up in Baton Rouge will undoubtedly—again—miss the point regarding funding, cuts, and missions. The focus will be on saving jobs and institutions. Communities will compete for dwindling dollars in order to preserve the status quo. Boards within post-secondary education will battle each other and other state agencies to keep every job and every institution in place.

If somehow money mysteriously appeared to keep funding intact, what would the end result be? We would continue forward with a mediocre system that adds to the state and local economies primarily by payrolls and vendor contracts, not by energizing the economic development potential of the state and its citizenry.

The first debate that needs to occur in Baton Rouge is the proper role for post-secondary education to play in the creation of wealth through opportunity and entrepreneurship—not through the mere sprinkling of government funds in our communities. Louisiana spends a higher than average amount of government dollars per capita. It hasn’t exactly brought us unbridled prosperity. Transferring more dollars from the private to the public sector is not going to turn our economy around.

The economist whose letter to the editor I read over coffee this morning ended his comments with a salient point:

“In 2008, only 12 states nationwide provided more expenditures per student; in the South, only North Carolina and Georgia ranked higher in student support. It is just that we do a terrible job allocating those expenditures in a way that gives us the biggest bang for our buck.”

Amen, sir!

Lost in the coming debate about what percentage of state revenues should go to post-secondary education will be the more important question: When will we streamline and change the system to better enhance quality job creation instead of simply pumping government payrolls into communities and calling it “economic development?”

Dan Juneau is President of the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry.

In any event, WWL’s Garland Robinette had Rainwater and Kennedy on yesterday (separately), and it was an interesting back-and-forth…

Monday’s disconcerting news

The ongoing charade with the state budget is proof that we should turn away from this vicious cycle and embrace reformative measures outside of taxes and overhead cuts. In the case of public education, this means advocating school choice and promoting vouchers, rather than blanket standards and more federal cash bailouts.

Many arguments critical of vouchers and school choice have conspiratorial undertones, while others claim the state needs to focus on fixing public schools rather than allowing students to leave for private and charter schools. The latter has valid concerns, but the unfortunate truth is that the public school system is so overburdened with administrative costs and so far behind in actual performance that for now the only option is to alleviate the strain on infrastructure.

Teachers unions claim that the state doesn’t invest enough money in public schooling. However, no amount of state money can remedy this situation. Voucher programs not only provide students with access to better schools of their choosing, but cost as low as a quarter per student compared to public schools. Because the state funding formula awards money to schools per student, implementing vouchers can greatly reduce the amount of money the state needs to allocate every year and thus prevent shortfalls. This in turn leaves the state more money to prevent the slash-and-burn cuts taking place at UNO.

The success of vouchers and improved school-choice has been demonstrated throughout the country, most prominently in Washington, D.C. The tangible results stand out for themselves- decreased costs, vastly improved performance, and popular support.

Of course, an effective transition from the status quo to a diversified education system will be gradual, so this latest crisis will entail austerity cuts to key sectors, the likes of which Louisianans should be used to by now. Following the Republican gains made in the midterm elections, the Heritage Foundation documented the myriad triumphs of school-choice proponents over ardent union loyalists. Regrettably, Louisiana is not one of the states mentioned in the report.  Until our state fully commits to prescient solutions rather than reverting to tired, hackneyed measures we may face a steady stream of budget fiascos.

Jamison Beuerman is a writer for The Pelican Post, where this article originally appeared.

The report that Jindal had approved the transfer of federal stimulus money from K-12 level education to “shore up colleges and universities,” was bizarre in and of itself.  At the time, we commented on the head-scratching nature of the policy, describing the situation as cutting the legs out from under an already anemic structure of Louisiana public education.  It was not a substantive solution to what has become a systemic problem.  It provided only temporary relief to a much larger issue.

Now, it appears as though the ignorance of this decision has come back to bite Jindal and his administration.

The state’s annual Oct. 1 headcount shows enrollment statewide is about 9,000 students higher than was expected in June, state educators said.

State leaders, who already are grappling with major budget problems, now face a new shortfall of up to $42 million because public school enrollment is higher than expected.

Officials have said that the state is obligated to pay for this “unexpected surge” in enrollment.  Only, the surge really shouldn’t be unexpected.  Pastorek and others commented that unanticipated increases in student enrollment are not uncommon. So, it seems as though one of two things needed to happen: the administration should have recognized the potential for an enrollment increase and left funding as it was, or someone needed to figure out how to make better estimates.

With regard to the $147 million appropriation:

Rainwater said he did not know if portions of the $147 million fund would be used to pay for larger-than-expected student enrollment.

Where the money would come from if enrollment remains well above estimates is unclear.

“I am not sure,” Rainwater said. “We are going to work with the budget folks and Paul Pastorek’s group,” he said, a reference to the state superintendent of education.

So, it seems that the Jindal Administration will follow its S.O.P and do nothing about a pressing issue.  Louisiana has come a long way from its deplorable past record in education, and it has a long way to go still to become truly competitive nationwide.  Jindal seems content to allow that progress to go to waste.  Not a great legacy to leave behind for a man who aspires to achieve national prestige…

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The Rally for Higher Education was successful as a peaceful expression of anger conveyed without suspected influence from Louisiana anarchist groups.  It can also be considered successful in that the turnout was significant enough to convey a powerful message.  Close to 500 students and faculty attended the rally from institutes of higher education across the state, representing colleges as far away as Grambling State in north Louisiana.  The Rally is of vital importance to the future of Louisiana education.  It voiced the concerns of a wide range of higher education institutes and represented the most substantial peaceful public protest on the issue to date.

It is a relief to see that the mischief makers involved withThe Iron Rail and Occupy Louisiana were deterred from violence by the heavy presence of the state police.  If these groups had been able to exert their influence on the rally, there is no doubt that the protest could not be seen as successful.  However, this influence was not seen, and the Rally served as a peaceful expression of student frustration with the weak policies of  Governor Jindal.  It is necessary that the people most impacted by his poor higher education budget policy speak their minds and let him know that his inaction will not stand.  If students and faculty did not display their anger with Jindal’s policy, where then would be the incentive for change?

This rally very well could have had a damaging effect on higher education if anarchist organizations had attempted to leech this opportunity to further their own violent ends.  Three days before the rally, a link was posted on the Occupy Louisiana website praising the actions of students in Dublin who “occupied” a federal department building during a mostly peaceful budget cut protest.  It is likely that Occupy Louisiana wished to attempt a similar action had the state police not materialized downtown in force.  From Occupy Louisiana:

Upwards of 25,000 students from across Ireland descended onto the streets of Dublin on Wednesday for a protest called by the USI (Union of Students in Ireland).  Up to 2,000 students broke away from the march, many calling It ‘futile’, and participated in the occupation of the Department of Finance and the sit-down protest staged outside. article continued…

On the day of the rally, another disturbing link was posted on the site.  It supported the actions of violent protesters in London who vandalized the Conservative Party HQ in the name of higher education.  The link is narrated as follows:

50,000 students marched against cuts to universities and increased tuition today, smashing into and occupying the conservative party offices. Seems like they are telling their leaders: stop the cuts or we will be ungovernable! Good show ole chaps!

We are lucky that the same situations of violence did not affect the peaceful and admirable actions of Louisiana college students.  They were able to voice their frustrations with our government in a way that is firmly protected by our Constitution, and they should be applauded for bringing further awareness to a growing issue facing the future of Louisiana.

But the question is…what will Jindal do? He has completely refused to address the subject substantively.  He seems content to wait until the public sentiment is so skewed in favor of higher education that it will be politically viable for him to take action.  Let us hope the political winds change quickly, else permenant damage may cripple our education system.  In light of the expected $1.5 billion budget shortfall, any further procrastination on this issue will destroy the image of Lousiana higher education, an image that has taken years to shape favorably.  Future cuts to LSU will likely downgrade our flagship institution from its Tier One status.  In this event, Louisianians can look to a bleak future for their children in education.

The answers to this problem are not extremely popular, but they must be enacted for the good of our state.  Jindal needs to address the very system of education that pervades Louisiana.  He will need to eliminate satellite colleges like LSU Eunice and LSU Alexandria.  He will also need to do something about the underachieving colleges in our state.  The bottom two colleges in terms of graduation rates are SUNO (8%) and UNO (23%).  Something needs to be done to correct the problems with these institutes, but it will not be politically or socially popular.  For this reason, it is doubtful that Jindal will actually make an effort to enact changes to the colleges. UNO is arguably the leading institutional advocate against the budget cuts, but are they willing to accept fundamental changes to their system for the greater good? I would doubt it.  In addition, we all know the issues involved with SUNO.  As a historically all black college, the political ramifications of reforming that system are enormous.

We also need a constitutional amendment to address the inadequacies in our budgetary policy.  Hell, we might as well scrap the whole constitution….it’s not like we haven’t been down that road before….

Jindal hasn’t really started off on the right track either.  In a bizarre move today, the Governor reallocated $147 million of federally appropriated money from the K-12 education system to fund higher education.  This action is not an answer, and it is an ignorant and foolish response to a dire situation.  Like putting band aids on a hemorrhaging wound, this action is all show, no substance, and it is quite counterintuitive to the needs of the Louisiana education system.  K-12 programs are not funded by tuition, so when the Governor decreases the funding they need to function, he is essentially cutting the legs out from under the entire foundation of public education.  In a roundabout way, Jindal is damaging the higher education system by providing an even more anemic standard of public elementary education, yielding fewer individuals capable of providing future tuition money to colleges. From the Baton Rouge Business Report:

West Baton Rouge Parish Schools Superintendent David Corona called the news devastating. Districts had been told how much money they could expect and had already made plans to use it.

The education money was part of a $26 billion jobs stimulus bill approved by Congress in August. Pastorek had told districts the money would flow directly to them for their programs in the state’s current fiscal year — meaning the school districts could use it either in the current school year or the next one — and wouldn’t be used to offset budget cuts.

“Back in August, we had received notification that we would be getting it and that we would be able to obligate funds for that purpose,” said Gary Jones, schools superintendent in Rapides Parish.

Getting off to a really bad start, Jindal.  Let’s hope this isn’t an indication of things to come.

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As we said in that piece, we get notices of appointments to obscure and dubious state boards on a constant basis. Today was no different.

Here’s a sampling:

Governor Bobby Jindal Announces the Appointment of Bernadine Williams to the Addictive Disorders Regulatory Authority

BATON ROUGE- Today, Governor Bobby Jindal announced the appointment of Bernadine Williams to the Addictive Disorders Regulatory Authority.

The Commission on Addictive Disorders was organized to promote and sustain healthy lifestyles for individuals, families and communities by maintaining a comprehensive and accessible system of treatment services that are part of a fully integrated healthcare system.  The commission serves to develop ideas and programs that increase public awareness and help prevent the abuse of alcohol, drugs, and compulsive gambling.

According to statute, the board consists of seven voting members and one nonvoting member, all of whom shall be appointed by the governor, subject to Senate confirmation, including:

• One nonvoting member who possesses significant knowledge in the area of addiction from a list of three names submitted by the Louisiana State Medical Society.
• One voting member who possesses significant experience and knowledge in the area of compulsive gambling from a list of three names submitted by the Louisiana Association of Substance Abuse Counselors and Trainers, Inc.
• One voting member who possesses significant experience and knowledge in the area of prevention from a list of three names submitted by the Louisiana Association of Substance Abuse Counselors and Trainers, Inc.
• One voting member who possesses significant experience and knowledge in the area of opiate replacement therapy from a list of three names submitted by the Louisiana Association of Substance Abuse Counselors and Trainers, Inc.
• Four voting members from a list of twelve names divided into four groups of three names each submitted by the Louisiana Association of Substance Abuse Counselors and Trainers, Inc.  

Bernadine Williams, of Harvey, is an assistant executive director for Raintree Children & Family Services and was formerly a program coordinator for Responsibility House Social Detox.  Williams will be appointed to serve as a voting member who possesses significant experience and knowledge in the area of compulsive gambling and submitted by the Louisiana Association of Substance Abuse Counselors and Trainers, Inc., as required by statute. 

No disrespect to Ms. Williams, but honk if you’ve ever heard of the Addictive Disorders Regulatory Authority.

Governor Bobby Jindal Announces the Reappointment of Verge Ausberry, Jr. to the Board of Directors of the Louisiana Lottery Corporation

BATON ROUGE- Today, Governor Bobby Jindal announced the reappointment of Verge Ausberry, Jr. to the Board of Directors of the Louisiana Lottery Corporation.

The Board of Directors for the Louisiana State Lottery Corporation oversees the daily activities involved with running the corporation and works to ensure the highest level of accountability by reviewing its budget, administrative rules and drawings.

According to statute, the board is comprised of nine gubernatorial appointments, including one member from each of the seven congressional districts and two members must serve as at-large members. The appointments are subject to senate confirmation. Louisiana State Treasurer John Kennedy will serve as an ex-officio board member.

 Verge Ausberry, Jr., of Baton Rouge, is the Senior Associate Athletic Director at Louisiana State University.  Ausberry is a member of the Recreation and Park Commission for East Baton Rouge Parish and will be reappointed to represent the 6th Congressional District, as required by statute.

We know Verge, and he’s a good guy. The Lottery isn’t particularly obscure. One wonders why it isn’t cut loose and privatized, though – wouldn’t that board be better selected by stockholders?

Governor Bobby Jindal Announces the Appointment of Jacqueline Shellington to the HIV, AIDS, and Hepatitis C Commission

BATON ROUGE- Today, Governor Bobby Jindal announced the appointment of Jacqueline Shellington to the HIV, AIDS, and Hepatitis C Commission.

The HIV, AIDS, and Hepatitis C Commission serves as an advisory body to the governor and the Department of Health and Hospitals on AIDS, HIV and Hepatitis C related matters.

The commission is responsible for coordinating forums on AIDS, HIV and Hepatitis C related matters among state agencies, local government, and other nongovernmental groups.  The commission researches and reviews all state regulations, guidelines, policies, and procedures relative to the prevention, treatment and care of HIV infection, AIDS, and Hepatitis C and, when appropriate, makes recommendations to the governor, the secretary of the Department of Health and Hospitals, and the legislature.
           
The HIV, AIDS, and Hepatitis C Commission consists of the following 29 governor’s appointments:

• Two persons infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), at least one of whom represents a racial or ethnic subpopulation.
• Two persons infected with hepatitis C, where one person is co-infected with HIV, and at least one of whom represents a racial or ethnic subpopulation.
• Two representatives from community-based provider organizations providing services to persons infected with the human immunodeficiency virus, one of which represents a racial or ethnic subpopulation.
• Two medically qualified representatives from a medical provider or community-based provider organizations providing services to persons infected with hepatitis C, one of which represents a racial or ethnic subpopulation.
• One representative from the Louisiana Primary Care Association.
• Two representatives from the Ryan White Consortia.
• Two representatives from the statewide HIV Prevention Community Planning Group.
• One physician representative from the Louisiana State Medical Society.
• One physician representative from the Louisiana Medical Association.
• One nurse representative from the Louisiana Nursing Association.
• One social worker representative from the Louisiana Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers.
• One representative from the Louisiana Association of Substance Abuse Counselors and Trainers.
• Four Ryan White Care Act grantees consisting of one Title I grantee, one Title II grantee, one Title III grantee, and one Title IV grantee.
• One representative of the Ryan White CARE Act Delta Region AIDS and Education Training Center.
• One representative from the Louisiana Dental Association.
• One representative from the Pelican Dental Association.
• One representative from the Louisiana State Board of Pharmacy.
• One representative from the Louisiana Psychological Association.
• One representative from the Louisiana Interchurch Conference.
• One representative from the Louisiana State University School of Dentistry.

Jacqueline Shellington, of Baton Rouge, is the director of St. Anthony’s Home for Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center.  Shellington will be appointed to serve as a social worker representative from the Louisiana Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, as required by statute.

We’re not denying that AIDS and Hepatitis C are issues the state’s healthcare entities need to address. Is it necessary for the governor to appoint people to a board to address them? And look at the statutory makeup to this thing – if that’s not a bureaucratic nightmare, we’ve never seen one.

Governor Bobby Jindal Announces the Appointment of Honorable Frank Thaxton, III to the Louisiana Housing Finance Agency

BATON ROUGE- Today, Governor Bobby Jindal announced the appointment of Honorable Frank Thaxton, III to the Louisiana Housing Finance Agency.

The Louisiana Housing Finance Agency has the authority to undertake various programs to assist in the financing of housing needs in the state of Louisiana for persons of low and moderate incomes.

According to statute, the agency is comprised of fifteen members including the secretary of the Department of Children and Family Services, or his designee, and the state treasurer, both of whom shall serve as ex officio members concurrent with the terms of their offices. Eleven members are gubernatorial appointments including three members who will serve as at-large members from the general public. One member must be nominated by each of the following: the Louisiana Bankers Association, the Louisiana Mortgage Lenders Association, the Louisiana Home Builders Association, the Louisiana Realtors Association, the Louisiana Housing Council, the Apartment Association of Louisiana, the Louisiana AFL-CIO and the Realtists Association of Louisiana. In addition, the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives each must appoint a member to the agency.

Frank Thaxton, III, of Shreveport, is a self-employed attorney and a retired district court judge.  Thaxton will be appointed to serve as an at-large member of the general public, as required by statute. 

We won’t offer a judgement as to whether this thing is Louisiana’s version of Fannie and Freddie, but we will say that federal attempts to create “affordable housing” have more or less proven the government’s complete incompetence in accomplishing that goal. A statute which gives the AFL-CIO a spot on a housing board is a pretty good indication as to whether that board is worthwhile.

Governor Bobby Jindal Announces the Appointment of Penny Millhollon to the Marriage and Family Therapy Advisory Committee

BATON ROUGE – Today, Governor Bobby Jindal announced the appointment of Penny Millhollon to the Marriage and Family Therapy Advisory Committee.

The Marriage and Family Therapy Advisory Committee serves to examine and qualify all applicants for licensure as marriage and family therapists and recommend to the Louisiana Licensed Professional Counselors Board of Examiners each successful applicant for licensure, attesting to his professional qualifications to be a marriage and family therapist.

According to the statute, the commission is comprised of four licensed marriage and family therapist board members appointed by the governor from a list of names submitted by the executive board of the Louisiana Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.

Penny Millhollon, of Shreveport, is a multi-systemic therapy program supervisor and a marriage and family therapist for the Louisiana Methodist Children’s Home and a clinical evaluation provider for the Office of Community Services.  She is also a member of the American Association of Marriage & Family Therapy, the LA Association of Marriage & Family Therapy and the LA Counseling Association.  Millhollon will be appointed to serve as a licensed marriage and family therapist appointed from a list of qualified candidates submitted by the executive board of the Louisiana Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, as required by statute.

Does a marriage therapist really need to be licensed? If you don’t actually know anything about marriage therapy or you stink at it, the market will sort you out a lot faster than a regulatory board will. And if you’re actually good at it, the board which is made up of existing players in the business is actually doing the public an injustice by barring your entry into the field.

And in case anyone argues that these boards exist to process complaints – we have courts and lawyers for such matters. Our legal system does a terrific job providing opportunities for folks to sue each other, and we have no shortage of lawyers eager to take cases on – with more pouring out of law schools every year. Coupling that with regulatory boards for virtually every conceivable field of endeavor is overkill.

Governor Bobby Jindal Announces Appointments to the Louisiana Emergency Response Network Board

BATON ROUGE – Today, Governor Bobby Jindal announced appointments to the Louisiana Emergency Response Network Board.

The Louisiana Emergency Response Network Board serves to develop, implement and support a statewide network of emergency response entities to provide access to care in an efficient and coordinated manner for those in need of emergency help services.

According to the statute, the board is comprised of 28 members including two members from the Louisiana House of Representatives appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives and two members from the Louisiana Senate appointed by the president of the Senate. The remaining 24 members are gubernatorial appointments, subject to senate confirmation, including the following:

• One cardiologist selected from nominations submitted by the Louisiana Chapter of the American College of Cardiology;
• One physician selected from nominees submitted by the American Stroke Association;
• One registered nurse practicing in emergency or critical care selected from nominees submitted by the Louisiana State Board of Nursing;
• One medical director of an emergency medical services agency selected from nominees submitted by the Louisiana Association of EMS Physicians;
• One optometrist selected from nominees submitted by the Optometry Association of Louisiana;
• One member selected from nominations submitted by the Rural Hospital Coalition to represent hospitals with fewer than sixty beds;
• One member selected from nominations submitted by the Metropolitan Hospital Council of New Orleans to represent hospitals with at least one hundred beds;
• One member selected from nominations submitted by the Louisiana Hospital Association to represent a service district hospital;
• Two members selected from nominations submitted by the Department of Health and Hospitals which must include a member from the office of mental health;
• One member from selected from nominations submitted by the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness;
• Two members selected from nominations submitted by the Louisiana State Medical Society which must include a member specializing in pediatric surgery;
• One member selected from nominations submitted by the Louisiana Medical Association;
• One member selected from nominations submitted by the Committee on Trauma or American College of Surgeons;
• One member selected from nominations submitted by the Louisiana American College of Emergency Physicians;
• One member selected from nominations submitted by the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center at Shreveport;
• One member selected from nominations submitted by the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center at New Orleans;
• One member selected from nominations submitted by the Tulane University Health Sciences Center;
• One member selected from nominations submitted by the Louisiana State Coroners Association;
• One 211 member of and selected from nominations submitted by the Louisiana Alliance of Information and Referral Systems;
• One member of and selected from nominations submitted by the Louisiana Ambulance Alliance;
• One 911 member of and selected from nominations submitted by the National Emergency Number Association; and
• One member of and selected from nominations submitted by the Louisiana Hospital Association rehabilitation constituency group. 

Appointments to the Louisiana Emergency Response Network Board:

John Hunt, of New Orleans, is the Associate Trauma Director and the Director of Surgical Intensive Care Unit at the University Hospital Campus of the Medical Center of Louisiana at New Orleans.  He is also a professor of surgery, a clinical professor of anesthesiology, and a clinical associate professor of clinical surgery at LSU Health Sciences Center at New Orleans.  Hunt will be appointed to serve as a member selected from nominations submitted by the LSU Health Sciences Center at New Orleans, as required by statute. 

Kevin Sittig, of Shreveport, is a professor of surgery, director of the Regional Burn Center and the Senior Associate Dean and Chief Medical Officer for LSU Health Sciences Center at Shreveport.  Sittig will be appointed to serve as a member selected from nominations submitted by the Committee on Trauma or American College of Surgeons, as required by statute. 

Any board with 28 members on it is a nightmare to begin with. But the board’s stated mission of providing a standardized emergency response network seems questionable to us – shouldn’t we allow local and private entities to compete, experiment and innovate within their markets to develop best practices? Isn’t the societal move away from centralization and command-and-control a model we should be embracing in Louisiana? We don’t think a 28-member board will encourage the kind of decentralization and innovation we’re envisioning.

As we’ve said, we get these in our e-mail inbox virtually every day, and the majority of the boards the governor is appointing people to we’ve never heard of. Further, the majority appear to indicate how badly the state government micromanages life in Louisiana – where we tend to be in the high 40′s of virtually every index.

This isn’t a shot at Jindal – he didn’t create these boards. It’s past time some of them start disappearing, though. They cost too much, they impede freedom too much, they provide too much political patronage and they’re a drag on our economy – not to mention a burden to the inbox.

As a Veteran, nothing makes me more proud than for people to thank me for my service to our country.  So please do not forget to thank our Veterans, not just tomorrow but anytime you have the opportunity.

I know many of you are excited about the recent national elections.  As I heard the President say last night, something happens to you when you arrive in Washington, and it’s just not as easy as it was during the campaign!

Well, we better hope that the newly elected members can influence the old ones!

Government is in for some changes.  If Washington does not bail out the states next year, it will force state government to downsize.  This will be a very painful exercise.  WHY?  Because a lot of educated people are voters, but I believe they really don’t understand what kind of budget problems loom down the road for Higher Education.  I am already hearing from some Higher Education supporters to support tax increases dedicated to the college systems.

I don’t know everything about politics, but I feel very safe saying that in my district especially there is NO appetite for raising taxes.

At this time we are starving for some leadership.  I have not seen or heard of any plan coming from the Board of Regents.  I hear parochial attitudes will prevent them from doing what’s best for the state.  This is a fact:  without any new money (tax increase) we simply cannot afford the current size and infrastructure of government.  I am committed to work with anyone seeking solutions, and all recommendations are welcomed.  I am impressed by some of the college students in our local community getting engaged in this subject.

With all the talk about the budget and Higher Ed, I certainly don’t mean to leave out Healthcare, because there are an equal number of major issues facing those programs.

I close with this:  as we begin to figure how to make budget cuts that don’t set the state back 20 years, I think it’s incredibly important for you to let all leaders at every level know what your thoughts are about raising taxes.  As I said several months back, many people will begin to pressure our delegation to consider raising taxes.  Increased taxes are not the answer.

In early September, student protests at UNO resulted in the temporary occupation of two buildings, a scuffle with campus police and a few student arrests. Occupy Louisiana was involved.

Dylan Barr, the man behind the Iron Rail anarchist commune, was one of the participants in the violent occupation of Milneburg Hall in September.  He was quoted in a Times Picayune article:

Although Barr, a senior geography major, called for a march on the State Capitol, neither he nor his fellow organizers on Wednesday had scheduled future activities. Nevertheless, Barr said, lawmakers are “going to have to start listening to us, instead of the people who give campaign contributions.”

Barr told the crowd at the amphitheater, “The more they hear about us, the more they’ll think twice about cutting our budget.”

It appears as though the call for this march on the capital has begun to take shape in the form of Wednesday’s Rally for Higher Education.  Initiating as a rally organized by a UNO student group, the event has escalated to include more than 6 state colleges and hundreds of student protesters.

However, unlike the brutal aftermath of the protests at last year’s SRLC, the state is anticipating the violent actions of these anarchist groups:

State Police Col. Mike Edmonson said Monday afternoon that a strong police presence also will exist out of concerns that some anarchist fringe groups could attempt to disrupt a peaceful protest.

Edmonson also cited a fracas that broke out in April in New Orleans in association with the Southern Republican Leadership Conference, where some groups with anarchist ties protested.

Even the students have admitted to the presence of the anarchist organization.  Max Gaudin is a leader of the Save UNO Coalition, which is suspected to have been closely involved with Occupy Louisiana in the past.  The Advocate reported today that Gaudin spoke with organizers of Occupy Louisiana and that no violence is expected.

However, a large group is not required to incite unruly proceedings.  Looking back at the brutality of the Iron Rail at the SRLC, it is clear that this protest began as a peaceful, if slightly wild, affair.  It was in the aftermath of the protest that a small group of individuals stalked Allee Bautsch and her boyfriend, beating them mercilessly out of sight of the public eye.  So, while the state police claims that “there are some groups — some small groups — that would like to come out and cause some problems,” history shows that it does not require the involvement of large organization to cause immense damage.

Given the presence of the state police, it is unlikely that these groups will attempt any such violence during the proceedings of the rally.  However, I think it would be irresponsible to conclude that the threat of violence is not present. We would do well to remember that the beatings of the SRLC occurred in the aftermath of the protests. If the anarchists plan on causing havoc, it will not be at the rally itself, especially considering the alertness of state officials.  That has never been their MO anyway.  I would hope that the police are alert in areas all around the state capitol, but I would assume that the officers will most likely turn to cleaning up after the protesters at the conclusion of the event.  However, it is a good sign that police are alerted to the danger of these groups.  Perhaps, that alone will be enough to deter any potential attacks.

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