The Washington Parish Council met on Monday, August 14 in Council Chambers at the Washington Parish Courthouse. Following the prayer, pledge, and roll call, the minutes of the from the July 24 meeting were approved.
The first item on the agenda was the auditor's report for the 2022 fiscal year. Michelle Treschwig from the Accounting Audit firm Kushner LaGraize presented the report. She informed the Council that the audit was completed in a timely manner and turned in to the Legislative Auditor's Office before being submitted to the Federal Audit Clearinghouse. It was reviewed, approved, and made publicly available on both government websites.
Ms. Treschwig thanked Parish President Richard Thomas and Director of Finance Donna Graham for providing the needed documents in a timely manner which enabled the audit process to be complete two weeks early. She also declared that the opinion on the audit of Financial Statements was clean. The audit of Government Auditing Standards had only one minor finding that resulted from a budget item not being amended in a timely manner. This has since been resolved. The Major Grant Program audit had no findings.
Ms. Treschwig also noted that the General Fund has an increased balance of $181,000 and the balance of all accounts is currently at a very strong 1.6 million dollars. Each fund has a positive balance, and no long-term debt is on the books which is also very strong. She ended by congratulating President Thomas on his impending retirement and thanked the Council.
Next was Dr. Roger Casama, Parish Coroner. Dr. Casama has been in office for nine terms and is slated to serve the next four years as no one qualified for the upcoming election. At the end of the current term, Dr. Casama will be nearing 90 years of age and plans to retire.
After discussion with advisors, he also requested that a special election to be held in November for the purpose of levying and collecting a 3.15 mill property tax to fund the Coroner's Office be removed from this year's docket. He stated that he and a task force will determine what is needed for the office to compile a budget and determine exactly how much funding is needed.
Dr. Casama, a native of the Philippines, does not want to see poor people taxed, but emphatically expressed that the folks who staff the office desperately need financial help to carry out the extensive duties of the office. He reported that he currently earns a salary of $18,000 per year while the most senior coroner in the state makes $102,000 per year. He noted that one must be a doctor to be a coroner, and he will happily help train the coroner who comes after him. Dr. Casama reiterated that he was not appearing before the Council for himself but for his staff who works tirelessly being "the speakers for the dead."
He ended with the poem "Invictus" by Willian Ernest Henley. He has served as a medical practitioner for 65 years and has been doing so for the people he serves. Following this Councilman Rusty Fornea asked if Dr. Casama did indeed wish to stop the millage vote; will he create a task force for support; and will he present a proposed budget so that parish government does not have to guess the office's needs? The coroner replied "yes" to each question. Director of Finance Donna Graham did interject that she would need a budget proposal by September.
The Council then approved a resolution authorizing the filing of an application with the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development for a grant under any of the following FTA Programs managed through Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development. Chairman Shawn Rice explained that this the Council on Aging annual resolution. The Council also approved a resolution of appointment for the Washington Parish Tourism Commission Board of Directors. Mrs. Edna Kennedy will be assuming the position currently held by Debra Brumfield when her term expires on December 31, 2023.
Per the request of Coroner Casama, the Council did not act on a resolution calling for a special election authorizing the levy and collection of a millage to fund the Coroner's Office in Washington Parish. Instead, the item was removed from the agenda.
Parish President Richard Thomas began his report by recognizing John Wyble, candidate for Louisiana State Representative for District 75. Mr. Wyble explained that District 75 is all of Washington Parish and only Washington Parish. He noted that one of the major issues facing the district is the migration of people from the area to seek more job opportunities. Mr. Wyble explained that he is qualified to represent District 75 and there is no more experienced candidate in the race. He is ready to go to work and has been preparing for several years for this opportunity. The affordability of doing business and living in this area is one of its greatest assets. Washington Parish must work collectively with neighboring St. Tammany Parish and recognize that nearby Mississippi is "leaving us in the dust" educationally and economically. Mr. Wyble is prepared and ready to go and ended with "Our best days are yet to come - to create a better Washington Parish.
The President next mentioned the wildfire event that occurred in the Mt. Hermon area on Friday, August 11. He recognized Chief James Garrett who was in command of the scene. Chief Garrett gave a brief summary of what took place and was very appreciative and complimentary of the 22 fire departments and over 100 firefighters at the scene. Many of the units were from beyond Washington Parish. The fire burned 200 acres with no lives lost and the only structure lost was a barn. He acknowledged Franklinton Fire Chief Brandon LaSalle for his assistance as no one in the area had ever worked a fire so large. One medic and three firefighters suffered from heat-related exhaustion, but this number could have been much higher without the cooperative effort of those on the scene. Following his report, Chief Garrett received a standing ovation from those present. President Thomas was also complimentary of the effort by Homeland Security during this fire event. There will be a more thorough explanation of all the moving parts of the fire scene at the next meeting.
President Thomas continued his report by announcing that qualifying for elections had completed, and he congratulated those on the Council who are unopposed. He encouraged the others to "keep pushing." He also revealed that the Washington Parish Jail is currently overcrowded with 30 inmates sent to the Plaquemines Parish Jail at a cost of $1000 per day. He noted the need for a new jail but that will ultimately be up to the voters to decide. The President met with the District Attorney and some of the judges to help with the relief and last week approximately 25 inmates were released.
Director of Finance Donna Graham reported that the website for Parish Government is now live and at wpgov.org. The audit report of Kushner LaGraize will be available there on August 15. She also had comments in response to Coroner Casama's report. Mrs. Graham met with Coroner and staff and discussed funding for supplies at a more adequate level. She stated, however, that, "If you don't ask - we don't know you need it." Mrs. Graham mentioned some specific funds that have been allotted to the Coroner's Office and that the Parish Government is doing all it can to help them within budgetary constraints. She ended with, "Never in 13 years [her employment] have funds been received that were not passed on and no funds have been received for the coroner's office."
Director of Public Works Ken Wheat praised the fire departments for their recent actions and the parish government crews who have been working in the oppressive heat. He specifically mentioned the continuing of laying asphalt which is warmed to 300 degrees in 104-degree weather. The workers do it and don't complain and he ended with, "They are the best."
Transportation Supervisor Danny Knight listed the tasks completed in the past month by the crews despite the heat. One item of note was 380 bags of trash was picked up to which Councilman Fornea commented, "Come on. There are cans everywhere."
In Council discussion, Councilwoman Kim Wagner noted that the current parish jail is built for 160 prisoners and the jail population is well over 200. All the Council commended the fire departments' efforts in the August 11 fire as well as the first responders and the parish residents who brought ice and water to the scene for the fire crews. Ms. Wagner ended the meeting with a great statement, "When Washington Parish has a crisis, we come together."
