On Wednesday, Governor Jindal issued the following "Message from Bobby". Bayoubuzz provides this information as a public service to the Louisiana citizens:
Bringing Home Recovery Assistance
Hurricanes Gustav and Ike brought significant damage to our state earlier this year – with business damages in the billions, agricultural losses in the hundreds of millions, and approximately 12,000 flooded residences. We have been working non-stop since the storms to swiftly and efficiently recover, and last week we secured significant help from the federal government for our recovery efforts.
On Wednesday the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that our state will receive $438 million through the first distribution of federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds for rebuilding. As written by the Baton Rouge Advocate, “the money [will go] to help farmers, ranchers, fisheries and homeowners impacted by the…storms.”
These CDBG funds are a critical part of helping our local communities get back on their feet after Hurricanes Gustav and Ike. Additionally, we anticipate HUD allocating additional CDBG funds early next year. We will work to ensure that these funds are not bogged down by the bureaucratic red tape that was so harmful following the storms of 2005. The dollars will be going directly to local communities, avoiding the sort of bureaucracy that has hindered the Road Home program.
We have already begun to work through a step by step process that will ensure a quick and efficient distribution of the funds. An action plan for the funds was written in October, the Louisiana Recovery Authority’s (LRA) board approved the plan for public comment in November, and the formal public comment period will last for 10 days this month. Finally, the LRA board will offer its final approval of the plan this month as well before forwarding the plan to the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget for approval.
We will set aside 25 percent of the current funding for critical projects, such as rental housing, agriculture and fisheries recovery, and hurricane protection. These include housing and infrastructure repair, hurricane protection and coastal restoration, agriculture and fisheries recovery and economic development. We cannot fully recover until we get people back in their homes and businesses back on their feet.
Additionally, the President announced that Louisiana will receive 90 percent of the federal cost share for public assistance following Hurricane Gustav. As the Baton Rouge Advocate reported, this “amounts to a multimillion-dollar holiday gift for area cities and parishes still recovering from the…storm.”
This is a positive step forward for our recovery, but we will not stop here. We will continue seeking a 100 percent cost share for Gustav as was granted for Texas following Hurricane Ike and our own state following Katrina and Rita. We know it took Congress to act to grant us 100 percent federal cost share in 2005, and we will continue to work with our Congressional delegation to secure this full cost share, as well as to aid our agriculture industry in their recovery from the storms.
Keeping our Economy Strong
As the nation’s economy continues to fluctuate, the steps we are taking to shore up our own state’s economy have had a positive effect thus far. For example, in November we added thousands of jobs compared to October of this year and the same time frame last year - showing that we continue to outperform the national economy.
The LaTrac system that debuted last month is, as written by the Monroe News-Star,“a new tool in government efficiency and a new thrust in government honesty.” By creating a database that allows the public to track state spending, we have created new levels of accountability for taxpayer dollars – ensuring that they are used for projects that benefit Louisianians statewide.
Our new health care initiative, Louisiana Health First, will also offer help to our economy. By creating a health care system that will not overload our state’s budget and that will offer patients more choices and better access to preventative care, we will save the state untold amounts of money in the long run. As the Shreveport Times said of the initiative, "patients could avoid redundant testing, get preventative treatment earlier and stop turning to expensive emergency rooms for care that could be obtained elsewhere at lower cost.”
We will work to ensure that our state’s economy continues to grow and provide better opportunities for Louisiana families. The free spending ways of the past no longer have a place in Louisiana, where efficiency and accountability will now play a large role in how tax dollars are spent.
Meeting with the President-Elect
I travelled to Philadelphia earlier this week as part of a meeting between the National Governor’s Association (NGA) and President-Elect Barack Obama. As reported by the New Orleans Times-Picayune, the meeting gave us a great opp ortunity to talk with the President-Elect about Louisiana’s priorities, including “Speeding money already approved for hurricane recovery, changing the federal Medicaid financing system to avoid penalizing states when disaster rebuilding temporarily increases their revenue, and pursuing enhanced coastal restoration and hurricane protection.”
It was certainly an encouraging sign that the President-Elect sat down with the NGA, and I am confident that we will work closely with the new administration to secure the aforementioned needs for our state.
Continuing Town Halls
Governor Jindal talks with residents at a recent town hall
I hope that you had a safe and happy Thanksgiving last week – I know my family had a great time sitting around the table and enjoying some good old-fashioned home cooking.
I was able to visit Vacherie in St. James Parish and Woodworth in Rapides Parish over the past week. I encourage you to come out to a town hall meeting when we are in your parish, as it is always great to hear directly from the residents of our state.
