Monroe Dispatch - No Struggle, No Progress

District A Ouachita Parish Police Juror Scotty Robinson seemed to be convinced that the parish’s governing body could make use of a lobbyist. At one of its regularly scheduled meetings, Monday, May 4, Robinson again tried to get his colleagues to see the benefits of hiring a lobbying firm to do work on behalf of the police jury. Not everyone is on board just yet. Robinson told jurors that The Picard Group, a lobbying firm, is interested in doing business with them and that they are ready to begin. District B Juror Jack Clampit appeared not to be ready to accept any proposal from the firm, arguing the citizens of Ouachita Parish have state representatives working for them to secure needed funds for various projects in the parish. Clampit also said that our congressional representatives are sent to Washington, D.C. to do the same thing. Another sticking point was how much a lobbying firm would cost the parish, as Ouachita and its’ municipalities are taking a severe hit with decreasing revenue from sales taxes. Juror Clampit pointed specifically to the situation in the city of Monroe and the measures that are being made by Mayor Jamie Mayo to trim city budgets. Robinson said that he and everyone else is aware of the loss in revenue and what it does to the budget.

Nonetheless, Robinson believes that they need a lobbyist on their side because they (the Jury) are missing out on some things that they can do. Clampit proposed waiting to see how sales tax revenues from the March, April, and May look before proceeding any further. A resolution to accept the firm’s business proposal was passed to have further discussions on the matter.

In other matters before Jurors, an ordinance up for final adoption sponsored by Clampit would temporarily change one of the voting precincts in the parish. The ordinance states that as a result of the COVID-19 emergency, the polling places for Precincts 34 and 47 of Ouachita Parish will temporarily change from the West Ouachita Senior Center (located at N. 7th St.) to the West Monroe Convention Center (located at 901 ridge Ave.), for elections to be held July 11 and August 8, 2020. The Center was chosen because it is a modern building that will provide an excellent and accessible location for a polling place with utilities, restroom facilities, and ample lighted parking. The ordinance passed 6-0.