Acadia Parish Police Jury OKs pay raise for secretary-treasurer

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By Steve Bandy
Crowley Post-Signal
CROWLEY – The secretary-treasurer of the Acadia Parish Police Jury will get a pay raise, but his term of office is up to the Louisiana Legislature.
Currently, the annual salary for the secretary-treasurer in Acadia is $50,000. That salary was established in 2012 when the jury replaced Terry Lacombe, its long-time secretary-treasurer, with Richard “Dickie” Latiolais, who said he would do the job for that pay check. Lacombe had been making $$62,982 prior to that.
The salary has remained unchanged for the last seven years. Latiolais held the office for four years, Laura Faul held the office for just over a year, and Donna Bertrand was named “designated secretary-treasurer” upon Faul’s resignation. Bertrand served until the current office holder, A.J. “Fatty” Broussard, was appointed in 2018, for a state-mandated term of two years.
At Tuesday (Feb. 12) night’s meeting, Broussard presented a list of 16 Louisiana parishes, many from this area and of comparable population size, some from farther away.
“Of these 16 parishes, Acadia has the second highest population (approximately 62,500) and the fifth highest budget (about $22 million),” Broussard said, “but the salary of your secretary-treasurer ranks 15th.
“If you take out the highest and the lowest, the average pay for the (secretary-treasurer in) the other 14 parishes is over $75,000.”
Broussard also noted that, had the secretary-treasurer’s position been included in pay raises granted by the police jury for parish employees since 2012, “the salary for this position would now be about $77,000.”
He pointed out that, currently, 11 employees who are directly supervised by him are paid more than him. “If you agree to a raise to $60,000, five will still make more than me,” he said.
“I ... handle the day-to-day operations of the parish. Take care of the position. It’s time to put everybody in line with everybody else.”
To which Ronnie Fabacher, referring to his elected position as police juror for District 2, later said, “I take care of the concerns of 2,000 people in my district every day, and I make less than the employees at the parish barns.”
Broussard pointed out during his address that, when compiling the budget for the coming year, a salary of $75,000 was budgeted for the secretary-treasurer’s position.
During public comments, only William “Bill” Nevitt of Crowley spoke against the pay increase.
Referring to work furloughs incurred by parish employees in the past and the “scramble” to balance this year’s budget, Nevitt said jurors should “take into consideration the condition of roads and other issues in the parish that are not being taken care of” before granting “a 20 percent raise” to the secretary-treasurer.
But Audy Hanks spoke in favor to the pay raise, saying that comments made by Nevitt at committee meetings a week prior suggesting that treasurers in other parishes were paid more because of “college education” were misleading.
“A college education does not define you or what you do in life,” he said, pointing out that he had never attended college yet he owns and operates a successful business.
Jury President David Savoy agreed, saying, “I’ll admit that I don’t have a college degree, but I don’t feel it’s held me back.”
He added that, in his opinion, Broussard, in his capacity as secretary-treasurer, “works harder than anyone I know to save money for this parish.”
The motion to increase the secretary-treasurer’s annual salary to $60,000 passed 6-2 with Peter Joseph, Chuck Broussard, Kerry Kilgore, Jimmie Pellerin, Faul, Robert Guidry and Savoy voting in favor.
Only Fabacher and Faul opposed.
Faul had earlier explained to the secretary-treasurer that he would vote against the raise because, “you entered into a two-year contract” at the current salary. “Wait until the end of the contract the we’ll negotiate salary.”
Concerning the term of office for the secretary-treasurer, jurors voted 7-1 to submit a resolution to the state Legislature to, in effect, exempt Acadia Parish from the state mandate that the parish treasurer be appointed by the police jury for a term of two years.
Voting in favor of asking the Legislature to change the term of office to four years, coinciding with the terms of office of police jurors, were Joseph, Chuck Broussard, Kilgore, Pellerin, Faul, Guidry and Savoy.
Only Fabacher opposed.
The jury is asking that the Legislature mandate that the Acadia Police Jury to appoint the secretary-treasurer for a term of four years, coinciding with the terms of office of the police jurors.
Charles King of Crowley urged jurors to oppose the action.
“State statute limits the terms of the (parish) treasurer to two years. If that position is combined with the secretary’s position, then that office, also, is limited to two years,” King explained, adding that the statute allows for the removal of the treasurer only “for cause.”
He warned jurors that, if that mandate is changed, “you will bind all future police jurors to four-year terms for the secretary-treasurer.”
Fabacher, who, in 2015, defeated A.J. Broussard as the District 2 representative, also argued against the proposal.
“This is an election year,” he pointed out. “I move that we leave it like it is and let the new jurors decide.”
His motion died for lack of a second.
Voting in favor of asking the Legislature to change the term of office to four years, coinciding with the terms of office of police jurors, were Joseph, Chuck Broussard, Kilgore, Pellerin, Faul, Guidry and Savoy.
Only Fabacher opposed.