Lawmakers jockeying for slush-in-disguise

In many ways, it’s the same song, but a different dance. Former Gov. Kathleen Blanco, a Democrat, supposedly did away with slush-fund projects, and sitting Gov. Bobby Jindal, a Republican, decried the pet projects last year during his campaign. The criticism certainly seems like a bipartisan issue on the executive level, but the projects are still making their way into the state budget—to the tune of more than $34 million as of this week. These days, they’re called NGOs, or nongovernmental organizations.

Jindal, however, has taken a proactive stance, although what impact, if any, it might have is unknown. He sent a letter out to all of the lawmakers who chair a money committee, instructing them that the “use of state tax dollars to fund NGOs raises serious questions in regards to whether or not the funding is consistent with the proper function and responsibility of state government and the use of taxpayer money”

To that end, Jindal offered criteria for the projects. If the steps are not followed, the governor promised a swift “veto.” Each project:

--Must have statewide or substantial regional impact.

--Must have been presented or openly discussed during the ongoing legislative session.

--Must be a priority to a state agency.

--Must have a proper disclosure form published online.

Among those who received the letter directly was Rep. Hunter Greene, who chairs the powerful House Ways and Means Committee. The Republican is the only Baton Rouge proper lawmaker who holds such a position. The letter has a double meaning for him, though, since he will have to both uphold the criteria and meet them. Greene personally has a $3 million NGO request for the Greater Baton Rouge Hope Academy, a private school on O’Neal Lane with 84 students. E-mails requesting a comment from Greene on Thursday were not returned.

But Greene isn’t alone. Here’s a look at the other NGO requests pending from lawmakers representing the capital region and surrounding parishes:

--Rep. Eddie Lambert, R-Gonzales: $93,000 for the Ascension Economic Development Corporation.

--Rep. Patricia Smith, D-Baton Rouge: $200,000 for the Baton Rouge High School Alumni Association and $50,000 for the Options Foundation.

--Rep. Mert Smiley, R-Port Vincent: $322,769 for the Hungarian Settlement Historical Society.

--Sen. Rob Marionneaux, D-Maringouin, chair of the Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Committee: $512,400 for the St. Gabriel Chamber of Commerce $512,400.

To read Business Report Publisher Rolfe McCollister’s column on NGOs, click here.--Jeremy Alford

La. Politics by John Maginnis: Jindal on the spot

On the day after Gov. Bobby Jindal told Jay Leno audience about business tax cuts he has signed, his floor leaders were unable to stop a deeper income tax slice bill in the Senate, potentially costing the treasury $300 million. The best they could do was to load it up with an amendment to phase out the entire $3 billion income tax over 10 years, which is supposed to make the original bill unpassable in the House. Jindal responded that he would sign a tax reduction bill that is accompanied by spending cuts. Yet he finds himself in the untenable position of having to work with Democratic legislators to thwart the cause championed by his Republican allies and legions of his voters. As it stands, the massive tax-cut bill now heads to a more receptive House, starting in the GOP-laden Ways & Means Committee. While no one expects the whole income tax will be nixed, Chairman Hunter Greene, R-Baton Rouge, says members support efforts to go beyond the Stelly reductions in the original bill. "I don't know how we would vote against it," Greene said.

--In the 6th Congressional District race, an independent poll shows Democrat Don Cazayoux opening up a 50%-41% lead over Republican Woody Jenkins. But a likely stronger turnout by whites and older voters could narrow or close the gap for Jenkins. Roll Call Magazine of Washington commissioned Survey USA to do an automated phone poll of 501 likely voters on April 27-29. But identifying who votes in the projected low-turnout election continues to make this race very unpredictable.

--A potentially massive natural gas play stretching over five parishes in northwest Louisiana is putting millions of dollars of lease payments into the hands of elated landowners. "It's like really big, bigger than anything we're ever seen," said Don Briggs, president of Louisiana Oil and Gas Association, of the formation called the Haynesville Shale. He reports landowners receiving lease payments of $4,000 to $5,000 per acre for land that was bringing no more than $200 per acre a year ago. According to Briggs, Chesapeake Energy Corporation, the nation's third-largest producer of natural gas, has quietly leased 200,000 acres in north Louisiana with a goal of owning up to 500,000 acres in Caddo, Bossier, Webster, DeSoto and Red River parishes.

John Maginnis publishes LaPolitics Weekly at Lapolitics.com

Baton Rouge included in human trafficking study

Baton Rouge is one of 10 U.S. cities where child sex trafficking and exploitation being studied, The Saipan Tribune reports. Other cities included in the study, which is being funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice, are Las Vegas, Dallas and Clearwater, Fla. The study is designed to assess the prevalence of sex trafficking in Baton Rouge, U.S. Attorney David Dugas says, adding there’s been a greater awareness on human trafficking in south Louisiana, because of the illegal immigrants that have moved in since Hurricane Katrina. Human trafficking often follows upticks in illegal immigration. "It's something that's hard to detect, because usually the first time law enforcement comes into contact with these people, they're being treated as a criminal," he says. "The real key is training for the officers on the street, so when they make those first encounters, they can look for the signals or ask the right questions to draw out responses from people who were forced into human trafficking."--Timothy Boone

Video game design students show off today

LSU video game design students today host a video-game marathon for their last day of class, which the students "attend" by way of high-definition video streaming broadcast from the University of Illinois-Chicago. LSU students and their Windy City counterparts will showcase original games they created, demonstrating skills and techniques learned during the course. The event begins today at 2 p.m. in Room 338 of Johnston Hall. The video game design course is among several initiatives by the LSU Center for Computation and Technology to establish a robust digital media industry in Louisiana. The effort includes the Red Stick International Animation Festival, held April 16-19. The festival draws well known animators, video game developers and other industry professionals to Baton Rouge each year.--Steve Clark

PJ's going into Perkins Palms

A PJ's Coffee shop is set to open in the Perkins Palms development by mid-summer. The New Orleans-based coffee chain applied for a permit to build in the development near the Perkins Road-Essen Lane intersection. Perkins Palms, which is being developed by Donnie Jarreau Companies, will include retail, office and residential space. This will be the second PJ's in Baton Rouge; there's been a shop in the Shaw Center for the Arts since 2005.

Work starts on Holiday Inn Express

Construction has started on a 104-room Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites on Siegen Lane between Airline Highway and Interstate 10. Pride Hospitality of Germantown, Tenn., will manage the hotel, and Siegen Lane Hospitality Enterprises is the developer. The hotel is scheduled to open in the fall. It replaces a Holiday Inn Express at Interstate 10 and Siegen that has been converted to a Days Inn.

Linens ’n Things files for bankruptcy; La. stores to remain open

While Louisiana’s seven Linens ’n Things stores are staying open, 120 other locations in the U.S. will close soon as the home goods retailer seeks Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Hardest-hit states with the most closings planned include California (27), Texas (10), Michigan (9), Florida (6) and Georgia (5), most struggling from the credit crunch, housing slump or ailing auto industry. Louisiana locations in Baton Rouge, Covington, Harahan, Harvey, Lafayette, Metairie and Shreveport are among the retailer’s total 589 locations. Executive Chairman Robert DiNicola said those issues "overwhelmed the operating and merchandising improvements that we have made over the past two years." The retail chain says it has secured $700 million in financing from General Electric Co. to ensure it can restock merchandise for back-to-school and holiday shopping. Linens ’n Things, owned by affiliates of billionaire investor Leon Black's Apollo Global Management, had been in talks with a committee of its debt-holders about altering its capital structure.

What does downtown Baton Rouge need?

225 magazine wants to know what's the one thing you would like to see next come to downtown Baton Rouge. Something practical, like a supermarket or a drug store? Or something fun, such as a movie theater or a concert hall? Take the poll here. Results from the survey will be used in an upcoming 225 article.

Poll: Results even on summer gas tax holiday

Presidential candidates John McCain and Hillary Clinton have called for federal gas taxes to be suspended during the peak driving months. But Daily Report readers are mixed on the idea, with 46% of the people who responded to the online poll saying the holiday would help reduce the cost of fuel and encourage travel and 46% saying the holiday wouldn’t help reduce costs and would blow a hole in the budget. Seven percent did not know.

Today’s question: Do you think LSU’s football team will be better off without quarterback Ryan Perrilloux?

News roundup: Employers cut far fewer jobs in April; Chevron’s first-quarter profit rises

April jobless rate falls: Employers cut far fewer jobs in April than in recent months and the unemployment rate dropped to 5%, a better-than-expected showing that nonetheless reveals strains in the nation's labor market. For the fourth month in a row, the economy lost jobs, the Labor Department reported Friday. But in April the losses totaled 20,000, an improvement from the 81,000 reductions in payrolls logged in March. Job losses for both February and March turned out to be a bit deeper than previously reported. The unemployment rate, derived from a different statistical survey than the payroll figures, fell to 5% from 5.1% in March. That survey showed more people finding employment than those who didn't. … Chevron profit jumps to $5.17 billion: Coming off four straight years of record earnings, Chevron Corp. cashed in on soaring oil prices to begin 2008 with the most profitable first quarter in its history. The California-based company said this morning that it earned $5.17 billion, or $2.48 per share, during the first three months of the year, up 10% from $4.72 billion, or $2.18 per share, a year earlier. The performance topped the average earnings estimate of $2.41 per share among analysts polled by Thomson Financial. But revenue of $65.95 billion fell well below analysts' forecast of $75.64 billion. Nevertheless, Chevron's revenue still surged 37% from last year's $48.23 billion.