Let the counting—and waiting—begin.
The East Baton Rouge Registrar of Voters office estimates it will be at least a few weeks before an update can be given on the signature count for the petition to incorporate a new city of St. George. Just before the 4:30 p.m. deadline to turn in signatures on Thursday, organizers of the incorporation effort turned in 4,630 additional signatures to the registrar’s office. That’s nearly 2,000 more signatures than are expected to be needed to get the item on a ballot later this year. However, a group that is fighting the incorporation effort—Better Together—also submitted to the registrar’s office the signatures of 810 people who want to withdraw their previous signatures in favor of the incorporation effort.
Now the registrar’s office begins work to validate the signatures. Office administrative assistant Amy Pourciau says the petition drive signatures will be validated first, then the signatures on the withdrawal form will be verified and names will be removed from the petition. Pourciau says the office will update its progress in two weeks.
Also Thursday, the BREC Board of Commissioners voted to roll forward the property tax approved by voters several years ago, a move that will generate nearly $1 million in additional revenues annually for the park system.
The Metro Council, meanwhile, kicked two high-profile issues down the road this week. At its meeting Wednesday evening, council deferred taking action on an ordinance that would have required the Baton Rouge Police Department to equip officers with body cameras. Concerns over the timeline set out in the ordinance—which would have required implementation by the start of next year—as well as the cost of implementation ultimately led to the deferral.
Also deferred by council was a measure to place on the Oct. 24 ballot a renewal of the dedicated property tax for the East Baton Rouge Parish Library System that would raise property taxes from 10.78 mills to 11.1 mills. The council will take up the issue again at its next regular meeting on Wednesday, June 10.
Read the complete Daily Report Week in Review for a rundown of other top stories making headlines this week.
—Steve Sanoski
