Avoyelles Police Jury discusses current budget status

Money was the main topic of discussion at the Avoyelles Police Jury’s agenda-setting committee meeting on Nov. 8.

Jurors were given mostly good news during a late-year budget review.

They viewed a summary of next year’s proposed budget, but will be looking at that spending plan in greater detail in the coming weeks before adopting the 2019 budget at its December meeting.

With about six weeks remaining in the budget year, the only dark cloud over the courthouse is the General Fund, which is currently 13 percent over-budget.

Police Jury President Charles Jones said a budget adjustment will be presented before the end of the year that will bring that projected deficit within the 5 percent allowed by state law.

“We are in a lot better situation than we were last year,” Jones said.

There are a few accounts with projected surpluses that can be tapped to offset the General Fund shortfall.

Jones said revenue from the sales tax on vehicle sales has taken a nosedive, but the parish has been fortunate that income from oil and gas revenue has more than made up for it.

The Road & Bridge Fund is about 5 percent in the black, Solid Waste Fund is 14 percent to the good and the Drainage Fund is about 10 percent ahead.

Those are the jury’s four major operational funds and also account for most of the parish’s “discretionary” income. Other budget accounts are “mandated accounts” with revenue from other agencies or from dedicated taxes that cannot be used in other programs.

WARD/CITY COURT

A discussion about the budget wouldn’t be complete without bringing up the Ward 2/ Marksville City Court issue.

Jones said the Police Jury will be spending at least $70,000 more to support the court’s operation than it is receiving in fines from the court.

The Police Jury and the City of Marksville each pay half of the court’s operational costs. The Police Jury also pays about $16,000 in additional court-related costs and the Marksville City Council pays the costs of maintaining the court building and other mandated costs.

Until a few years ago, the parish paid only the relatively small mandated costs and received no fines from the court. The city paid the bulk of the costs and received all of the fines.

Since the city demanded the parish pay half of the costs, as originally intended in the law establishing the court, the Police Jury has been receiving almost all of the fines -- to the dismay and disgruntlement of city officials.

That occurs because the District Attorney’s Office prosecutes the cases in the court and can decide whether to prosecute them as violations of state law or city ordinances. Fines for state offenses go to the Police Jury. Fines for city ordinance violations go to the City Council.

Juror Henry Moreau said next year a new state representative will be elected and he is not going to vote for anyone who does not agree to dismantle the ward-city court.

“There should be a City Court for Marksville and Justice of the Peace court for the rest of Ward 2,” Moreau said.

Jones said it is not fair that the jury “has to pay so much money to support a court in which a majority of cases are within the city limits of Marksville.

“We have lost about this much in the past and we are losing another $70,000 this year,” he continued. “It is not going to get any better in the future.”

Marksville Mayor John Lemoine has complained that the city is paying the other half of the court’s operating budget and getting almost nothing in fines. He notes that not only are most of the cases in court due to city police officers’ arrests and tickets, the city has to pay the costs of law enforcement to make those arrests.

Lemoine has said all the Police Jury does is sit back and collect the monthly fines sent over from the court.