By Gov. Bobby Jindal
This past week I met with members of our state’s congressional delegation, including Senators Mary Landrieu and David Vitter, and Representatives Rodney Alexander, Charles Boustany and Steve Scalise, to talk about what our delegation needs to pursue in the new Congress and with the new Presidential Administration. I am confident that “the delegation will be able to work across party lines to get things done for the state.
The major issues facing our state currently are ongoing disaster recovery efforts, coastal restoration efforts, health care improvements, and FEMA reforms. The federal government still must help our agriculture industry and fisheries recover from the substantial damage incurred by Hurricanes Gustav and Ike, as well as grant our state full federal cost share for Hurricane Gustav. As full cost share has been granted for Hurricane Ike, it makes absolutely zero sense to force local governments to determine which storm did what damage, clogging the recovery process with unnecessary red tape.
We will also continue working to speed up the use of oil and gas royalties for coastal erosion projects. The storms of the past four years have shown that we no longer have time to wait to rebuild our coast, and that it should be a top priority not only of our state, but of our nation. For decades we have given so much to our nation’s energy industry, and it is time to start taking care of ourselves as well.
This includes working with the Corps of Engineers to rebuild and restore our wetlands with sediment dredged from South Louisiana’s navigation channels, 90 percent of which is currently dumped into the Gulf of Mexico. We must also accelerate the implementation of restoration projects already approved by the federal government that have been delayed for one reason or another.
Finally, we must change the way FEMA operates. At present, states and local communities are not able to bid projects until FEMA decides how much of the work will be eligible for reimbursement. With more than 4,000 projects still waiting following Katrina and Rita, FEMA must establish an expedited appeals process that will allow our people to finish rebuilding their schools, police and fire stations. The agency must also do a better job of prepositioning supplies before a disaster – a problem which caused significant issues following Hurricanes Gustav and Ike.
I am confident that our delegation will work well the new Congress and new Administration, and we will continue to stay in close contact with them regarding our state’s priorities.
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