Hanagriff: Consolidation will save money

St. Mary Parish leaders have begun consolidating some taxing districts in the parish and plan to continue to do so to lower costs and reduce the burden on taxpayers during the economic downturn, Parish President David Hanagriff said Monday.
Hanagriff was the guest speaker for the St. Mary Industrial Group’s monthly meeting at the Petroleum Club of Morgan City.
The biggest challenge facing St. Mary Parish is the economy, “particularly the downward trend of the oilfield sector,” Hanagriff said.
On Friday, the price of oil was at $47.83 per barrel which is better than the worst of the downturn, but is nowhere near the $80 to $90 “we’d like to sustain the oilfield sector,” he said.
Hanagriff, who took office in January, says parish leaders are working toward the goal of consolidating some of the over 40 taxing districts in St. Mary Parish to save money in the midst of tough economic times.
Parish leaders recently consolidated Waterworks District 5, Sewerage District 5 and Sewerage District 8 into one board, Water and Sewer Commission 3, he said. District 5 is in Centerville, while District 8 is in Patterson.
This action will let the parish reduce its millage rates, which determine people's property taxes.
The current property tax rates for the district are 4.6 mills for water district 5, 5.37 mills for sewer district 5, and 6.44 mills for sewer district 8, which generates $881,000. The newly-formed Water and Sewer Commission District 3 will levy 8 mills and generate $890,000, Hanagriff said.
A mill is equal to 0.1 percent of the assessed value after any exemptions have been subtracted to calculate the taxes, according to the Louisiana Tax Commission.
The Sewer District 5 property tax will drop almost 2 mills and Sewer District 8 will decrease about 3 mills.
The change will also let the combined district have one audit report instead of three reports and save on insurance costs, subcontractor costs and equipment and supply expenses.
Combining three boards totaling 17 members will reduce the commission to seven members. The parish council unanimously approved Hanagriff’s consolidation request.
Financial benefits of consolidating the districts include that unrestricted funds will be twice the amount of the annual operating expenses, Hanagriff said. User fees will pay for 98.7 percent of all operating expenses.
Hanagriff said he’s looking forward to working with the St. Mary Industrial Group and other parish organizations to consolidate more government entities where possible to help the parish get through “these troubling times.”
Declining sales tax collections are a huge problem for parish government, the school board and sheriff’s office. Parish leaders will have to constantly adjust things “to keep our budget in line,” Hanagriff said.
Officials are working on next year’s budget and “it’s not going to be easy.” Hanagriff plans to use “a conservative approach” to try to keep the services the parish provides.
Annual parish sales and use tax collections have dropped from $42.3 million in 2012 to $35.3 million in 2015. Officials project the parish to finish 2016 with $32.4 million.
Employment in the parish has declined from 23,656 jobs in December 2014 to 21,046 jobs in August 2016. Parish unemployment in August was 9.8 percent compared to state unemployment of 6.7 percent.
The parish had 23,656 jobs in December 2014 and 22,105 jobs in December 2015. As of August, the parish had 21,046 jobs, a loss of 2,610 jobs.
Hanagriff knows first-hand what parish businesses are going through right now as a business owner himself. He owns Hanagriff Machine Shop in Centerville, which is down 30 percent so far this year.
“I see the individuals that come through my office asking for jobs, day in, day out,” Hangriff said.
The downturn in business has gotten so bad to where he isn’t accepting any more applications.
Parish leaders have “to be more creative” with resources and revenues in the parish in order to invest “in our economic future,” Hanagriff said.
Hanagriff will hold an informal “economic summit” with both political and business leaders to discuss issues facing the parish. State Rep. Sam Jones, D-Franklin, brought the idea to Hanagriff’s attention at a recent meeting with Hanagriff and other area leaders.