[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6266804,"mediaKeyId","3085515-e3b28a347c7b166de10279cf88b66b6d","parentId",3085515,"title","Attorney General, auditor and commissioners flag 'Sustainability Partners' contracts as possible long-term obligations; commission schedules special meeting","audioSeconds",2434,"startMs",1563000,"endMs",3997000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3085515-e3b28a347c7b166de10279cf88b66b6d&start=1563&end=3997","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3085515-e3b28a347c7b166de10279cf88b66b6d/thumbnail_1563000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6266804/Louisiana/Attorney-General-auditor-and-commissioners-flag-Sustainability-Partners-contracts-as-possible-long-term-obligations-commission-schedules-special-meeting","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6266804-e62dd31da095406888de746324dcf57f/orig.mp4?Expires=1771085956&Signature=Zq7ZkgDZeuPAe7zRJ3cZbRfnIDfg6G-DeEWGvpMnaB2m4HYo96~bW35LiI7VL33cqpb2OPL0k1T8YXdwBNdYJWy3DOzHsH~ZO9hUwAFIroMWurWgd6gNQlP5~0uyprSJHAy7SHV1zkL0EPODr~1nNH9oiMf2zuksM5kxUjtKY9klePcR7Ly6yk8Rhp-oF3O5EHKaIiprOb98trSYUy-r9FYJsjENEoViKSLv7~PfEikDH3yzZPFq8WwpU81FSnaVMUpuwJNnS~s44eRRKalLx~MPyPKtOxxJlw7Mx-KMNYOB9DGKIXqLlAgK23CTrhz0stuDNBUM3n2asyoHnmW6hg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Louisiana Legislature","date","2025-04-22T00:00:00Z","article","Attorney General Murrell and the Louisiana Legislative Auditor told the State Bond Commission on April 22 that contracts marketed by Sustainability Partners, a private firm that offers \"infrastructure as a service\" arrangements, appear to create long-term financial obligations for municipalities and political subdivisions that have not been reviewed by the Bond Commission.

\"We believe are long term debt,\" Attorney General Murrell said, describing 20 contracts the attorney general's office identified so far. Murrell said many of the contracts involve water meters and other infrastructure and that several municipalities that signed these agreements are now under fiscal administration.

Mike Waguespack, Louisiana Legislative Auditor, told commissioners the contracts are \"very, very difficult, hard to read, very, very fine print\" and that termination provisions typically impose deferred payments or buyout formulas that effectively capture remaining payments rather than offering a true walk-away. Waguespack said the audit office calculated an effective interest rate of roughly 11.924% for one contract that was litigated and that contracts have, in some cases, been used to pay off low-interest public loans.

Commission members and staff described other specific concerns:
- Public-bid law evasion: Some contracts, Murrell said, used bid documents or proprietary terms (\"Infrastructure as a Service\") drafted by Sustainability Partners in a way that limited competition to a single responsive bidder.
- Sales-tax exemptions: Documents show sales-tax exemption forms being claimed even though Sustainability Partners, not the municipality, retains ownership of installed equipment in some deals.
- Lack of disclosure/contract transparency: The attorney general said some municipalities could not produce complete contracts in response to public records requests and in some cases had only signature pages.
- Potential constitutional and statutory issues: Murrell and others cited a recent court opinion by then-judge Cade Cole (now Justice Cole) in the Capital Area Groundwater Commission matter, which found the arrangement amounted to an improperly imposed tax and observed the contract created obligations that should have been vetted.

Several speakers said the arrangements can function differently depending on whether the financed items are movable (for example, meters) or immovable (for example, wastewater systems). Murrell and audit staff said movable items may be transferred more easily, while infrastructure such as sewer systems cannot be moved and carry different legal and practical risks.

Commission members asked for more detail and examples. The attorney general's office and the auditor's office cited specific local cases: Murrell noted Simsport had a previously outstanding DEQ loan of approximately $161,000 that Sustainability Partners paid off and built into the contract as a rights or buyout fee, and Waguespack cited the Ville Platte contract where he calculated an effective rate of 11.924%.

Justin Lester of the Attorney General's Office told the commission that the list presented is not exhaustive; staff have found contracts via public records requests but do not yet have a definitive total of Sustainability Partners contracts across the state. Commissioners noted the company had resisted coming before the Bond Commission in past hearings and that three towns identified on the list are already under fiscal administration.

After extended discussion, Attorney General Murrell moved that the commission set a special meeting in June to invite Sustainability Partners and representatives from municipalities that entered into the contracts to present the contracts and explain the agreements. President Henry seconded the motion. The commission approved the special meeting by voice vote and asked the attorney general and staff to continue reviewing contracts and to prepare information for the June meeting.

The attorney general's office and the legislative auditor said the goal of the special meeting is not necessarily to block all such alternative-financing models but to vet the contracts to determine whether they create debt-like obligations, whether they comply with public-bid and sales-tax rules, and whether contract language (for example, an appropriations clause) can be reformed to avoid creating enforceable long-term obligations on taxpayers.

Commission action
- Motion to schedule a special Bond Commission meeting in June to invite Sustainability Partners and affected municipalities: moved by Attorney General Murrell; seconded by President Henry; approved by voice vote.

Next steps cited in the meeting include further document review by the attorney general's office and the auditor, outreach to listed municipalities to collect full contracts and payment terms, and an invitation to Sustainability Partners to appear at the June session.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Louisiana Senate State Bond Commission 4/22/2025","oneSentenceSummary","Attorney General Murrell and the Louisiana Legislative Auditor told the State Bond Commission on April 22 that contracts sold by Sustainability Partners appear to impose long-term financial obligations on municipalities and counters that many such agreements were not reviewed by the Bond Commission.","taxTitle","2025 Legislature LA, Louisiana","taxId",78558,"location","Louisiana","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6266811,"State Bond Commission approves multiple bond and financing items; authorizes negotiated sale resolution",1384,152000,1536000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3085515-e3b28a347c7b166de10279cf88b66b6d&start=152&end=1536","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3085515-e3b28a347c7b166de10279cf88b66b6d/thumbnail_152000.jpg","/articles/6266811/Louisiana/State-Bond-Commission-approves-multiple-bond-and-financing-items-authorizes-negotiated-sale-resolution","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6266811-bd42b18a1b31679172c0814c9cd1a613/orig.mp4?Expires=1771085956&Signature=nW2BwyDuLF1k1Lx4xoZ8bFU4JFXZuaJdGuWEWhrpZflzmkccBRwXyla~UWw5RtNnnkXvF0msml7yHcaHZ8w4Tya2EMWzi6DIHxR7jeLFR2QmkVYMzfLvxo8IeDw9VpG3eEo2BS~TTQQFAb1ViMzIuvnrDXml0KSLW0VfpiFABjZ5TidJlbNR2eugwdTF5aCRRu0QhiBxxtlAAu6THihvJruHicUHziQ4seSHiXjG0ChjoOTmOlJBL3xAKgVgbq7l0OGxQjrX7BWTxhYXSnz1Upd-RIsCT7E776Id7QxO8NBiYBsD212p7NfzK9A4p0byZjBCdosLBFw-4kcJUBpX2g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The State Bond Commission on April 22 approved a slate of bond and financing requests from parishes, ports, school boards, health systems and public authorities and authorized a negotiated sale resolution for the state's annual general-obligation borrowing.

Staff recommended approval for the majority of applications after finding they met the commission's technical requirements, and the commission approved them by voice votes. The body also approved a resolution to allow a negotiated sale of up to $400,000,000 in general obligation bonds after the municipal advisor advised that market volatility made a negotiated sale preferable to a competitive sale.

Commission staff presented items 3 through 6 as election requests for the Oct. 11 ballot (applications due May 12) for ad valorem tax and parcel fee propositions for downtown development, ports, neighborhood beautification and security, public health, courthouses, roads and bridges, and libraries; staff said the propositions met technical and legal requirements and recommended they be presented to voters. The commission approved items 3 through 6.

Other approvals included:
- Rapides Parish Buckeye Recreation District (item 7): limited tax bonds not to exceed $740,000 to fund recreation facilities; staff recommended approval and the commission approved.
- Terrebonne Parish School Board, Consolidated School District No. 1 (item 8): revenue bonds not exceeding $15,000,000 for renovations and improvements at Terrebonne High School; recommended and approved.
- Union Parish Police Jury (item 9): revenue bonds not exceeding $850,000 for replacement of the Parish Courthouse HVAC system; recommended and approved.
- Town of Faraday (item 10): taxable limited tax refunding bonds not to exceed $575,000 to refinance a short-term cash-flow loan; staff noted the town's fiscal issues, water-quality orders and that Senator Womack recused from the item; the commission approved the refunding.
- Vidalia Port Commission (item 11): revenue bonds not exceeding $15,000,000 to fund an estimated $12.7 million DOTD port-priority program project to construct eight new slack-water slips; staff noted the port had no financial history and coverage relied on projections; the commission approved.
- Lake Charles Harbor and Terminal District (item 12): revenue bonds not exceeding $60,000,000 to continue construction and hurricane repairs; staff said the district is a deepwater port commission under Article 6, Section 44 of the constitution and that issuance is handled on behalf of the commission by the State Bond Commission; the commission approved.
- Louisiana Community Development Authority (item 13): hospital revenue bonds not exceeding $55,000,000 for a medical complex in Denham Springs; approved.
- Louisiana Energy and Power Authority (LEPA) (item 14): revenue anticipation notes not exceeding $7,000,000 to increase working capital as member load grows; approved.
- Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corporation (item 15): line of credit not exceeding $125,000,000 (two-year extension) to ensure claims processing capacity in catastrophic scenarios; staff noted no draws since 2010; approved.
- Public-facility financings (items 16'18): large public trust financings were approved, including Ochsner Clinic Foundation (item 16) for up to $1,035,000,000 in revenue and refunding bonds, Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy (item 17) for up to $100,000,000, and Acadiana Renaissance (item 18) for up to $159,000,000. Staff outlined the Lafayette and Acadiana transactions as nonprofit borrowers purchasing facilities from for-profit affiliates (Red Apple Development/Charter Schools USA) while the land remains owned by Red Apple; staff provided projections and noted risks and letters of support and opposition were in the packet; the commission approved the items.

The commission reviewed cost-of-issuance reports for a series of prior bond issues (items 19'28); staff said no motion was required for those reports. Item 29 was an informational update on gas-and-fuels tax bonds and recent refinancings that staff said will reduce annual debt service through maturity. Item 30 amended and restated a resolution to authorize Series 2024B general-obligation bonds, not to exceed $400,000,000, to reimburse lines of credit; staff and the municipal advisor recommended a negotiated sale and presented an underwriting team; the commission approved the resolution by the required two-thirds vote and recordings of that vote were not provided in the transcript.

Several items recorded in the meeting packet and discussed by staff included material caveats or risk disclosures (for example, the Vidalia Port application's reliance on lease-up projections; the Lafayette and Acadiana charter financings'land retention by a for-profit affiliate and related ground-lease payments; and the Ochsner transaction'size, refunding structure and projected gross debt-service savings). Staff repeatedly stated that each application \"meets the technical requirements\" before recommending approval.

Votes at a glance (agenda item grouping and outcome)
Items 3'6 (election propositions): approved
Items 7'9 (Rapides Buckeye Recreation District; Terrebonne Parish School Board; Union Parish): approved
Item 10 (Town of Faraday refunding): approved
Items 11'12 (Vidalia Port; Lake Charles Harbor & Terminal District): approved
Item 13 (LCD A hospital revenue bonds): approved
Item 14 (LEPA): approved
Item 15 (Citizens Property Insurance line of credit): approved
Items 16'18 (Ochsner; Lafayette Renaissance; Acadiana Renaissance): approved
Items 19'28 (cost of issuance reports): informational, no motion required
Item 29 (gas and fuels tax bonds update): informational
Item 30 (resolution authorizing negotiated sale, Series 2024B general obligation bonds not to exceed $400,000,000): approved

The meeting record shows voice approvals and seconds recorded repeatedly; the transcript did not provide roll-call tallies for the listed approvals. Staff and commission members noted the need for continued scrutiny of risk factors and for investors to review offering documents where applicable.

The commission moved on to item 32 on the agenda after approving the financing items and reports.","At its April 22 meeting the State Bond Commission approved a series of bond issues, refundings and cost-of-issuance reports across local and state borrowers and approved a resolution authorizing a negotiated sale for up to $400 million of general obligation debt.","actionData","errors"]

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Attorney General, auditor and commissioners flag 'Sustainability Partners' contracts as possible long-term obligations; commission schedules special meeting

State Bond Commission approves multiple bond and financing items; authorizes negotiated sale resolution