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St. Landry Parish seeks $4.6M cash‑flow borrowing; commission asks for ordinance and clearer finances
Summary
St. Landry Parish officials told the State Bond Commission they need a $4.6 million revenue anticipation note to cover operating deficits tied to mandated costs and delayed pilot payments. Commissioners asked the parish to return with an ordinance and clearer audited and cash‑flow documents; the commission deferred action.
St. Landry Parish President Jesse Ballard told the State Bond Commission on Aug. 21 that his parish faces a cash shortfall and asked the commission to authorize a $4.6 million revenue anticipation note to cover operations until projected pilot payments arrive.
Commission staff summarized the parish’s submission and cash‑flow projections, saying the parish expects to run out of cash by the end of the month without additional borrowing. The staff write‑up noted that the parish’s plan for repayment relies heavily on pilot payments from a proposed private solar project; the first of those pilot payments is projected to arrive in June 2026 in the parish’s cash‑flow model.
Ballard described a combination of mandated costs — including prisoner housing, juvenile detention, coroner expenses and other court‑related charges — as the driver of deficits. He said the parish had taken steps to reduce operating costs (including a recent personnel reduction) and was advancing other economic development projects, but that revenue from the new projects would not be available in time to prevent near‑term cash shortfalls.
A parish council member who spoke in opposition, Harold Taylor, said the council had not approved an ordinance authorizing the borrowing. Taylor said the parish needs a professional financial manager to work with the council and the parish president and cautioned against repeatedly issuing short‑term borrowings without structural budget fixes.
Commission staff said they could not make a positive recommendation because the parish’s repayment plan depended on private development decisions (the pilot payments) and the parish’s council had not passed the required ordinance authorizing the request. Commissioners voted to defer action until the parish council had adopted an ordinance and the parish provided clearer, auditable cash‑flow support and contingency scenarios for repayment.
Why this matters: The parish’s request illustrates the risks staff warned about when short‑term municipal financing is tied to private development timelines. The commission asked for an ordinance and independent verification of cash flows before authorizing a revenue anticipation note.
