Sulphur council ratifies retroactive $5 million state water grant after public questions

The Sulphur City Council voted to ratify a cooperative endeavor agreement with the State of Louisiana’s Division of Administration, formally authorizing the mayor to accept a $5,000,000 award for water system projects that the city has already begun. The measure, listed as Ordinance 43-25, passed on a roll-call vote after public comment and legal explanation.

The vote followed remarks from Mayor Dana Hay, who told the council the city applied for the Water Sector Program in February and was awarded $5 million to support multiple water-system projects. “We were awarded that grant application of $5,000,000 to go towards the water system in the City Of Sulphur,” Mayor Dana Hay said. He told the council some funds already have been expended on projects and asked the council to retroactively ratify the Cooperative Endeavor Agreement so the state’s paperwork matched the city’s prior actions.

The ratification prompted questions from resident Wendy Wingate, who called the retroactive approval “pretty strange” and expressed concern about transparency and whether the earlier rate increases were connected to the grant. “This $5,000,000 is a free money grant from the state of [Louisiana],” Wingate said, and asked whether residents were properly informed. The mayor and staff replied that the grant is reimbursement-based, that the city had completed required work and submitted claims, and that if the council declined to ratify the agreement the city could risk losing the funds or having to return them.

A staff legal advisor (staff member) framed the action as a ratification rather than a “backdating.” “Backdating the document suggests that you are putting the wrong date on something intentionally,” the staff member told the council, adding that the budget approvals and prior spending effectively signaled tacit acceptance and that ratification would make the record transparent.

Council members asked clarifying questions about whether a required water rate study was a condition of the grant. Residents and staff confirmed the rate study was mandatory for eligibility and that the study had been completed; staff said the rate study requirement had been part of the state process and was a factor in the city’s prior fee decisions.

On roll call the ordinance ratifying the Cooperative Endeavor Agreement passed. The recorded votes were: Miss Ellinger — yes; Mister Nasdaq — no; Miss Hardy — yes; Miss Atchar — yes. The motion carried.

The council did not vote on any additional conditions tying future projects to specific deliverables in the meeting. Staff said reimbursements and required state processes would govern how the $5 million is spent and reported.