CPRA board adopts $~2 billion FY26 annual plan amid public debate over Mid Barataria diversion

The Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority board voted to approve the agency’s fiscal year 2026 annual plan during its April 16 meeting after an extended presentation and a lengthy public comment period focused overwhelmingly on the proposed Mid Barataria sediment diversion.

CPRA Director Glenn LaDay presented the FY26 plan to the board, describing it as the agency’s largest annual plan to date with a total program value of approximately $1.98 billion. LaDay said the plan packages multiple revenue sources — including an estimated GOMESA allocation ($293 million in recurring revenue), Restore Act, NFWF, NRDA/Deepwater Horizon settlement allocations, federal appropriations and state surplus — to fund projects across coastal basins. He said FY26 anticipates $1.57 billion in construction commitments and keeps operating costs around 2 percent.

The board’s presentation included public outreach details: four public meetings (three in person and one virtual) and more than 200 public meeting attendees and 239 formal public comments during the draft plan comment period.

During the meeting, CPRA staff detailed regional projects proposed for FY26, including marsh creation, shoreline protection, levee and pump station work, pilot programs for home elevation and flood proofing under federal programs, and large‑scale initiatives such as Mid Barataria, the Lower Barataria and Lower Barataria land‑bridge concepts, White Lake restoration, Iberia–St. Mary hurricane protection, and the Chandeleur Islands restoration.

Public comment was extensive and polarized on Mid Barataria. Dozens of speakers urged the board to press forward: Lauren Burke of Audubon (and other conservation and science organizations) emphasized the project’s scientific basis and warned that halting a fully permitted, funded, under‑construction diversion risks losing billions in federal restoration funding and could undermine confidence in Louisiana’s coastal program. Multiple recreational‑and‑commercial‑fishing representatives, conservation groups, and regional residents called the diversion the region’s best chance to rebuild wetlands and sustain fisheries and urged the board to continue implementation.

Other speakers and some local officials raised financial and local‑impact concerns. Several board members and commenters noted a recent stop‑work or suspension on portions of the Mid Barataria contract and asked for clarification about the fiscal and legal consequences of pausing or canceling a major, partly constructed project. In response CPRA staff said they were compiling facts and figures, that legal counsel and administration were reviewing contract and cost details, and that agency staff were seeking options to preserve program continuity and to identify alternative or supplemental projects. CPRA also noted contingency funds and contractual mechanisms that the agency says exist to address cost changes.

After discussion and a motion to adopt the FY26 annual plan, the board conducted a voice vote and the motion passed; the chair stated the plan was approved and the vote recorded with no opposition noted in the transcript.

The board’s approved FY26 plan will be forwarded to the legislature as the agency’s spending and implementation program for the coming year. CPRA staff and several board members said they expect ongoing public and legislative scrutiny of the Mid Barataria contract and noted that if a project is paused or delayed, funds would be subject to reallocation processes in subsequent plans and through board action.

The meeting moved afterward into executive session on personnel and contract matters.