Supporters and opponents spar over proposed Avoyelles Parish home rule charter at Marksville town hall

At a town hall at the VFW in Marksville, two local representatives sharply disagreed over a proposed Avoyelles Parish home rule charter that would replace the parishs current police-jury structure with an elected full-time president and council.

Sam Pierce, introduced as a member of the Avoyelles Parish Police Jury representing District 8 and speaking in favor of the charter, said the measure would let the parish craft ordinances tailored to local needs instead of following a "one-size-fits-all" state code. "The home rule charter gives us the ability to craft ordinances and make decisions based on local needs rather than having to follow the one-size-fits-all statute code," Pierce said, arguing that home rule would increase local autonomy and make the parish more responsive to residents.

Lonnie Bridges, a Marine Corps veteran and owner of Bridges Adaptive Management LLC who spoke against the charter, said the proposal centralizes authority and risks higher administrative spending. "Why give one person the keys to the parish when we already are struggling?" Bridges asked, calling the presidents veto provisions a "king clause" and warning that a full-time president and new directors would divert money from basic services such as roads and drainage.

The pair focused on specific fiscal and structural questions that figure prominently in voters minds. Bridges said the charter would create an executive payroll that "might be going to four, 500,000 in additional administrative costs" (spoken phrasing in the forum); he estimated directors could be paid "70, 75,000" each and said the proposed president would earn about $90,000 a year. Pierce disputed some of Bridges numbers and noted that under the proposed charter council members would receive roughly $900 a month, and that the charter includes provisions for an auditor and line-item oversight by the council.

Both speakers raised districting and representation concerns. Bridges argued that shifting to school-board-style districts or concentrating appointment power in a president could allow redistricting or patronage to reshape representation. Pierce responded that those issues were considered in drafting and said the charter contains checks, including council overrides and budget processes, that would constrain executive power.

Speakers also advanced competing views on whether a full-time executive could bring in outside funding. Pierce said a professional executive would be better positioned to pursue grants and economic-development opportunities; Bridges countered that Avoyelles poverty rate and revenue base make higher administrative costs risky. In the discussion Bridges cited figures he said were in his briefing materialsincluding a reported parish population of about 38,000, a cited GDP of roughly $1.1 billion, and a poverty rate he placed at about 25%and argued those metrics left the parish ill-suited to support large executive salaries.

The town-hall moderators read public-service voter information during breaks. Mark Johnson, who provided the voter bulletin on air, gave registration and voting deadlines mentioned at the event: the transcript included a registration deadline (April 25), early voting windows (May 2—through 9, excluding May 3), an absentee request deadline (May 12) and Election Day listed as May 16 with polls open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The event closed with each representative giving two-minute remarks. Pierce described the charter as a "local constitution" that could empower local decision-making if voters elect the "right people," while Bridges urged caution, saying the submitted charter contained errors and warning that the parish does not have the tax base to sustain substantial new executive costs. Organizers thanked the VFW, Gator Bites/KAPB staff and attendees and reminded listeners to vote.

Next steps: the town hall did not produce any formal votes; the transcript records an extended public debate and several recommendations for voters to review the charter language before the election.