Forward New Orleans, a broad coalition comprised of more than 30 business, civic and community organizations, has recently expanded its original platform to include five new issues: Civil Service Reform, Sewerage and Water Board Best Practives, Economic Opportunities, City Transformation, and Strategies Against Violent Crime. The coalition stands united in requiring elected officials to direct their focus to improve transparency in government and improve opportunities for an enhanced quality of life in New Orleans.

Eric Granderson, who is temporarily filling a seat on the New Orleans City Council, chose a bad idea as the only significant legislation of his short council career. Unfortunately, three other council members voted with him, so the measure requiring an extra layer of paperwork for businesses passed Thursday despite protests from business leaders.

The new law will require contractors and subcontractors on city construction jobs worth more than $50,000 to file a report with the city if they violate “federal, state and municipal laws governing labor and employment.” Businesses then have 90 days to come up with a plan to remedy the infraction. If that isn’t done, the city attorney can pursue “an appropriate civil remedy,” Mr. Granderson said.

Proponents said the law is needed because of city contractors who ignore labor laws but don’t lose their contracts. But if contractors are flouting labor laws, the solution is to enforce the laws already on the books.

Backers of the new law also cited problems with contractor fraud post-Katrina as a reason for the reporting law. But problems post-Katrina have generally been with contractors not completing work as they promised or doing shoddy work. That seems like a different issue, and prosecutors have been aggressive in pursuing those cases in any regard.

It is difficult to see any need for this ordinance, and it could create needless hassles for businesses ­– which doesn’t seem like a smart economic development strategy. Councilmembers Jackie Clarkson, Stacy Head and Kristin Gisleson Palmer rightly voted against it.

In an effort to avoid a rendundant law, the Business Council asked the City Council to handle the issue through language in its contracting process instead of in an ordinance. “If you did it that way, it would be far less onerous and still protect the public fisc,” said Bob Brown, the Business Council’s managing director. That seems like a reasonable approach.

In pitching his proposal, Mr. Granderson noted that it doesn’t create any new regulations. But that is precisely why it is unnecessary – the regulations already exist.

The topic of conversation? Forward New Orleans, a broad coalition comprised of more than 30 business, civic and community organizations that have identified several key areas on which elected officials should direct their focus to improve transparency in government and improve opportunities for an enhanced quality of life in New Orleans.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Download the press release, or visit forwardneworleans.com for more info.
 

FNO’s Coalition Members include:

Associated Builders & Contractors New Orleans/Bayou Chapter; Beacon of Hope; Broadmoor Improvement Association; Business Council of New Orleans and the River Region; Citizens for 1 Greater New Orleans; Common Good; Court Watch NOLA; Crimestoppers; Greater New Orleans, Inc.; Living Witness Church of God in Christ; Louisiana Association of General Contractors; Metropolitan Crime Commission; New Orleans Chamber of Commerce; New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau; New Orleans Crime Coalition; New Orleans Police and Justice Foundation; New Orleans Regional Black Chamber of Commerce; New Orleans Vacant Property Initiative; Partnership for Youth Development; Urban League of Greater New Orleans; Vieux Carré Property Owners, Residents, and Associates; and Young Leadership Council.

Committee for Economic Development (CED)

Speakers included Bob Brown, Managing Director of BCNO, Pres Kabacoff, Co-Chairman of the CED Board of Directors & Chief Executive Officer at HRI Properties, and Charles Kolb, President, Committee for Economic Development. CED Vice President Michael Petro lead the panel discussion about the challenges and opportunities businesses in Louisiana face as related to innovation and a rapidly changing landscape in postsecondary education. Panelists included: Woody Oge, representing the Louisiana Community and Technical College System, Curt Eysink of the Louisiana Workforce Commission, and Donald T. “Boysie” Bollinger of Bollinger Shipyards.

CED is a national, nonpartisan organization of senior corporate executives and university leaders dedicated to policy research on major economic and social issues and the implementation of its recommendations by the public and private sectors.  This luncheon was a part of CED’s Business Champions for Postsecondary Student Success, an initiative that seeks to engage business leaders in promoting strategies to improve and increase the number of people who obtain postsecondary degrees or certificates nationwide.

Videos from the event

The event was recorded live. Videos of each speaker and the panel discussion have been posted to CED’s YouTube Channel.

See the list of individual videos here:

• Introduction: Bob Brown, Managing Director, BCNO
• Opening remarks: Press Kabacoff, Co-Chairman of the CED Board of Directors & Chief Executive Officer at HRI Properties
• Keynote: Charles Kolb, President, CED
• Panel Discussion: Including Donald T. “Boysie” Bollinger, Curt Eysink and Woody Oge

In his letter, Rusovich said, “in response to your editorial of February 15, 2012, we would like to clarify that the Forward New Orleans Third Progress, released February 12, 2012, does not purport to examine the current state of crime in the City. Instead, the report assesses the City Council based on the specific action items.”

His letter also said, “to clarify, we do not characterize the state of violent crime in our City as “good.” We expressly state in our report that “we remain uncomfortably concerned about the level of violent crime in our city” and “persist with an expectation of substantial improvement.”

Read Mr. Rusovich’s full response.

The coalition is led by the Business Council of New Orleans and the River Region. It was founded in December 2009 to secure written pledges from mayoral and City Council candidates in the 2010 elections about their commitment to progress on seven major issues.

The report the group issued was its third “report card” on whether the city is making progress in seven key areas: crime, blight, city finances, economic development, city services and infrastructure, city contracting policies and public education. It reported “good progress” in each of the seven areas.

Overall, said Suzanne Mestayer, chairwoman of the Business Council, “The coalition remains encouraged that we are receiving real change that is motivated by a desire to achieve effective government. We appreciate the City Council’s commitment to transparency, accountability, efficiency and best practices.” However, she said, “There is still a lot of work to be done.”

View the progress report (pdf download), or learn more at nola.com

Designed to attack crime in five violent areas, or hot spots, the initiative includes collaboration between the NOPD and neighborhood residents and organizations. For more information, see this story on NOLA.com, or read the full press release issued by BCNO.