By KEVIN CHIRI

Editor and Publisher

LAPLACE – Louisiana Rep. Bobby Faucheux (D-LaPlace) had a good joke to start off his talk at the LaPlace Rotary Club meeting this past Tuesday.

&#8220I was asked to come and talk about our recent special session,” he said. &#8220So I thought that I would just stand up here for a while and be quiet.”

Faucheux got his laugh. But the state representative knew that the reality of what he was saying wasn’t so funny.

The recently concluded special session called by Governor Kathleen Blanco ended with only four of 165 bills passed. The reason, Faucheux said, was due to partisan politics that never used to be such an issue at the Louisiana Legislature.

&#8220When I first started in the Legislature 11 years ago, we got things done because people agreed or didn’t agree on bills,” he said. &#8220But now it’s the Republicans against the Democrats, and that is not a good thing for Louisiana.”

Blanco had called the special session to consider what to do with the massive surplus the state had, due in large part to the extra sales taxes being reaped in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. The state had $827 million to consider spending on a one-time basis.

Faucheux said that there were dozens of bills which could have helped Louisiana consumers, but virtually all of them got pushed off until the next regular session, which does not start until April.

Faucheux said that some of the key considerations were for road improvements, a Louisiana catastrophic insurance fund to help reduce rates, rate assessment refunds, tax cuts, health care reform, and pay raises for teachers, firemen and policemen.

&#8220None of those things passed,” he said to the group. &#8220We had only four bills passed, out of 165 which had been proposed.”

The state representative said that the biggest issue he is asked about everywhere he goes is about the homeowner insurance problem in South Louisiana, since so many companies have pulled out. Among the few which are still writing new homeowner policies, rates are very high.

&#8220We need more insurance companies to come here, but we don’t have many answers about how to get them here,” he said. &#8220It’s a challenging issue. Florida mandated insurance companies lower their rates, and the result was that many companies just left the state, so we don’t want to do that.”

Looking at St. John Parish, he said he continues to push for a fourth east-west roadway, which would be at Woodland Road just off the interstate.

&#8220Our highways were recently recognized as the worst in the country,” he said. &#8220I have tried to get funding for the Woodland Road extension, which would give St. John one more highway besides I-10, Airline and River Road, but funding for roadwork is six years behind already, so I know that is a long ways off.”

Faucheux did tout the prospect for bringing a huge steel manufacturing plant to Louisiana, which would bring 3,000 jobs to the area. Currently Louisiana is in competition with Alabama and Arkansas for the plant, but he said the state will have to come up with over $1 billion in infrastructure assistance to remain in the running.

Still, he said the Economic Development Department for Louisiana has brought 74 projects with a total capital investment of $7.8 billion, and 29,000 jobs to the state.

&#8220The Economic Development Department is doing what they can to bring jobs here,” he explained. &#8220And our revenue stream continues to be good here, with some big surpluses we have had for several years since we legalized gambling. Our TOPS program is largely funded due to that, and I think TOPS looks good for years to come.”

Faucheux will be term limited out this year, concluding his 12th year in the Legislature, and he said he currently has no plans to run for anything else in the political world.

&#8220Right now I’m stepping out,” he said. &#8220But that doesn’t mean I won’t consider something else in the future.”