On Jan. 26, the Port of South Louisiana and the River Region Economic Development Initiative co-hosted the annual River Parishes Economic Development Breakfast in Washington D.C.

The River Region Economic Development Initiative is comprised of leaders from St. Charles, St. John the Baptist and St. James. The Initiative was founded in 2004 with the primary purpose of developing strategies to further the economic growth and diversification of the region.

The Port of South Louisiana has had a strong relationship with the coalition, assisting with industry studies, working on marketing plans and partnering on projects that benefit the region. The event served as an opportunity for Louisiana lawmakers, businessmen, industry executives and community leaders to network with Louisiana’s U.S. Congressional delegates and discuss crucial financial issues for the state.

I served as the emcee and spoke about the importance of ports and the financial impact the maritime industry has had on Louisiana and the nation.

In 2017, over 307 million short tons of cargo passed within the Port of South Louisiana alone; this is a number that is projected to increase as the $23.262 billion of announced capital investment begins to come online. We must do everything in our power to maintain the health of our maritime infrastructure, which includes dredging the mouth of the Mississippi River, which is crucial to our economic growth, from 45 feet to 50 feet.

Dredging the river will be possible with revenue collected from the Harbor Maintenance Tax, which was created as part of The Water Resource Act of 1986 and places a 0.125 percent ad valorem-based fee on imports entering the country and therefore taking advantage of the U.S. port system.

The fees are intended to require those who benefit from maintenance of U.S. ports and harbors to share the cost of the maintenance and are collected on imports, domestic shipments, Foreign-Trade Zone (FTZ) admissions and passengers. In the last 15 years, funds collected from the tax have exceeded estimates, creating a large surplus of funds — roughly $7 to $9 billion in revenue.

A singular plan has been decided on by the American Association of Port Authorities in regard to the usage of these funds to dredge the Mississippi River; all that remains is Congressional approval and enactment of the plan.

Dredging the river is vital to port commerce; not only is it a crucial necessity for Louisiana’s port industry, but for the ports in the nine other states bordering the Mississippi River as well.

Other speakers at the luncheon included Louisiana U.S. Senators John Kennedy and Bill Cassidy and Louisiana U.S. Representatives Cedric Richmond, Garret Graves, Ralph Abraham, Mike Johnson and Clay Higgins. Topics discussed included the recent tax bill with importance placed on the areas of economic growth, job creation and extensions for Louisiana residents affected by the recent floods.

Other issues addressed were the $200 billion infrastructure grant package, health care reform, coastal restoration and water management and flood protection and FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program.

Not present was U.S. Louisiana Rep. and current House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, still recovering from injuries sustained last June.

Initiative representatives who spoke included St. John Parish President Natalie Robottom, St. James Parish President Timothy Roussel and Executive Director of Technology and Communication Anthony Ayo on behalf of St. Charles Parish.

These leaders spoke about such crucial issues as labor force training, the Marketplace Fairness Act and its economic impact on Louisiana, flood protection (levee project funding), and industry growth (for example: there is currently $25 billion worth of industry looking to do business within St. James Parish).

Among the additional attendees were State Sen. Gary Smith; State Rep. Clay Schexnayder; Don Pierson, Secretary of Louisiana Economic Development; Deputy Secretary of Louisiana Economic Development Brad Lambert; and Lutcher Mayor Patrick St. Pierre.

The 2018 River Parishes Economic Development Breakfast was very successful, with the room filled to capacity with Louisiana’s top lawmakers, businesspeople, industry leaders, executives and elected officials.

You never pass up an opportunity to meet with your legislators in person and get the chance to speak with them face-to-face. And this is a time when they’re all together and expecting to meet with us. They’re receptive, their staff is receptive, and it’s just a great chance to personally thank them for all the work they do, and to reinforce the importance of what we do down here and the best ways to keep this region strong economically.

Paul Aucoin is executive director of the Port of South Louisiana. For more information, call 985-652-9278.