For Immediate Release – May 13, 1997
Size of Jefferson Parish General Purpose Government Decreases Over Past 5 Years, BGR Reports
Contact: James C.
Brandt, President & CEO
Phone: (504) 525-4152
FAX: (504) 525-4153
E-mail: research@bgr.org
The size of Jefferson Parish government has decreased according to a number of measures, according to a report released today by the Bureau of Governmental Research (BGR).
By number of employees and number of employees per capita, the size of the general purpose government headed by the Parish Council and President decreased from 1988 to 1995, points out Jim Brandt, President and Chief Executive Officer of BGR.
"When one looks at the general operating revenues and expenditures adjusted for inflation, the size of parish government decreased ever-so-slightly from 1990 to 1995," Brandt continued. "Whether the parish government is doing more with less, or is doing less and actually needs more resources in order to provide the services citizens need and expect, is a topic for future discussion," he added.
Jefferson Parish General Purpose Government--add one
BGR’s findings from an overview of parish finances for the past ten years are part of its first publication in a new series, "BGR Outlook on Jefferson." The report released today is the first resulting from a new program which provides for a full-time BGR governmental monitoring and oversight effort in Jefferson Parish.
Reports to follow later this year will provide an overview of the finances of the office of the district attorney and the sheriff in Jefferson. Next year, the scope of the program will be expanded to include the Jefferson Parish School Board and other governmental entities in Jefferson Parish.
"We are delighted to undertake this expansion," Brandt said. "Only by taking our programs of research and monitoring of local governments into the neighboring suburban parishes will BGR be able to present local government in its true perspective, which is increasingly a regional one.
"We must cultivate a search for regional solutions to the many shared challenges that communities and governments face in the metropolitan New Orleans areas."
The presidential veto power sought so vigorously by proponents of charter change three years ago has not, in fact, been used since it was approved by voters in 1994, BGR reports, and the fundamental structure of the parish general purpose government remains the same.
Jefferson Parish General Purpose Government--add two
Sales taxes and property taxes have flip-flopped as the number one and number two sources of general tax revenues between 1988 and 1995, with general revenues slightly more dependent on sales taxes in 1995.
Public works account for the largest proportion of operating expenditures and will account for almost 29 percent of the 1997 operating budget. The largest percentage of operating increases for 1997 over 1996 will be for health and welfare and culture and recreation.
Over 93 percent of 1997 capital budget expenditures will go for public works. Transit, telecommunications, and parks and recreation are the other areas of capital spending.
"The size of government measured by general parish expenditures per 1000 residents, adjusted for inflation, has increased by 2.3 percent since 1990," BGR reports. The gap between operating revenues and operating expenditures has been filled, over the past few years, with spending of past years’ fund balances. "How long this practice can continue, especially in the face of a population that appears to be beginning to decline, not increase, will, we are sure, be a subject of close scrutiny by parish decision-makers
Jefferson Parish General Purpose Government--add three
over the course of the next few months and years," Brandt observed. "BGR looks forward to being part of the emerging dialogue," he added. Staff research for the report was provided by Valerie Vindici, a research analyst who joined BGR for full-time assignment to Jefferson Parish. A copy of the report may be obtained at branches of the Jefferson Parish Public Library. More information about the report or about BGR is available at 525-4152.
BGR is a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan citizen-supported research organization founded in 1932 and dedicated to informed public policy-making and the effective use of public resources in the New Orleans metropolitan area.
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