PORT ALLEN, La. (AP) - The Port Allen City Council has adopted several ordinances aimed at increasing government transparency and more clearly defining policies and procedures.
The Advocate reports (https://bit.ly/Oo99Rc ) most passed with little discussion, but a measure to grant department head status for five administrative positions came in for criticism from opponents who saw it as an attempt to undermine the authority of former Mayor Demetric Slaughter.
Councilmen Hubble, Hugh Riviere and R.J. Loupe voted in favor while councilmen Brandon Brown and Ray Helen Lawrence voted against the measure.
Brown has said in the past the ordinance provided too much protection to certain city-government employees.
Hubble has been trying to get the ordinance on the books since the city Chief Financial Officer Audrey McCain filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against Slaughter in February 2013 after Slaughter tried to fire McCain.
Slaughter vetoed Hubble’s previous efforts twice before she was recalled from office on Nov. 16.
A state District Court judge temporarily blocked the mayor’s attempt to dismiss McCain, saying Slaughter could only do so with the consent of the City Council.
The case is scheduled for a two-day trial before state District Judge Alvin Batiste on March 31.
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Information from: The Advocate, https://theadvocate.com
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