By David Vitrano

L’Observateur

LAPLACE – Rebowe and Associates had mostly good things to say when they presented their annual audit report to the St. John the Baptist Parish Council Tuesday.

The audit report, which contained “no substantial findings,” found only a couple of areas in which some improvement could be made.

A representative from Rebowe said a few departments, such as recreation and roads and bridges, had deficits for the 2009 fiscal year, but other than that everything seems to be in order.

Parish administrators are seeking the rededication of a portion of the parish’s sales tax revenue to be used for the parish’s water system in addition to the sewage system and Public Works Department, which are already partially funded by the tax collection.

After learning that currently the system is totally funded through the collection of water and utility bills, Council President Ronnie Smith said, “I’m just curious as to why we need it now.”

According to St. John Chief Financial Officer Pat McTopy, St. John’s new Nano water filtration system has raised the costs of operating the water system, so the extra revenue would be used for that purpose.

McTopy said the change would be no different than when Public Works was added to the list in 2002.

The ordinance does not seek to increase taxes but rather merely rededicate the funding generated by the current sales tax.

“Ultimately, it’s going to be the decision of the taxpayers in the parish,” said Smith.

The voters will get to make that decision in the Nov. 2 election as the council approved the ordinance by a vote of 8-1. Dale Wolfe is the only council member who opposed the ordinance.

Wolfe said he disagreed with the wording of the ordinance because it leaves too much flexibility in how the revenue can be spent.

McTopy also introduced a resolution in support of an amendment related to Mineral Production Royalties for Louisiana.

“This is a resolution that has been adopted by just about every other parish in the state,” said McTopy.

The resolution raises the cap on the amount of revenue a parish can collect from mineral production within its borders.

The council approved the resolution unanimously.

Also approved unanimously were requested extensions for the completion date of improvements to Airline Highway as well as the completion of the design for the St. John Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant.

The new target completion date for Airline Highway improvements is Feb. 17, 2011, while the new target completion date for the treatment plant’s design is Aug. 31, 2011.

In other business, Sarah Tregre was re-appointed to the Civil Service Board.

Also, council member Charles Julien asked St. John Chief Administrative Officer Marie Brown-Mercadel if they could meet to discuss making the St. John Civic Center more accessible to local residents. Mercadel said she would set up the meeting but added that the production company for the television show “Memphis Beat” has rented the building through the end of January as it waits to hear if the series will be picked up for another season. The company is paying $15,000 a month to store its equipment there.