(The Center Square) — The Caddo Parish Commission in Louisiana advanced several urgent requests.
The commission’s work session Monday was used to advance resolutions and ordinances for their Thursday meeting. Two resolutions sent urgent requests to two very different bodies: Congress and the Southwestern Electric Power Company.
The message to Congress, if passed Thursday, to seek viable alternatives to clinical trials for determining market readiness of sickle cell disease treatments.
Author of the resolution, District 7 commissioner Stormy Gage-Watts, says she’s spoken with several citizens in the sickle cell community who have recently been effected by treatments that had to get pulled off the market for having more negative side effects than positive.
This resolution had sweeping support and every commission member agreed it was their job to be the voice for families most effected by urgently requesting better clinical trials before offering a treatment to the Caddo community.
The message to SWEPCO, if passed Thursday, would be less serious.
In the past, the parish provided a financial inducement to encourage SWEPCO to build its transmission facility in Resilient Technology Park in exchange for the creation and maintenance of jobs, which in turn spur economic and community development.
Part of the purpose of the financial incentive was to build a public road to the facility and have the extension of that road, from Resilient Way to Jefferson Paige Road, through SWEPCO’s property.
Now, the commission wants SWEPCO to follow through and is strongly urging them to allow the public road to be extended through its property in Resilient Technology Park.
Two ordinances were also given consent for Thursday’s meeting. Both had to do with pay for certain parish employees.
The first is following through on their obligation as the commission to ensure all employees are paid a living wage. This ordinance would bump the minimum classified pay rate in fiscal year 2025 up to $15 an hour for any covered employee.
The second ordinance raises the salary of justices of the peace and constables. Currently they receive $225 from the parish each month. Starting in 2025, if passed, this ordinance bumps that monthly pay up to $345.