Economic Development Summit speakers offer optimism for La.

American Press

18 hours ago

Louisiana is open for business.
That was the message during the Greater Beauregard Chamber of Commerce- hosted Economic Development Summit.
Speakers were state Sen. Mike Reese, Southwest Louisiana Alliance CEO Scott Walker, DeRidder Mayor Michael Harris, Beauregard Parish Police Jury President Mike Harper, Louisiana Commissioner of Insurance Tim Temple, as well as Woody Daigle, representing U.S. Sen. John Kennedy; Whitney Lambright, representing Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, and Marlon Ramsey, U.S. Congressman Chuck Owen.
Reese said Gov. Jeff Landry's administration is changing the way Louisiana economic development functions by matching industries that are best suited for each region of the state.
'We are competing against very aggressive states that are very successful in economic development and they are changing, modernizing and customizing their incentive packages over time to make sure that they can quickly meet the needs of industry,' Reese said. 'We have been very slow to do that historically in Louisiana.'
Reese said the Administrative Procedures Act will allow businesses to change their programs as needed in order to be more competitive than other states. He also praised Louisiana's changes in tax policies — the personal income tax rate has been lowered to a 3 percent flat rate and the corporate rate has been lowered from 7.5 percent to 5.5 percent with the franchise tax rate also now eliminated.
'All of this was done in Gov. Landry's first year working together with the Legislature. All of this moves us to about the 22nd in the country in tax rates than we were before at about the 45th,' Reese said.
Harris said during his first 90 days in office, he has been in the field speaking city employees about their satisfaction with their jobs.
'I wanted to know, 'Why did you apply to work for the city?' and 'What would it take for you to want to continue to work for the city?' I wanted them to understand that they are just as important as the people that work in the headquarters office and that work in the city hall,' he said. 'I want every city employee to never want to look for another job.
Harris said he and the city are going to serve together with integrity, leadership and transparency.
'I told them that they could look at me and I'd be a prime example for that and how we'd always respect one another,' he said.
With his first months in office, Harrison has also started the Youth Training Program for young adults 17 to 25 to come to work for the city during the summer to learn about entering the workforce.
'You guys know it's hard to find good employees, sometimes they just don't want to work, so if we train them young how to work and they see the result of their work — a check with their name on it and can open their own bank account and teach them how to manage their money at a young age — this will help them as they get older and the concept of economics,' Harris said.
Walker said the region is in a 'global war for talent.'
'We have great companies here and we have great talent, but we need to grow and prove ourselves,' he said.
His goal is to make Louisiana an 'easy place to do business.'
Daigle also addressed what he said are false claims made about Medicaid cuts.
'The other side said we were going to cut Grandma and Grandpa, but that's not the case,' he said. 'What actually happened is we're cutting the waste. There was lots of people receiving Medicaid, not just in Louisiana but also in Texas so they were 'double-dipping' and we're going to eliminate that and people that basically don't deserve to be on assistance and to try to get able-bodied people back to work,
He said the Service Disabled Vet, which will open loans for serviced and disabled veterans, will allow retired and disabled veterans to be eligible for loans geared for small businesses.
Lambright said the 'Big Beautiful Bill' will raise wages in Louisiana.
'One 'Big Beautiful Bill' wins specially for the state of Louisiana will raise rates by an inflation rate of about $3,000 to $5,400 over the next four years,' she said. 'A typical family with two children in Louisiana can expect to see higher take-home pay of about $6,600 to $9,200 with the 'Big Beautiful Bill' compared to if it had not passed.'
Temple addressed the state's rising costs on homeowners and auto insurance compared to other states.
'I know that everyone is facing unaffordable insurance right now, but since I've been in office we have been making progress and we will continue making progress every single session.'
Temple said the state focused on homeowners insurance last year and they are starting to see a positive impact. Temple reminded the audience it does take time to see, but it is occurring. He said the last session was focused more so on auto insurance.
Temple said insurance is meant to make residents whole, not to make you better than. He gave an example of how if a driver gets in a wreck while driving a Ford, he shouldn't receive a Ferrari afterwards.
'That's not how it works,' Temple said. 'We need to have some real serious conversations about this and I need your help, I need you to continue to support your Legislature. They need to know that you have their back when making hard decisions.'