Latest news with #McMakin
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Defying Landry, Louisiana lawmakers reject giving him more control over licensing boards
Rep. Dixon McMakin, R-Baton Rouge, left, greets Gov. Jeff Landry as Landry leaves the House Chamber with his son, JT Landry, right, after speaking on opening day of legislative session, Monday, April 14, 2025, at the State Capitol in Baton Rouge. (Hilary Scheinuk/The Advocate-Pool) In defiance of Gov. Jeff Landry, a Louisiana Senate committee rejected a proposal to give him more authority over appointees to 32 government boards and commissions, nearly half of which help regulate health care providers. The Senate and Governmental Affairs Committee voted 4-3 against House Bill 603 Wednesday that would have allowed the governor to appoint members to state licensing boards without input from others. Currently, the governor has to pick these board members from lists of nominees provided by trade associations and industry leaders in the applicable field. Landry was seeking more authority over boards ranging from those that regulate certified public accountants, plumbers and engineers to ones overseeing nurses, dentists and physical therapists. The number of appointees Landry would have selected varied from group to group. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The legislation's author, Rep. Dixon McMakin, R-Baton Rouge, said the current appointment system is problematic because it lets professional trade groups pick their own regulators. 'The thought was to protect the consumer,' McMakin said at a public hearing this week. Sen. Greg Miller, R-Norco, backed McMakin's bill and shared his concerns about the current structure of the boards. 'The people who are supposed to be regulated are actually the ones doing the regulating,' Miller said. The bill closely resembles law changes Landry got approved last year that have already consolidated the governor's power over state appointees. State lawmakers gave Landry the ability to appoint the chairs of 150 state boards and commissions directly instead of relying on the boards to pick their own leaders. These boards include the 32 Landry hoped to gain more control over through McMakin's bill. Legislators also made changes in 2024 to the board of the Louisiana Coastal Restoration and Protection Authority to give the governor more say-so on members of that panel. The legislature also permitted the governor more power over appointees to the Louisiana Board of Ethics. Landry now gets to pick his appointees directly instead of having to choose from lists of nominees from Louisiana's private college and university leaders. On Wednesday, Senate committee members indicated the governor's previous power grabs made them wary of handing Landry more authority. 'Don't you think that the way the bill is .. strips away the voice of the particular industry to offer up potential nominees?' asked Sen. Blake Miguez, R-New Iberia, who voted against McMakin's legislation. 'It makes it, in a sense, purely political.' 'This kind of gives even more power to an already powerful executive branch,' Sen. Gary Carter, D-New Orleans, said. 'I have grave concerns about it.' McMakin said safeguards already in place make sure the governor selects qualified board members. The governor's appointees have to meet certain standards to serve, such as holding an occupational license in the field they would have to regulate. The governor's appointees also do not make up the majority of any of the licensing boards in his bill, McMakin said. Sen. Larry Selders, D-Baton Rouge, remained unconvinced that the governor should be given more authority. 'Where is the protection? Last year, we gave the governor the authority to appoint the chairmen. Now, we are giving the governor the authority to put two or three people – or various numbers – on different committees. And so when is it going to change again next year?' Selders said, before voting against the legislation. Despite the legislation failing, McMakin said the governor's office could find a way to revive it before the legislature ends its session June 12. 'The bill is not dead,' he said in an interview. Legislators have shown less tolerance for growing the governor's authority, however. A constitutional amendment aimed at giving the governor two at-large appointees to the five-member Public Service Commission failed to get off the ground earlier this spring. Landry's push to give him more sway over appointees to a New Orleans-area flood protection agency board has also died this session. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
American Press
30-04-2025
- Politics
- American Press
Jim Beam column:Two bad bills have surfaced
Louisiana state Sen. Alan Seabaugh, R-Shreveport, has one of two bad bills that have surfaced during the state's current legislative session.(Photo courtesy of The Advocate). Every session of the Louisiana Legislature — regular or special — has a good number of bad bills. Luckily, most are defeated but some get through. Thankfully, one of the worst bills in the current session was defeated in committee last week with a 7-7 vote. The authors and supporters of both measures said they have no connection to the four amendments defeated on March 29, but opponents aren't buying that argument. House Bill 200 by Rep. Dixon McMakin, R-Baton Rouge, was sidetracked by the House and Governmental Affairs Committee. The Advocate reported that McMakin said he wouldn't attempt to revive his legislation. McMakin wanted to add an unbelievable number of members to the East Baton Rouge Parish Republican Executive Committee. Former state Rep. Woody Jenkins chairs that committee and in an interview he said Gov. Jeff Landry pushed for passage of McMakin's bill to punish Jenkins for campaigning against the four amendments. Jenkins said doubling the GOP executive committee's membership would lead to his ouster as parish party chairman. A spokesperson for Gov. Landry said he was unaware of McMakin's bill, although Derek Babcock, the state GOP party chair, said he told the governor during an interview two days earlier he would oppose McMakin's bill and that the two men had agreed to disagree over the measure. The newspaper said during 90 minutes of tart debate and questioning 'a parade of fellow Baton Rouge Republicans repeatedly told him (McMakin) Wednesday he had committed the egregious sin of wanting state government to meddle in the business of the GOP governing authority in East Baton Rouge Parish.' Babcock told the committee, 'Political parties are private groups' and 'have the right to establish their own internal rules. State control over committee elections is not necessary.' Senate Bill 74 by Sen. Alan Seabaugh, R-Shreveport, is the other bad bill. It was amended to say if district attorneys approve, they could move criminal cases with 15- and 16-year-old defendants from juvenile jurisdictions to adult courts. Those juveniles would still be tried under the juvenile legal code, not the adult code. The original bill automatically moved all those cases to adult courts. The Senate Judiciary C Committee voted 6-1 to send the bill to the full Senate. The Louisiana Illuminator reported that state Attorney General Liz Murrill wants state lawmakers to pass Seabaugh's bill 'a few weeks after Louisiana overwhelmingly voted down a constitutional amendment that could have led to similar teenage transfers in the criminal justice system.' Seabaugh, like McMakin, said his bill isn't a response to the amendment because he planned to file his bill before voters rejected the amendment. That reminds me of the old saying, 'If you believe that, I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you.' Opponents of Seabaugh's legislation offered some excellent reasons why it's a terrible idea. Some said it would throw four of the state's largest court systems — in Orleans, Jefferson, East Baton Rouge and Caddo parishes — into chaos. They have juvenile courts with judges who solely handle cases involving people under age 17. Paul Young, a retired Caddo Parish juvenile court judge, said, 'Children are not simply tiny adults that you can handle in adult criminal court.' Critics say the public sent a clear message on moving minors into the adult system when 66% of them rejected an amendment doing the same thing. The Illuminator said there is broad consensus that rehabilitation provided in the juvenile system — as opposed to punishment provided in adult prisons — is especially effective for teenagers because their brains haven't fully developed yet. Jay Dixon, a former state public defender in Louisiana who now works in Massachusetts, said, 'There are tons of studies that show that is the worst thing you can do and all it does is create another generation of criminals.' Some critics say district courts are already overwhelmed by their current workloads. Young said moving juveniles into those courts would cause severe scheduling challenges. The Advocate called the defeat of the four constitutional amendments on March 29 'Landry's biggest political defeat as governor to date.' It's long past time for Landry, Murrill, Seabaugh, McMakin and others who are upset over that defeat to get over it. The voters have made it clear how they feel about handling juveniles in the court system. Jim Beam, the retired editor of the American Press, has covered people and politics for more than six decades. Contact him at 337-515-8871 or Reply Forward Add reaction
Los Angeles Times
22-04-2025
- Los Angeles Times
Police rescue West Africans from a human trafficking scam in Ivory Coast
DAKAR, Senegal — Police raids have rescued 33 West Africans from a human trafficking ring in Ivory Coast that lured people into paying fees and providing coerced labor by promising them jobs in Canada, the international police agency Interpol said Tuesday. Victims paid as much as $9,000 to supposed recruiters who instead trafficked them to the city of Abidjan in the Ivory Coast, where they were held under physical and psychological coercion, the agency said in a statement. They also were forced to help scam others with the same promise of finding a job abroad by taking photos of themselves in upscale restaurants and hotels and posting them online as though they were in Canada. The traffickers allowed them limited contact with their families to maintain the illusion of living overseas. The initial raids on two of the locations associated with the trafficking ring were conducted in February in a joint operation between Ivory Coast and Ghana, where some of the victims were from. The scheme first came to light when the father of two victims came forward to Ghanaian authorities. Victims were from Benin, Burkina Faso, Togo and Ghana. Youssouf Kouyate, director general of the Ivory Coast National Police, commended the 'close cooperation' with Ghanaian police and Interpol, as well as 'the bravery of the victims who came forward to assist in this investigation.' After the 33 victims were freed, they were referred to a nongovernmental organization for assessment, the Interpol statement said. Scams of this type are increasingly common in West Africa and police forces across the region have conducted mass raids in the past, including the arrest of over 300 people in 2024. Interpol, which has 196 member countries, works to help national police forces communicate with each other and track suspects and criminals in fields such as counterterrorism, financial crime, child pornography, cybercrime and organized crime. McMakin writes for the Associated Press.
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Baton Rouge leaders push to remove Washington Street off-ramp to ease traffic
BATON ROUGE, La. (Louisiana First) — Baton Rouge city leaders are calling for the removal of the Washington Street off-ramp, citing its role in ongoing congestion and frequent wrecks. Officials said the ramp has long been a trouble spot, with the stretch of I-10 leading up to it earning the nickname 'the Devil's Triangle of interstates.' State Representative Dixon McMakin emphasized the urgency of addressing the issue. 'This exit has caused so many delays and wrecks that the area leading up to it has been known as the Devil's Triangle of interstates,' McMakin said. The proposed plan would barricade the Washington Street off-ramp and redirect traffic to the Terrace Street and Nicholson Drive exits. Supporters of the plan argue that closing the exit would allow motorists more time to merge onto I-10 East, reducing bottlenecks and improving traffic flow. 'Closing that exit down will allow motorists more time to merge onto I-10 as they head east,' McMakin added. Legislators are pushing for the project to move forward, aiming to have the ramp closed by December. McMakin expressed confidence in the plan's momentum, citing strong backing from state and congressional leadership. 'We have great congressional leadership that also backs this,' he said. 'A governor's office, a full legislator. So, I think by Christmas time the exit will be shut down.' State leaders said they will continue to monitor the project's progress and address any public concerns as work moves forward. Baton Rouge leaders push to remove Washington Street off-ramp to ease traffic JFK Presidential Library closes amid Trump federal worker culling Brutal polar vortex cold shutters Midwest schools, breaks North Dakota record Senate Republicans open to DOGE access to IRS but urge guardrails Father-son duo survives night in Utah wilderness after finding 'miracle' backpack Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
