ELTON, La. — The town of Elton is continuing its financial recovery, with state Rep. Reese "Skip" Broussard saying officials are doing everything they can to stabilize the budget after years of mounting debt.
Broussard said the town's financial troubles stem largely from the loss of funding it had long received from the Coushatta Tribe. He said the tribe had previously provided between $700,000 and $900,000 annually — roughly 70% of the town's budget — plus an additional $200,000 grant each year.
"When you end up losing about half your budget or over, it's just life-changing," Broussard said. "They just kind of got in bad shape, and he's doing a hell of a job of pulling them out. It's just a long, slow process."
Inherited debt, reduced services
On top of the revenue loss, the current administration inherited $1 million owed to the police retirement system and four years of unpaid payroll taxes.
Mayor Mike Pierrotti's administration has since paid off the retirement fund debt to MPERS. Pierrotti told KATC the town is now one payment away from settling its IRS debt — not including penalties and interest. He said he hopes the state will help cover the remaining fees once the principal is paid off.
The town has also turned over its police department to the sheriff's office as a cost-saving measure. The town council previously cut the next administration's police chief and mayor salaries to less than $12 an hour.
State's role uncertain
Broussard said the state's ability to intervene is limited.
"They can always give advice, of course. They could call the finance department of the state and ask," Broussard said. "Whether you're running an individual household or a town, there's just certain fixed costs that you have."
Broussard said the town is moving in the right direction despite the constraints.
"There are just some really tough fixed costs that you can't offset," he said. "They've turned over the police department basically to the sheriff's office to save money. They're doing everything in their power and in the right direction to get back to where they need to be."
