New Orleans City Councilmember JP Morrell joined WWL's Newell Normand on his show Tuesday to talk about the Sewerage and Water Board and took a strong position, saying "I do think there is a huge problem in that the sewerage and water board is a train wreck, but the people who run it continually give management a pass."
There's an institutional reluctance to make any changes, he said, adding that he doesn't understand how the executive director is still pulling a salary. "Sewerage and water has been an abject failure," he said, adding that "billing's a train wreck."
Normand said he understands the frustration. "You and I have talked about it for years," he said. "I'm frustrated as well."
The board is such a mess that there was a proposal before City Council this week for the state to take it over.
Executive Director Ghassan Korban came out against the recommendation of a panel put together by Gov. Jeff Landry that calls for the state replacing the existing board for two years in order to "put in place a series of reforms to the beleaguered utility," NOLA.com reported.
Korban said it would be too disruptive.
So, why won't the City Council take over some decision making and increase rates? Morrell said the bills are already wrong so "why would you let them make the bills higher at a base level?" he wondered aloud. The board, he added, is historically and currently mismanaged.
So much so, their approval rating is 10%.