The following questions were asked of each candidiate for Iberia Parish Council District 6. Here are the answers for Bernard Broussard exactly how they were received:

1. What are the three biggest issues facing the Iberia Parish? Your district? What specifically should be done to address each?

Roads, Coastal Protection and Drainage are the biggest issues for the Parish as a whole. In District 6 the biggest issues are roads, drainage and sewerage. I will work with the council to set up a trust fund to use the severance tax money the citizen voted to return from Baton Rouge to Iberia Parish to fund roads and drainage for many years to come. I will work with the sewerage district to improve the infrastructure of the systems and to reduce the cost to the citizens with a fee based more on the amount of usage of the system and not a one size fits all for a fee.

2. What are your thoughts about the tax increment financing districts? Should voters decide taxes in such a district?

I am against the voters not having the right to a vote on a taxing district and that is the reason I did not vote to impose the tax in the two TIF districts in Iberia Parish. The legislature has set the rules for a TIF district not to have any voters in it and in doing so a vote of the people can not be called. I will support a change in the law to allow local citizens to a have the right to vote on the local level in a parish if they want a TIF district imposed or not.

3. Are there areas of spending in parish government that could be reduced? What areas of spending in parish government should be increased?

I feel we could cut the cost of our rural recycling and debris pick-up programs and improve our services by turning the services over to private industry. I am working with the council to do so and will have an agreement worked-out with private industry within a few weeks. Parish Government needs to continue to make investments in our roads and drainage programs and this can be achieved without increased taxes to the citizens with the creation of the Severance Tax Trust Fund. This fund will be a re-occurring fund for many years to come to continue to address Road and Drainage needs in the future. This can be done without increased cost to the citizens using existing funds.

4. What are your thoughts about consolidating some parish and city services?

I have supported consolidation of city and parish services in the past and will continue to do so. City- and parish-elected officials should allow the citizens to vote on services which could be combined. Parish government has done so in the past with Parks and Recreation, Garbage, the Mosquito Control district and 911 Emergency Call Center district. Where it will cut cost and improve services it is the responsibility of the governments to consolidate services.

5. A recycling contract is in limbo right now. An argument against recycling is that there is little participation in the parish. An argument for it is it is a viable way to reduce the amount of waste headed to landfills. Do you support recycling? If you do, do you have any ideas how to increase participation?

Yes, I have supported and voted to start recycling for the rural areas of Iberia Parish many years ago and will continue to support it. I feel by increasing the size of the bin and having the container on wheels like the garbage cans are it will make it easier for the citizens to participate. By increasing roadside debris pick up to every other week and with recycling being done at the same time the public will participate more. The best part is by turning the programs over to private industry parish government will be able to reduce the cost of both programs and increase services.