What’s In The Budget?
BOBBY ARDOIN
St. Landry Now.com Editor
The Opelousas Board of Aldermen faces an Aug. 31 deadline for approving amendments for the previous fiscal year — 2025-26 – and agreeing to proposed items for the financial year which starts Sept. 1.
After an aborted attempt to gather department heads and city officials at a budget committee meeting last month, the committee convened on Tuesday night and reviewed expenses and revenues for each of the budgetary years.
The Committee will review findings from the Tuesday meeting and present them for a potential vote by the Board of Aldermen in September.
Here are some highlights from that meeting.
General Fund
Treasurer LaWanda St. Ann said the $1.853 million the city lost in sales tax revenue during four months in 2025 cannot be recouped.
“It’s gone. We can’t get that back,” St. Ann said.
The city survived financially, St. Ann said, as department heads agreed to cut their budget requests as the city lost money by letting the 1-cent tax expire.
Most of the departments are increasing their funding requests for 2026-27, said St. Ann, since they proposed to operate at reduced amounts last year.
Recent sales tax revenue collections show the city has averaged $1.1 million monthly in sales tax revenue over the past several months.
Police Department
Police Chief Graig LeBlanc defended the overtime spending by his department and in addition to an increased spending for ammunition,
The department, said committee member Charles Cummings, budgeted about $400,000 for overtime last year, when actually $631,000 was spent.
LeBlanc said his 32-officer department normally spends extra for an additional pair of weekend duty officers to cover potential outbreaks of activity.
“We also had a couple of events that got out of hand and we’ve found we need more manpower over the weekends,” LeBlanc said.
LeBlanc justified the 2026-27 request for about $30,000 for ammunition.
Departmental weapon training has become more demanding, said LeBlanc. In addition the department is now purchasing firearms for officers rather than having duty officers bring their own weapons.
Public Works
Committee Chairman John Guilbeaux questioned a departmental $83,000 salary increase last year.
In addition Guilbeaux said, Public Works spent $136,855 for overtime.
Mayor Julius Alsandor said the department is using more hours to due to increased work responses,
St. Ann said much of the expenditures by the department came after responding to the increased number of water leaks.
Fire Department
Fire Chief Byron Chavis said the 2 percent salary increase for the department is a state requirement.
Chavis indicated a $25,000 request for departmental travel next year is necessary since most of that funding is for conferences and training which are sometimes located in out-of-state locations.
New equipment standards will probably require the department to spend money at the end of 2027, Chavis said, for new helmets and other firefighting attire.
Parks And Recreation
Schools using Donald Gardner Stadium this year for athletic events will pay more this year — $700 for each event — which is more than the $550 they spend last year, said Parks and Recreation Director Chris Rideau.
Rideau said the money collected for the events will be placed in the city general fund.
Concession revenues will be remitted to the schools, Rideau said.
