New accountant to rein in parish finance

St. Landry Parish President Invoice Fontenot has hired licensed public accountant Amanda Cain, who will improve the parish government budget’s monitoring. Fontenot delivered Cain to the parish council during a Wednesday night conference of the general public Works and Finance Committees.

Cain, who has 17 years of accounting and finance experience, will oversee each day’s monetary operation of the parish government, Fontenot instructed the council. Parish authorities face a $699,000 fashionable fund deficit for the financial year on Dec. 31.

At a special meeting in November, Fontenot stated he felt it is essential to lease a character with knowledge of finances so that you can keep manipulating parish authorities accounting every day. On Wednesday night, Fontenot pledged to replace the council on a month-to-month foundation of the parish’s monetary situation. So that it will be accomplished, Fontenot stated, with the help of Cain’s understanding.

Below the parish’s Home Rule Constitution form of presidency, the parish president has the authority to lease and hearth all employees besides the parish council clerk without council approval. Fontenot has also advised the council that he plans to lay off 17 other personnel for you to keep approximately $600,000 for 2017. Those layoffs can be whole using Jan. 1, said Fontenot.

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Cain will subsequently come to be director of finance, Fontenot stated. The transitioning of Cain into the finance director’s process manner that Novella Moore, the modern financial director, will preserve paintings for the parish, Fontenot stated. Moore, but, might be paid by using federal funding assets, according to Fontenot.

Councilwoman Nancy Carriere asked Fontenot whether the operating finances can maintain hiring Cain and Carriere at the parish payroll to carry out monetary monitoring. “We hear we’ve got a new lease inside the center of those layoffs. How will this affect the price range?” Carriere asked. Fontenot did not screen how a whole lot of Cain will be paid. However, he did not suggest that her salary would no longer harm the finances, considering he said federal revenues would pay Moore.

The council also questioned Fontenot’s standards for determining which personnel would be laid off. At an assembly earlier this month, Fontenot said 11 furloughed employees would come from road and maintenance crews while the other four are operating for the fitness unit.

The employees now not hired can be decided with the aid of job overall performance and years of the provider. Fontenot said he had tested the employee’s files of the workers destined for unemployment. Fontenot said he couldn’t discuss employees’ activity performances at public conferences.

Councilmember Alvin Stelly said he desires a list of the laid-off people to call each one and explain that the council isn’t accountable for not using them. Fontenot stated that privacy laws prevent him from imparting the board with laid-off employees listing. Jay Trahan, who often attends council meetings, asked when Fontenot realized that the parish had become a monetary crisis.