Landrieu: Loan Cancellations Will Save Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Dept. $7.2M

Press Release

Today, U.S. Senator Mary L. Landrieu, D-La., announced that $7.2 million in Community Disaster Loans (CDLs) for the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Department have been cancelled under a provision that she authored as part of her fiscal year 2013 Homeland Security Appropriations bill. The provision fixed a flawed formula that prevented the cancellation of $286.7 million in CDLs in many South Louisiana communities. The old formula failed to recognize necessary expenses; penalized communities for revenues that are otherwise dedicated; and omitted budgetary circumstances beyond the three-year period following the disaster.

"With this cancellation, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Department now has relief from an unfair debt burden of $7.2 million. Instead of paying these funds to the federal government, the Sheriff's Department can use this money to protect our communities and avoid layoffs of essential personnel like first responders and deputies. This is great news for Jefferson Parish and I am hopeful that as more data is scrutinized, additional cancellations will bring more relief to our communities, Sen. Landrieu said.

"This loan cancellation is a huge weight off our shoulders and will ensure that this $7.2 million stays right where it belongs - here in Jefferson Parish, where it can be used to better protect the citizens of the Parish. I thank Sen. Mary Landrieu for her leadership on this issue and the entire Louisiana congressional delegation for their clear commitment to getting us relief from this debt," said Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand.

In August, Sen. Landrieu announced that $35.6 million in CDLS for nine Louisiana community entities.

Sen. Landrieu has time and time again sought legislative and other solutions to help affected communities with outstanding loans. In 2007, Sen. Landrieu authored a provision to restore the possibility of loan forgiveness, without which these communities would have had to repay every penny. As a result of Sen. Landrieu's 2007 provision, FEMA previously cancelled $602 million in debt that Louisiana communities (approximately 60 percent).

In 2010, Sen. Landrieu convened a three-hour meeting with FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate and representatives from eight Louisiana parishes in her office to explain to FEMA officials how the formula did not accurately calculate a parish's revenue and expenses for determining whether an applicant met the forgiveness requirements.

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