Shreveport City Council Rescinds Pay Raises, Ends Investigation—Chair Green, Vice-Chair Taylor, Councilman Jackson Notably Absent
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At a special meeting Wednesday of the Shreveport City Council, part of the ongoing ‘Pay-gate’ saga, the councilors present voted to rescind the pay raises previously reported by AGR and other outlets totaling from hundreds to $10,000 per year.
Although the meeting followed one day after a full press briefing from City Council Chairman James Green that saw him prayerfully apologize and claim sole responsibility for his “assumption” of the authority to approve the raises, both he and Vice-Chair Tabatha Taylor were conspicuously absent along with Councilman Dr. Alan Jackson. The resolution to reverse the unauthorized pay increases passed unanimously. Conversely, the second agenda item: an investigation into the incident was voted down with votes against it from Councillors Brooks and Bowman.
Residents presented testimony with some calling for an “outside investigation” and the election of a new Chairman.
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According to The Shreveport Times, Councilwoman Ursula Bowman opposed the investigation on grounds that Chairman Green has already admitted to approving the salary increases and suggested that City Attorney Marcus Edwards create new regulations for the future to prevent further occurrences.
Councilman Jim Taliaferro "Our goal going forward regarding an investigation is to uncover practices that led us to this point already.”
"We can't have someone come back in and revamp our current best practices until we know where the chink is in the armor, then I think it's incumbent upon us to actually do our due diligence and follow this up the chain,” he added per the Times.
Councilman Grayson Boucher who presided over the meeting agreed that a forward-looking regulation is needed as a preventative measure, but insisted that a thorough investigation is also necessary in spite of Green’s admission of guilt.
Councilman Dr. Alan Jackson is scheduled to join AGR at 5 PM CDT Wednesday to discuss the matter.