THE GIRL BRIEF

By: Kayce Geezy | Published: March 9, 2026

How a quiet ordinance turned into one of the biggest local debates in St. Tammany Parish

Most people don’t read parish council agendas, And honestly? I don’t blame them.

They’re usually packed with zoning amendments, drainage easements., and include things that sound like they were written by a committee that hasn’t slept since Katrina.

But every once in a while, buried inside one of those agendas… there’s something worth paying attention to.

In late 2025, a technical ordinance appeared on the St. Tammany Parish Council agenda.

It was called Ordinance 8002.

At first glance, it looked routine. Just another update to the parish utility code dealing with water and sewer rates for parish-owned utilities.

But when the numbers were actually broken down, something stood out.

Some residents will see their monthly utility bills increase by more than 100%.

So we did what any curious citizen does.

We started reading the fine print.

Step One: The Ordinance

Ordinance 8002 proposed major changes to the water and sewer rate structure for parish-owned utility systems.

The ordinance itself explained why the change was happening.

St. Tammany Parish had participated in Louisiana’s Water Sector Program, which provides funding for water and wastewater infrastructure upgrades.

As part of that program, the parish had to conduct a utility rate study. Which was necessary to evaluate whether the system can financially sustain the infrastructure improvements over time.

According to parish utility documents, the Department of Utilities currently serves about 16,000 connections & roughly 50,000 residents across multiple water and wastewater systems.

The parish also received over $80 million in Water Sector funding to repair and upgrade aging infrastructure.

Those upgrades include things like:

• water wells
• treatment facilities
• sewer consolidations
• water towers
• distribution pipelines

The invisible systems ensure that clean water comes out of your faucet. They also make sure that wastewater goes where it’s supposed to go.

Step Two: The Rate Study

The parish hired consultants to conduct the required rate study.

The study looked at several factors, including:

• operating costs
• infrastructure needs
• debt obligations
• projected population growth
• long-term capital projects

The final report was completed in October 2025.

The consultants concluded that the current rate structure would not generate enough revenue to sustain the system long-term.

Their recommendation was to implement a unified rate structure across parish-owned systems, which had previously operated under different pricing structures.

Step Three: The Numbers

When the proposed rates were compared to existing bills, the increases were significant.

Examples from the ordinance comparison showed potential monthly changes such as:

Seeing the numbers side-by-side made the potential impact much easier for residents to understand.

And once people understood the math, the conversation exploded.

Step Four: The Public Reaction

After reviewing the ordinance and the rate comparisons, I shared a breakdown explaining the proposed increases.

Within days, the information began circulating across community groups and social media.

Residents started asking questions.

Lots of them.

What had started as a quiet technical ordinance quickly became one of the most discussed local issues in the parish.

Soon after the public debate gained traction, parish officials pushed the implementation timeline back.

The new rate structure is now scheduled to take effect October 1, 2026.

The Part That Deserves a Closer Look

When residents started digging deeper into the rate study documents, a few details caught attention.

For example, the utility system reported maintaining approximately $9.7 million in reserve funds, roughly three months of operating expenses.

That doesn’t necessarily mean the system didn’t need upgrades.

But it did raise a reasonable public question:

If the system maintains reserves, why were the proposed increases so steep so quickly?

Another detail that stood out was the capital improvement plan.

Several future projects were listed simply as:

“Placeholder Project (Debt)”
“Placeholder Project (Cash)”

Together those placeholders represent millions of dollars in projected future spending. However, the report did not identify the specific projects.

Placeholder planning isn’t unusual in long-term infrastructure modeling.

But when residents read financial projections containing multi-million-dollar placeholders, it’s understandable that questions start to follow.

The Automatic Increase Clause

Another provision in the ordinance allows rates to increase annually. This uses the Municipal Cost Index (MCI). It is a national measure of municipal inflation.

Under the ordinance language, water and sewer rates could increase up to 4% annually without additional council approval.

In other words, the ordinance wasn’t just about one rate adjustment.

It also created a framework that allows rates to adjust automatically over time.

The Infrastructure Reality

Water infrastructure isn’t cheap.

According to parish utility documents, the Department of Utilities currently operates:

• 16 water systems
• 55 wastewater treatment plants
• more than 300 lift stations
• 32 water wells
• over one million feet of water and sewer lines

Maintaining and upgrading systems on that scale requires significant investment.

In most communities, those costs are funded through a combination of:

• government grants
• debt financing
• utility rates

The Growth Question

The financial model used in the rate study assumes approximately 2.5% annual residential growth in the coming decade.

That assumption helps determine how much revenue the utility system will generate over time.

But it also highlights a common challenge in fast-growing communities.

Infrastructure often has to be built before development arrives, not after.

That means pipes, treatment plants, and lift stations are frequently expanded years before new homes or commercial projects appear.

For residents watching their monthly bills, that timing can feel frustrating.

Because sometimes the cost of building the system arrives before the growth that system is designed to support.

So What Did We Actually Learn?

Firstly, parish agendas are more interesting than most people realize.

Ordinance 8002 wasn’t hidden; it was sitting right there in the council agenda like dozens of other technical ordinances. But like many infrastructure policies, the real impact only becomes obvious once someone starts connecting the dots.

Secondly, water infrastructure is expensive.

Pipes, treatment plants, lift stations, and water towers don’t maintain themselves. When systems age, the bill eventually comes due.

Third, timing matters.

Infrastructure upgrades are often built before growth arrives. This means residents sometimes see the cost long before they see the results.

And finally, public attention matters.

Residents started reading the ordinance and asking questions. The conversation changed. The implementation timeline shifted. More information circulated. A technical utility ordinance became a parish-wide discussion.

Which is exactly how local government is supposed to work.

People pay attention.

Officials respond.

And the conversation continues.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going back to reading parish agendas.

Because apparently that’s where the real drama lives.

But what do I know…

I’m just a girl.