New Orleans S&WB Task Force proposes two-year legislative oversight [Video]

The governor-appointed New Orleans Sewerage and Waterboard Task Force has released its final report regarding suggestions on how to improve the utility and address decades-long issues. The report was released Wednesday and makes several bold suggestions on how to tackle issues like flooding, billing, catch basins, and aging infrastructure. The board suggests that a Recovery District be formed to oversee the utility for a two-year period. The suggested eleven-member board would be created by the legislature and replace the Sewerage and Waterboard Board of Directors. This board would be made up of “people appointed on the basis of expertise rather than constituency.”According to the report, the overall goal of the Recovery District would be to transition out of the 11-member board and into one of the following long-term solutions: New Orleans Sewerage, Water, and Drainage Board that is a public utility regulated by the City Council. The Mayor would get …