Ben Myers

A fight between Mayor LaToya Cantrell's administration and the state agency that handles municipal workers' pension funds is headed to court, as New Orleans officials try to avoid a massive $38.5 million fine sparked by the shrinking size of the New Orleans Police Department.

The arrival of five new City Council members two and a half years ago altered the relationship between the executive and legislative branches of New Orleans city government, with a newly emboldened council checking the mayor's power at nearly every turn.

Customers will receive letters next month instructing them on how to enroll in fixed billing, which is to begin in October, S&WB officials said at a public meeting on Thursday. Those letters presumably will also notify customers what their fixed bill amounts will be, but it isn’t exactly clear how they’ll be calculated – or if they will comply with a new state law.

The City Planning Commission, which studies the exception requests and makes recommendations, isn't faring as well with making its case to the council: it has recommended approving just 30% of them.

The recent testing round started on Aug. 20 and will continue for several weeks, according to the state Department of Transportation and Development. Tests conducted earlier this year revealed a design deficiency that will cost an additional $2 million to fix — not the first price increase for a project that is now $23 million, or about 40% above original estimates.

Cantrell, who is more than halfway through her second term, said it will likely be her last annual budget meeting, since the 2026 budget will be created for a new mayor. Even as she eyes the end of her time in City Hall at the end of next year, Cantrell said her administration will “leave it better than we found it for the next leadership of the City of New Orleans.”

The Revenue Estimating Conference, the panel that sets official predictions used in city budgeting, on Tuesday said recurring revenue in 2024 would be $762.4 million, a 2% decline from last year.

2 min to read New Orleans is poised to end controversial "special exceptions" to its restrictions on short-term rentals in residential neighborhoods, at least for the foreseeable future.

2 min to read The New Orleans City Council on Thursday passed new regulations over water billing, aligning local rules with state laws meant to fix Sewerage and Water Board's notoriously inaccurate billing system.

A total of $104 million in recurring revenue has been raised thus far, with nearly all of that going to infrastructure, according to a report this week from the Bureau of Governmental Research. A small portion — less than 10% of the overall proceeds — has been used for tourism promotion.