Crawfisherman Ben Bienvenu thanks the St. Martin Parish Council for passing a resolution to request the state investigate the usurping of mineral rights on government water bottoms in the Atchafalaya Basin.
Crawfisherman Ben Bienvenu thanks the St. Martin Parish Council for passing a resolution to request the state investigate the usurping of mineral rights on government water bottoms in the Atchafalaya Basin.
ST. MARTINVILLE — The St. Martin Parish Council passed a resolution Tuesday evening asking the state to investigate the claiming of mineral rights under state lands by parties with no real ownership rights to the land, specifically under the Atchafalaya Basin.
“This is something that will help (Louisiana Attorney General) Jeff Landry and Gov. (John Bel) Edwards in going forward, looking into this matter,” St. Martin Parish President Guy Cormier said in presenting the resolution to the council. “At a time where the state is seeing some major budget shortfalls, this could be a big help.”
The resolution stemmed from concerns of St. Martin Parish crawfisherman Ben Bienvenu, who has said that millions of dollars in mineral revenue has been stolen from the state by modern-day squatters who have usurped the mineral rights to water bottom lands across the Atchafalaya Basin, claiming them and exploiting the mineral wealth there without havingany right to the property.
“I want to thank you for passing this,” Bienvenu said after the council voted unanimously in favor of the resolution.
“You are talking about decades of minerals that have been taken,” Bienvenu said. “People are claiming properties they have no rights to.”
St. Martin Parish President Guy Cormier said he has met with Landry to have his office investigate whether the state and the parish can legally lay claim to the decades of oil and gas revenues that have been generated from property under the surface of the parish’s waterways. Cormier pointed out that royalties to the parish are subject to a cap, currently set at $1.85 million per year. But a change in the amount the state receives from royalties in St. Martin Parish could push that limit higher.
District 5 Councilman Chris Tauzin also led a discussion of using non-violent offenders, specifically parents who owe back child support, to do community service around the parish as part of their jail sentences or other penalties.
“If we could get these people before a judge, they could make a decision: they could go to jail or they could go to work for the parish,” Tauzin said. “I know that Child Services is looking at it. We could use the 16th Judicial District to do a one-year trial. Basically would have the same thing you have with the trusty program, but don’t need to have a guard with them.”
Council Chairman Jason WIllis asked if the parish would have any liability for accidents or other problems that might arise.
“On the DUI side, there already is an immunity granted,” said Parish Legal Counsel Andy Shealy, referring to a community service program currently in place for people with driving under the influence charges, whether as part of a sentence or a pre-trial diversion program.
The council also passed a resolution supporting efforts to limit bathrooms, lockers and other gender-segregated facilities to people based only on their birth gender, not any other criteria.
“I’m sure many of you know this transgender movement that is out there,” said Tauzin. “I don’t have a problem with people’s sexual orientation. This isn’t a gay thing. What I have a problem with is my wife, my daughter, they need to have privacy.
“This resolution just shows our support on it,” Tauzin said. “It shows we are unified.”
In other business, the council:
• Abandoned a portion of Judge Dupre Road Extension.
• Added the classification of Public Health Nurse/Supervisor.
