Louisiana Administrative Code › Title 56 - PUBLIC WORKS › Part III - Flood Control and Water Management › Subpart 2 - Port Construction and Development Priority Program › Chapter 21 - Louisiana Port Construction and Development Priority Program › Section III-2103 - Creation of Priority Program [Formerly section 2101]

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 6, June 20, 2024
A. Creation of
				  Priority Program
1. The Louisiana Port
				  Construction and Development Priority Program was created by Act 452 of the
				  1989 Regular Session. Before this program, the state funded ports projects
				  through the Capital Outlay Program without requiring any feasibility studies.
				  From 1977 to 1984 Louisiana expended more funds for ports than any other state
				  in the union. For this period Louisiana spent $25,985,000 on shallow draft
				  ports and $173,424,000 on deep draft ports for a total of
				  $199,409,000.1
2. The creation of the Port Construction and
				  Development Priority Program changed the method by which Louisiana participated
				  in port improvements. The feasibility of proposed port projects must now be
				  determined and the projects must be prioritized. The source of state funds for
				  the Louisiana Port Construction and Development Priority Program is the
				  Transportation Trust Fund. Revenue accrues to the Transportation Trust Fund
				  through the collection of taxes placed on the sale of gasoline.
3. In general, the purpose of a priority
				  program is to disburse funds to projects that have the highest prospects of
				  success as determined by objective standards such as technical and financial
				  feasibility and overall impacts. A priority program also defines the standards
				  by which these projects are evaluated and provides the mechanisms to conduct
				  the evaluation according to an accepted methodology. Moreover, a priority
				  program's application process may serve as a means to determine whether
				  proposed projects are even eligible for funding under the program as well as
				  provide the basis for maintaining a current inventory of facilities that can be
				  used for future purposes.
4. The
				  components of a typical priority program includes legislative authorization, a
				  set of rules and regulations governing the program's implementation, an
				  application process, an evaluation procedure, a prioritization of projects,
				  funding, and finally implementation.
5. With regard to Louisiana's port priority
				  program, many of the overall requirements and procedures are similar to other
				  priority programs. However, Louisiana's program specifically emphasizes the
				  need of equitable rationalization of state expenditures in order to avoid
				  duplication of port infrastructure. In addition, because ports are dynamic
				  economic entities, Louisiana's port priority program provides for rigorous
				  analysis of forecasted project benefits in order to ensure the overall impact
				  of the project on the state will be positive, providing maximum benefits for
				  the state. Finally, because effective project implementation is as important to
				  the success of the program as project prioritization, the Louisiana port
				  priority program stipulates strict procedures for the planning and construction
				  of funded projects as well as the operation of maintenance of the completed
				  project.