Conflicts arise early in term
NEW IBERIA — Newly elected Iberia Parish President Errol “Romo” Romero ran for office on a campaign message of unifying the parish, but so far the strongest show of unity has been among Iberia Parish Council members questioning his first steps in office.
The council last week voted 13-1 to overturn Romero’s veto of a council resolution limiting the salaries of new hires, and the council earlier this month voted 11-3 to ask the state Attorney General and the state Board of Ethics to issue opinions related to, among other things, Romero’s power to fire rank-and-file parish employees.
One of the central issues so far has been the status of parish government employees under Romero, a seasoned politician who got his start on the old parish police jury before serving four terms as Iberia Parish Sheriff and three terms in the state House.
He left the Legislature in 2008 because of term limits.
Romero won his current office with 56 percent of the vote, easily pushing out incumbent Ernest Freyou, a retired bank executive who was serving his first term.
Even before he was formally sworn in, Romero said he sent letters to four department heads and five other employees advising them that their services would no longer be needed.
“They asked me to let them know ahead of time so they could look for a job,” said Romero, who noted that new political leaders often bring with them new staff.
“You try and surround yourself with people who have two qualities: loyalty and capability,” he said.
There is no dispute that Romero has the power to appoint new department heads, subject to the approval of the council.
Romero has kept one department head from outgoing President Freyou’s administration, and the council has so far approved three of Romero’s four appointments for other departments.
The main rub has been over the rank-and-file employees.
Romero said in an interview last week that he has no plans for mass layoffs, but every position in parish government is under evaluation.
He argued that the parish president has wide latitude in decisions to hire and fire employees and to set salaries within a certain range.
One of the opinions that the council has sought from the state Attorney General concerns the extent of Romero’s discretion over personnel matters.
The Iberia Parish Home Rule Charter, the constitution of sorts for the parish, gives the parish president the power to remove employees under his supervision for “just cause.”
Council Chairman Bernard Broussard said a critical question is what, if any, reasons must be given before a parish government employee is fired.
As for now, the status of rank-and-file employees is unsettled, and Romero said he has decided to hold off on any terminations.
A second issue is the pay rate of Romero’s new hires.
Romero vetoed a council resolution that limited the pay of new hires to the minimum salary established for each position in a management study commissioned by parish government.
Under the resolution, Romero would need to secure council approval to pay a new employee above the minimum salary.
Romero’s veto, which the council overturned, marked an early clash with the administration that Broussard said he has rarely seen in his six terms of office.
“In 21 years, I can only remember two vetoes, maybe three, never in the first few weeks of the term,” he said.
Romero said the issue of pay is critical if his administration is going to attract quality employees.
“We need to compete with private industry,” Romero said. “… The whole pay scale for all of the employees I find low.”
Broussard said that regardless of the arguments one way or the other, the parish council holds the purse strings and makes the ultimate decision whether a position will be funded and at what level.
“We have budgetary control, as per the charter,” Broussard said.
He said the council could authorize salaries higher than the minimum, but the decision should be made based on an employee’s experience, seniority or other relevant factors.
Other legal opinions requested by the council over Romero’s actions are more unusual.
The council has asked the state Board of Ethics whether it would be a violation of state nepotism laws for Romero to seek free legal advice from his son, Shane Romero, a lawyer.
If the father had paid the son with public money for legal services, a violation would be clear, but Broussard said at a council meeting earlier this month that even free advice could be an issue.
Romero countered that any discussions he had with his son were of a general nature and he sees no problem because his son received no compensation.
“This is a public building. My son is not getting paid by the taxpayers. I didn’t ask him any questions. What is all this about?” Romero said.
The council has also sought a legal opinion on what access non-parish employees should have to restricted areas in the parish’s administrative offices.
Broussard said there have been rumors of people who are not parish employees being allowed in restricted areas and making requests for information from parish employees.
Romero said no one has been given any special access.
Bernard said that the hope in seeking the formal legal opinions is to clear up early questions so the council and Romero can move on.
“One way or the other, we will have where the line is if the public ask,” he said.
Romero said he expects the “dust to settle” in the coming months and can envision more cordial meetings with the council to discuss priorities.
The poor condition of parish roads is major issue, Romero said, and he plans to have town hall meetings to hear from residents about the needs of the parish.
“There has been somewhat of a turmoil,” Broussard said.
“We will work through it. It is what it is.”