2027 Proposed Budget Hearings – Day 4 (October 7, 2026)

The New Orleans City Council continued the 2027 proposed budget hearings on Wednesday, October 7, 2026, with presentations from the Mayor's Office Core, the Law Department, the New Orleans Aviation Board, and the Municipal and Traffic Court. The agenda scheduled an 8:30 a.m. start; the transcript opens at about 9:30 a.m. No consent calendar was considered.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Bob Maynard, representing the Stewart family, said Lance Stewart was struck by a speeding city vehicle in a school zone at age 7, suffered permanent brain damage, and after eight years of litigation the city settled in 2006 for $4 million — $3.6 million for Lance and $400,000 for his mother's loss of consortium — about half of projected future medical costs. Maynard said the family had to waive eight years of interest and that the city promised payment within 30 days with interest thereafter.

Mayor's Office – Core

• Deputy Mayors Kevin Ferguson and Renee Lapeyrolerie presented a lean Mayor's Office Core budget with a year-over-year total savings of $11,226. They said staffing is down by more than 20 positions from the previous administration, IGR has 3 staff compared with 8 previously, and neighborhood engagement has 3 staff plus 2 additional community engagement positions. The office also includes Communications, the Office of Population and Demographics, and an ADA coordinator. They described centralized spending controls, with every expense reviewed.
• Councilmember Harris questioned a discrepancy between the presentation's $4,091,657 total for the 2026 budget and the $4.2 million shown in the budget book. Staff responded that the budget book includes other department codes not presented that day, including contingency, international affairs, and human rights/equity areas, and said they would provide the department codes.
• A $224,000 personnel variance was attributed to the addition of the Office of Population and Demographics and personnel coding moves. Councilmember Willard noted the 2027 budget shows 27.5 FTEs, down 43 from the prior year; staff said most reductions occurred at the start of the mayoral transition and would provide an updated org chart.
• Councilmembers Harris, McCarron, and Green expressed strong support for adding neighborhood engagement staff. Councilmember McCarron said residents frequently ask for a return of dedicated neighborhood engagement liaisons, and Councilmember Green reported that more than 200 people attended a Saturday city seminar and that neighborhood engagement is vital for residents to see their tax dollars at work. Green said three staff is not enough and pledged to work to increase the office's staffing.

Law Department

• City Attorney Charline Gipson presented the Law Department budget. The department has about 56 members; two are on leave of absence running for office, and one resignation is anticipated. She said the apparent personnel increase of roughly $1 million, from about $6.2 million in 2026 to about $7.2 million in 2027, does not add headcount; it covers longevity increases, health-care costs, and modest salary adjustments. Other operating increases include $763,000 for known commitments and $125,000 for housing/code enforcement lien recording. A $2 million non-general-fund judgment fund remains flat.
• Gipson said the department has reduced new outside counsel engagements, handling almost all legal work in-house except one Florida jurisdictional matter and one offensive litigation. Priorities include building the in-house bench, right-sizing salaries, continuing professional-culture work, and working through the judgment fund. She cited market data showing experienced city attorneys are the furthest below market: about $87,500 for 0–2 years, $110,000–$111,000 for 2–5 years, $120,000–$121,000 for 5–10 years, about $145,000 for 10–20 years, and about $170,000 for deputies/managers. She noted the city now covers Louisiana bar dues. Gipson said the department needs case/document management software, though it is not currently in the 2027 other operating budget.
• Councilmember Morrell praised the office's independence under the post-charter-amendment structure, cited a recent victory in the Wisner litigation, and asked about CivicSource litigation. Gipson confirmed the city has both been sued by and is suing CivicSource, and that litigation is ongoing. Morrell encouraged calculating the return on investment from in-house counsel and warned that AI use can destroy privilege and data protections; Gipson said contract data-ownership and AI guidance are being addressed.
• Councilmember Green asked about public records. Chief in-house attorney Missy Quigley said New Orleans had 23,270 public-records requests in 2024, compared with 1,664 in Jefferson Parish, while state law caps charges at $25 and 50 cents per page. Gipson said technology and posting more documents online will be needed to ease the burden.
• On blighted property, Gipson and her deputies explained that constitutional due process, property rights, and state law prevent the city from simply seizing property or forcing a sale. They noted the city has over $100 million in outstanding fines that generally can only be collected through liens or tax sales, and that the lien-foreclosure unit has only three attorneys. They also discussed post-Katrina succession problems and demolition procedures. Councilmember Green asked them to identify state-law changes that could speed action while respecting property rights.

New Orleans Aviation Board

• Aviation Director Kevin Dolliole and staff presented. The airport was named best airport in its category by Airports Council International for the fifth straight year and was inducted into the World Director General's Roll of Excellence. Enplanements are down 13% from 2019 but concession sales are up 32%. Spirit Airlines, which is about 2% of national traffic, was 11–12% of local traffic; Frontier and Breeze are the fastest-growing carriers, and Avelo will return December 17 with service to McKinney, Texas.
• Projects include the East Apron expansion, the north phase of the Express Shuttle Connector Road (100% by mid-November to early December), a TSA baggage-screening expansion adding 25% capacity by Thanksgiving, a 7,100-foot runway keel replacement, overflow parking completion in Q2 2027, and demolition of old concourses A/B and the eastern end of the old terminal. The airport reported 58.29% SLDBE participation against a 35% goal. The 2027 budget increases about 3.7%, with cost per enplanement kept below $10; the 2025 figure was $10.91 because of lower enplanement volume.
• Councilmember Morrell raised concerns that airport subcommittees have not met in years, hurting transparency and DBE access to contracting processes. He asked for a list of contracts older than six years and their rebid schedules. The director said most contracts run about five years and that concessions contracts are longer because of vendor investment, and said he would provide the list.
• Morrell also said Southwest Airlines leadership told him they were not consulted before the old-terminal demolition announcement and had other communication concerns. The airport director disputed that, saying there is ongoing communication, the airlines approved the project through the Majority in Interest process, and airport leadership has direct contact with Southwest; he said he would follow up. Councilmember Green requested a memo to the council on the Southwest concerns, noted the airport and transportation committee will meet in November, and noted that about 80% of Louisianians who travel use the airport.
• Councilmember Green also praised the airport's SLDBE performance and regional cooperation, and asked about airport pumps. Staff explained the airport's four pumps serve only airport drainage and represent about 2% of Jefferson Parish pumping capacity; after a lightning-strike automation failure three years ago, the airport can now operate the pumps manually.

Municipal and Traffic Court

• Municipal and Traffic Court judges presented after losing two judicial positions through legislation. Filings have been running roughly 8,000–10,000 cases per year since COVID, and state misdemeanor cases are being transferred from criminal district court to municipal court, adding workload. The court has transferred $5 million from its judicial expense fund to the city to help the budget.
• The court requested funding to fill positions that have been vacant for three years, including a clerk's office IT position awaiting a Louisiana Supreme Court opinion. Community court, which serves homeless, mentally ill, and addicted residents, relies on two grant-funded social workers and judicial expense money; the grant may not continue. The court said it would need about $300,000 from the city if the grant ends, or the program may have to be discontinued.
• A nearly complete OCR system is in beta testing and is expected to roll out early in 2027. Judge Landry announced he will retire December 31 due to the age limit; judges noted the court is losing about 50 years of combined experience. The court also said it can adjudicate housing and health code violations within about 60 days, though it cannot seize property, and council members expressed interest in partnering on blighted property enforcement.

Key Outcomes

• No budget was approved at this hearing; it was a budget review session. The council requested follow-up information: Mayor's Office department codes and an updated org chart; a list of airport contracts older than six years and their rebid schedules; a memo addressing Southwest Airlines communication concerns; and notice if the community court grant is not continued.
• Councilmembers expressed support for more neighborhood engagement staffing, additional law department salary competitiveness, airport contract transparency, and continued community court funding.
• The meeting adjourned by voice vote after a motion seconded by Councilmember Green.