Politics – Page 4 – NOLAmotion Blog

A Letter to the Governor & Staff

Dear Gov. Jindal and Staff:

I write you today about music, an issue connected to both economic development and natural resources. Since 2005, the Louisiana Music Commission has been a broken agency. It was sabotaged by an alteration of its legislation in which it was turned from an independent, dedicated commission to a division of LED with direct oversight/management responsibility shifted from the LMC’s Chairman to the Secretary of LED. The result is that the LMC is now subject to the expectations and directives of people whose lives were and are not immersed in the realities of music.

Since 2005 the LMC has been dismantled, de-staffed, unfunded and purged of 14 years of records. Its websites, established in 1997 and recognized as top sites for information, news and links to Louisiana’s complex and rich musical resources, were eliminated and the URLs lost. There continues to be no office, website or publicly accessible vehicle for our music professionals to access in support of their always difficult calling.

The LMC under Chairman Ellis Marsalis was a leader in transparency via its website. It published every report, press release and plan, complete with links, as soon as such docs were produced. It had an office, a staff and a budget. It had the autonomy it needed to research, define and implement programs and projects. It had the ability to react quickly to needs and situations. It was responsive, effective and accomplished many goals.

The LMC handled literally thousands of calls and emails annually. It developed educational initiatives, radio and television programs, economic development projects, advertising and promotional campaigns, and served as an advocate and voice for the state’s often misunderstood musicians and music professionals.

Today, the LMC budget is part of LED. It must compete with industries that are far more organized and structured. It is dying.

Music is too important to be lumped-in with any other industry, including film; because, in Louisiana, music is complex and unlike any other resource. It is a naturally occurring but fragile component of life. It is a family with four generations of God-given grace and talent. It is a 10 year old with an accordion, trumpet or trombone. It is a crusty street musician in the French Quarter. It is a tenor in the nation’s longest-running opera company. And it is depended upon by every one of us as part of the fabric of our lives, part of what makes us laugh, cry, dance and BE Louisiana.

Today, Louisiana’s eyes are glazed-over by the glitter of Hollywood while its crown jewel, music, is buried in a bureaucracy that cannot and should not be responsible for the future of this complex, beautiful and fragile asset.

The LMC needs to be returned to its status as a proper commission, with autonomy, an office, a budget, a staff, a website and a mission to serve. It needs to be returned to its leadership under Chairman Ellis Marsalis who has generously volunteered to once again, rebuild this badly needed entity.

I ask that you take the bold step of appointing Ellis Marsalis as Chairman of the LMC, that you reinstate the original legislation (LS R.S. 25: 315-317) that gave operational control to the board and that you fund the office, staff and mission of this currently ineffective and misdirected agency.

Thank you for your efforts to restore Louisiana. And it is with a sense of optimism that I submit this letter. I remain dedicated to our great state and look forward to doing my part to help you move us forward into a better future for all.

Respectfully yours,
Steve Picou
New Orleans LA
http://nolamotion.com

Tax Credits Gone Wild!

Kudos to the Times-Picayune for pulling back the curtain (be sure to read the comments) more on the Mark Smith scandal, showing how film tax credits were abused to include 3 of New Orleans’ most popular music events: Jazz Fest, Voodoo Music Experience and Essence. It was revealed that more than $10 million in tax credits are due to be paid to behind-the-scenes entities, notably through lawyer Will French whose connections to Smith, LIFT and the whole credit system run deeper than anyone else in the state. Commercial interests took advantage of this (obvious-to-anyone-with-morals) fraudulent twist in the application of the credits. But it was Smith’s penchant for padding that allowed the credits to be based on the entire budget of the events rather than the actual cost of filming. Thus the dollars are beyond any amounts ever thrown at in-state music events.

Again, not only Mark Smith, but former Louisiana Economic Development secretaries Don Hutchinson and Mike Olivier contributed to this huge stretch in logic and reasoning in signing off on what to most people are outrageous claims. In fact, what this represents is the biggest expenditure for music in the history of Louisiana. The state could’ve released more than 1000 CDs by Louisiana artists for less money, not that the CD market is so hot right now. No doubt there are festival organizers around the state fuming, and rightly so, about how New Orleans seems to get too much. Too bad Hutchinson and Olivier (and Ernest Collins and a few others) aren’t joining Smith at this month’s sentencing.

This scam would not have happened under Ellis Marsalis’ watch. When we ran the Louisiana Music Commission, we couldn’t spend more than $1000 without Chairman Marsalis’ oversight. Maybe that’s another reason why they got rid of us. Not that Mark Smith ever dealt with us truthfully or would’ve included us in this kind of decision-making. He couldn’t afford the scrutiny of anyone with common sense. And had Bernie Cyrus been hired as the Entertainment Cluster Developer back when the state first established the position, these scandals with film and music would not have happened.

This situation gets to the root of how large-scale tax credit systems are manipulated by those “in the know” about government programs. Like the GO Zone credits (a story you can expect to be equally tawdry since these disaster-inspired credits are funding stadium suites in Alabama and myriad projects that fail to address true rebuilding needs), the abuse of the film tax credits goes beyond the mechanics of movie production and deep into the intense world of film (and apparently event) financing. As of now, Mark Smith is a lynch pin but hardly the only perpetrator of fraud. Surely others will soon be doing the perp walk on the evening news. We can only hope.

Unless the FBI or Louisiana Attorney General decides to probe whether fraud took place regarding the music festivals, bending these state regulations apparently has no punitive consequences. And obviously, this isn’t the only state rule so poorly written and implemented. So don’t expect to see the State of Louisiana police its own and exact any punitive measures.

All we can ask is that law enforcement dig deeper into this situation. And hope that the new Jindal administration will do better.

Public Notice? That Doesn’t Mean YOU Should Know

It’s kind of weird being the only “reporter” to cover the attempted regeneration of the formerly amputated government appendage that was/is the Louisiana Music Commission. Since they’re working on a new vision for the agency, commission members, staff and contracted help (Jerry Goolsby of Loyola) recently held a retreat at Dockside Studio in Milton, south of Lafayette, a wonderful place run by my friends Steve & Wishy Nails. Of course, despite my obvious desire to contribute, I wasn’t invited–and neither were you, because the LMC continues to do minimal Public Notice.

It’s not entirely their fault. The law that was so misleadingly called the “Sunshine Law” was passed many years ago to ensure that public bodies make their meetings known so participatory democracy will live up to our expectations. Of course, because politicians crafted the legislation (see it here) they set the “standards” rather low for “open meetings.” To follow the law, a notice must be placed on the door of the “publicly accessible” meeting room 24 hours in advance. So, unless you happen to be in or around the building at which a meeting is to take place, I guess it’s just too bad.

Of course, if you were able to be in the know and actually attend LMC meetings, they’d then be duly bound to give the you the opportunity to speak, for the law says that boards “shall provide an opportunity for public comment at such meeting, subject to reasonable rules, regulations, and restrictions as adopted by the public body.” Evidently the folks in charge only want select input, for few have been invited. And other than commissioners and economic development employees, basically nobody knows about the meetings.

That’s not how Ellis Marsalis, Bernie Cyrus and I did it. We posted notice on the home page of the LMC website, notified the press and even bought classified ads. In fact, not only did we do it prominently; but, we had a special section of the website’s Welcome page dedicated to meeting notices. Additionally, we showcased Louisiana music businesses, debuted products and projects and in general encouraged attendance by the public and by music activists. Of course, the current LMC could do this, but first they’d need a website, and a desire to have the public participate. Oh, and maybe a budget would help–not that we had a budget for the site. We (mostly me) did it in-house.

According to the little bit of information leaking out of the LMC retreat, a website is planned. Hope they launch it before the next governor is sworn-in.

So, it’s only been 2+ years since the loss of louisianamusic.org and buylouisianamusic.com, the domains the current administration let expire after 8 years. However, though the Blanco folks tossed the site into the digital abyss, its archives and links can still be found. Thanks to the foresight of a the Internet Archive, lost sites like louisianamusic.org live on.

The Internet Archive Wayback Machine at archive.org, (a library of digital archives and websites that is growing by 20 terabytes a month), has a search feature that brings the original LMC site back to life. So, if you want to see what kind of website we had (please forgive the dullness, I have no graphic design skills), just type louisianamusic.org into the Wayback Machine and you’ll see archived versions of the site in its entirety. Though these pages do not show up in common search engines like Google or Yahoo!, once you click on a date, you can navigate the whole site and see how much history, how many links and how much work was thrown away.

After posting literally millions of words about so many seemingly important subjects, it’s nice to know somewhere deep in the bowels of the Internet, louisianamusic.org can still be found. Perhaps someday, someone will want to tell the story of the Amusement Tax, once the most dreaded and hated impediment to music in the state, or maybe someone will research the history of the LMC. If so, then thanks to archive.org, lost words will be resurrected, lost thoughts reconnected and lost issues re-examined.

Then again….

How Can It Be Corrupt If It’s Done By Moi?!

Monday’s T-P story and Wednesday’s editorial about Mayor Nagin’s arts & entertainment director Ernest Collins’ inability to discern between what is ethical and what is not is a classic tale of hubris & snobbery.

Power is the ultimate test of one’s character. Sure, tragedy and disaster can be final exams; but, the bigger test is when one acquires power. Then, how well does one continue to maintain integrity?

Ernest Collins, Greg Meffert and others in the Nagin administration failed this test. And they don’t see what they’ve done wrong. Meffert chose to exhibit paranoia in assuming that people were out to get him because he was successful and because he changed things in City Hall. After all, he stepped on “their” toes–those evil, corrupt people he was called (by God some of them think) to vanquish. To his credit, he changed many things for the better. However, as his power and ability to choose contractors grew, so did the temptation to “play the game” as he once put it. He did what every corrupt politicians does–hired his friends and shared the wealth–and failed miserably at maintaining his integrity.

Collins, however, chooses spin. Ernest Collins is the consummate smooth operator and spin-meister. He always has been. But first, a little history.

I was one of the four producer/creators of LTV (Louisiana Music Television), the original music show that pre-dated Louisiana Jukebox. Bernie Cyrus, Ken (“Burt Gold”) Winters and I originally proposed the show to Ernest Collins at Cox Productions in the early 90s. He liked the idea; and, with Bernie as Executive Producer, Ken as Producer/Director and me running audio, booking bands and chefs and writing news, the show launched. Aired live on Thursday nights, the show was a raucous affair with 3 musical acts, guests, call-ins, skits, the Hostess Babes, chefs and whatever else Bernie (mostly) and the rest of us could conceive, all in the small Cox studio on Cleveland Avenue. Nobody was paid except the Cox crew who were making minimum wage.

Bernie trusted Ernest Collins. He didn’t get Collins to sign a contract specifying the chain of command despite my urging him to do so. Eventually, Ernest and his staff tired of Bernie’s impromptu approach to television. One day, Collins called us in to his office and said, “Bernie, LTV is now a Cox production. You are no longer Executive Producer.” It was the beginning of the end.

We toiled on. However, the fun was gone. As the Cox staffers became ever more emboldened, they took over more and more of the responsibilities of the show. Collins’ staffers weren’t from New Orleans and it was clear they thought Bernie was a buffoon. They even tried to “teach” him how to conduct interviews. Bernie, by this point in his life, had conducted literally thousands of hours of radio and television interviews. Bernie was (rightfully) offended, and we all became outraged at the increasing level of snobbery we encountered. We called it quits after a celebratory and star-studded 100th episode.

LTV enjoyed an unprecedented run. We showcased nearly 300 musical artists, including many legends for whom the show was their last time in the public eye. We brought great artists out of the darkness and put them into people’s living rooms. The show also aired on worldwide shortwave radio and was carried in several cities around the state and country. It was nominated for, and eventually won, a Cable Ace award.

In the end, Bernie ended up filing a lawsuit and Cox settled by admitting that Bernie owned the name and by giving the shows over to the Tulane Library. Collins and his staff then created Louisiana Jukebox, which also enjoyed a long run. He obviously took a lesson from Bernie and registered the name.

Through it all, we learned that Ernest Collins was a clever, manipulative company loyalist who was the perfect “yes man” for his boss at Cox, Ray Nagin. Collins took chances only rarely and accepted what was given to him. That he is now in trouble for having a business on the side that has received money from city government entities he helps run, reflects his biggest flaw: he assumes he such a good guy that he can’t be doing anything wrong.

In the T-P article, Collins explains that he believed he was acting ethically when he did business deals with city money, state tax breaks and other sources while being employed full time in a department overseeing and working with these same entities. And he opines that it wasn’t that much money. He says he did nothing wrong. Amazing.

Ethics laws and ethical principles are clear on the matter. He’s wrong. And he might’ve broken the law. No matter how good he is at production, no matter how good he is at administration, Ernest Collins sucks at ethics. Power tested him and he failed.

Ernest Collins seems to believe, like others in the Nagin administration, that because he was doing this, that it isn’t corrupt. After all, they are the good guys, right? Just because he worked hand in hand with Mark Smith, LIFT and whatever other corrupt manipulators he knows, doesn’t mean he’s corrupt, does it?

Sure.

And why am I blogging about this? Because Ernest Collins was a player in the cabal of cretins who contributed to the dismantling of the Louisiana Music Commission. Because he’s part of the group of people who poisoned Bernie Cyrus’ and my relationship with people in politics who should have known better.

This story is far from over.

Telling the Good Guys from the Bad Guys

So now the truth is out: Mark Smith, former director of the film office for Louisiana, is a crook. (See the FBI Bill of Information here) And, when he walked into the offices of the Louisiana Music Commission (LMC) on May 18, 2005 to fire me, he was actively stealing money from the citizens of Louisiana. Smith was on a roll then, working with Scott Aiges and others to take over the LMC. He was in the middle of successfully passing legislation creating music tax credits (and letting Aiges get the glory) mirrored after the film credits he was actively scamming.

So, would he have pulled the same scam with music that he was doing with film? And what cast of characters might he have tapped to do his skim? We’ll probably never know. One, because to date not one single entity has taken advantage of the music credits; and, two, his scheme got interrupted when Bernie Cyrus got wind of it and told the secretary of the then-newly appointed head of economic development, Mike Olivier, whose signature was needed to complete the scam. Mark resigned from state service once word began to circulate in the halls of economic development. He moved on to a private sector job in the film business where he could lobby for the tax breaks and perhaps get paid legally.

The overall result for music in this tawdry scheme was the demise and purging of the LMC (See R.I.P. LMC). And, to this day the agency has not recovered enough to accomplish a damned thing.

As Louisiana reels from yet another public official on the take, further sullying our reputation, know this: Mark Smith is not from Louisiana, he’s from the Northeast. But make no mistake, Louisiana will once again be smeared.

I can almost smell the corruption and cynicism when people have all too often said to me (regarding Bernie’s whistleblower suit) “Why did Bernie do that? He’s going to hurt our film industry.” And I know that the folks saying this are more concerned with the bottom line than with honesty and stopping crime.

Let me say this, unequivocally and with all the passion and rage I can muster: CORRUPT POLITICIANS MUST BE STOPPED. I don’t want to live in a state where people turn a blind eye to political corruption. I don’t want to live in a state where people accept inferior government. And I wish my “friends” and colleagues would treat political housecleaning as being as necessary as wiping your ass. It’s ain’t pretty; but, if you don’t do it…well, misery is sure to follow.

So, now, Jan Ramsey, Scott Aiges, Lynn Ourso, Maggie Warwick, Johnny Pallazzotto, and whoever else out there plotted, schemed and stabbed us in the back for years….what have you got to say now?

I bet not much. And that’s too bad, because it represents business as usual and the same old same old.

I didn’t stand for it then. And I won’t stand for it now. We deserve better.

Hollywood & Louisiana: A Love Affair in a Brothel

You know, it really upsets me how Louisiana politicians and press fall all over themselves for Hollywood. I mean, how is it that millions upon millions of dollars can be spent to help subsidize production for movies and people who are admittedly doing a job here, but whose lives, work and imagination are based elsewhere.

I know this may seem petty, but we are one of the world’s greatest creative wellsprings. We always have been. And yet this creativity is not nurtured.

The major media companies are nothing without content. We are a source of content. It’s long been said in these media-dominated times that “content is king.” Well then why the hell aren’t we king of the hill?

Because we’d rather invest in other people’s dreams than our own.

The prevailing wisdom in Baton Rouge and in the eyes of the few media hounds reporting on government is that an expert is someone from out of state with a briefcase and a plan. And we seem to be a sucker for “experts.”

Our economic development orientation is consistently focused on finding the big fish. And those big fish evidently are not from Louisiana. So our leaders spend their time and money courting German steel mills, Asian automakers and Hollywood developers while back at home our citizens are living, breathing and weaving a creative quilt of cultural riches that is the envy of the world.

The controversy today is whether the movie tax credit system has been abused and misused. Whether or not that’s true, the fact is our indigenous talent has long been ignored by the same people who jump to spend tens, if not hundreds of millions supporting out of state entities while Louisiana talent struggles.

I don’t know what you call it, but I call it a lot of things. And since I don’t want this blog to resort to profanity, I’ll leave it at that.

Orientation, Bloviation, Platitudes and Attitudes: How Not to Re-start a Small Government Agency

Warning: this post, like the meeting it covers, is looooonnnggg…..

The Thursday, April 26 meeting of the Louisiana Music Commission was attended by only 4 people who weren’t either commissioners or state employees: me, Eric Cager and his Cutting Edge Music Business Conference cohort Vernon P. Thomas, and Carlo Ditta, founder of the Louisiana Independent Music Manufacturers Association (LIMMA) and Orleans Records.

Because there was no true Public Notice (and still no website), the public didn’t know about the meeting. However, the Hainkel Room, a senate meeting room in the Capitol–an ironic location since the late Sen. John Hainkel was a strong supporter of the past LMC–was filled with folks from Louisiana Economic Development (LED) who were required to attend at the behest of their boss, Asst. Secretary Don Pierson.

With Chairman Maggie Warwick happily ensconced at the dais, and Pierson at the table, the meeting proceeded with 2 hours (!) of orientation for the 10 (of 15) newly appointed commissioners attending. Oh what a well-oiled machine LED must be.

They started with introductions. The LMC members were brief. Then Chairwoman Warwick took over and basically told her life story (later she told the story of Elvis and the Hayride, and not the short version for she likes to tell stories). We all sat enraptured as she regaled us with us how she moved to Shreveport in 1960 (from Texas) and played on the Louisiana Hayride, then in its final year (it ended in August). She moved to Nashville for the next 20 years and returned to Shreveport in 1981 when she married Alton Warwick.

Now you know this is very important to the musical history of Louisiana. How else could it be, since the Warwicks, in 1999, successfully filed for a federal trademark of the phrase Louisiana Hayride. And thus, an artist who had nothing to do with founding, producing or otherwise establishing one of the nation’s most important radio shows, and whose experiences with it constituted less than a year, now owns the name.

Ah, the entertainment business, a bastion of ethics and fairness. Oops, this is the Ethical & Fair LMC, as Ms. Warwick and Lynn Ourso repeatedly emphasized. Surely there’s nothing unusual going on here.

Or is there?

Of course the Warwick’s FAME Foundation, which seeks to spend $300,000,000 developing property around the Municipal Auditorium, some of which the Warwicks and their business partners own (see the latest article on their plans here, and be sure to read the comments at the end of the story), for the benefit of musicians in Shreveport and which is set to receive $500,000 in Capital Outlay funds this coming fiscal year from the State of Louisiana, that’s ethical and fair, isn’t it? I mean, just because you’re Chair of the state agency dedicated to developing music doesn’t mean you can’t get state money for your “nonprofit” foundation to develop the biggest music project in the history of the world, right? That seems about as ethical as things can be in Governor Blanco’s Louisiana.

Don’t you agree?

Sorry, I digress. But so did the meeting, for it extended to 3 hours.

The introductions revealed a some very qualified new commissioners, particularly Loyola’s John Snyder (see his very helpful website here); educator, legendary jazz musician and Mayor of Greenville Dr. Ernest Lampkins; attorney Dino Gankendorff; musician, educator and producer Greg Davis; and music activist and manager Cynthia Simien all bring strong music business experience, both past and present, to the table. (I apologize for not knowing much about some of the other members’ music business backgrounds.)

Sidenote: Johnny Palazzotto is back on the LMC. The longtime owner of a record label, he has very admirably produced the Baton Rouge Blues Festival and its Blues in the Schools program for the past decade. However, he complained that he couldn’t get his CDs listed on iTunes…Duh, JP, I wouldn’t say this in public if you want to be taken seriously as a music biz VIP worthy of being on the LMC. Most Louisiana labels are on iTunes, figure it out Mr. P!

Back to the action: Don Pierson, truly a master of the government committee room meeting, held the commissioners spellbound as he explained what each LED team member in the room could do for the LMC. With new Entertainment director Sherri McConnell reorganizing her charges into a triple threat of Film/TV, Digital and now Music, Pierson revealed an organization poised to help the LMC with its every need: a marketing director to develop a marketing plan and to handle media relations, the Human Resources contact, the Fiscal manager to help them with their compensated travel to and from meetings, the Small Business director, even the Advanced Materials director was there.

(Note: to gain insight into how well LED is handling the film business, see this article in 225BatonRouge.com.)

After hearing from this team of eager experts, one commissioner asked the obvious question: what is the LMC budget? Pierson then dropped the most obvious bomb: zero, for the LMC no longer has a line-item budget. However, he quickly added, the commission is part of the LED family and, though music must compete against all the other components of LED for money, it is part of an accredited economic development organization. I know their faces didn’t reveal the glee they were feeling, but the LMC sure seemed pleased. They didn’t ask another question about why there was no LMC budget.

Pierson happily noted that the LMC’s enabling legislation has a unique clause about raising money from “public or private” sources. And he then made the connection: the LMC can raise money by staging events, or soliciting companies or foundations. Or, as Bernie and I expressed it, they expect the organization to sing for its supper.

You have no idea how many cockeyed plans were made in years past: concerts (to take advantage of musicians by having them play for free), fundraisers, events, etc. to raise money for the LMC. But, the reality is, nobody wants to attend a fundraiser for a state government agency. We already pay taxes. And music brings in tens of millions in taxes. The LMC deserves a budget.

For the record, at least while we were in charge, no matter the cause: you have to PAY THE BAND. Musicians should not be expected to play for free to raise money for a state agency or for most charity events.

Can you imagine a fundraiser for the Department of Insurance? Oh, wait, I had a $600 surcharge on my homeowner’s policy for Louisiana Citizens. I guess that department figured out a better way. Besides, we were told long ago that there was no legal mechanism to receive and disburse any funds raised for the LMC and that such funds would wind up in the General Fund of the State of Louisiana. I bet you can’t wait to donate to the cause.

Since nobody licenses musicians or otherwise regulates the music industry in a way that produces a revenue stream, the LMC always faced a problem in lobbying for a reasonable budget. And, ever since LED budgetarily absorbed the LMC (in 2005), there has been no line-item component of the state budget for the agency. Talk about starting over. There is NO BUDGET for music in the world’s most musical wellspring. Thanks, Ms. Blanco and friends. You’re doing a heck of a job!

So the meeting plodded on. At one point, an attorney from the Ethics Board explained the basics of serving on the LMC and how members could not profit from their service or do business with the agency. The FAME Foundation wasn’t mentioned during this part of the meeting.

After the 2 hour orientation, most of the LED folks left, leaving an even smaller audience for the next exciting component: what should the LMC be doing? A Strategic Plan was recognized as being the next logical step. And the formation of an Advisory Board was discussed. That allowed Ms. Warwick to bring up the name of her favorite music business attorney, Joel Katz. Don Pierson had one more thing to add at this point: LED could pay for a weekend retreat for the LMC to work on the new Strategic Plan.

How nice.

After purging 14 years of files and data and 8 years of the website that made 3 past strategic plans available to all, LED would spring for a working weekend retreat. I wonder if they can book a nice location like the beach? I wonder if they’d let me sign up?

The only member of the audience asked to speak was Carlo Ditta who expressed his desire to expand the role of LIMMA. The LMC then got a little sidetracked discussing how they could try to help make musicians successful. As if government can make the music business work! Fortunately, commissioners Gankendorff and Davis provided a reality check by noting how badly broken the industry currently is and how little anyone can do about it.

Then the meeting ended. I went up to the dais and introduced myself to some of the members, gave out a copy of the last strategic plan and of the educational interactive CD ROM script the late Tad Jones wrote and offered to make myself available to anyone who wished to learn more about what the LMC did for the past decade and a half.

Then I drove back to New Orleans, back to something that made sense–the first weekend of Jazz Fest.