2019 Regular Session ENROLLED
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 148
BY SENATORS ALARIO, ALLAIN, APPEL, BARROW, BISHOP, BOUDREAUX,
CARTER, CHABERT, CLAITOR, COLOMB, CORTEZ, ERDEY,
FANNIN, GATTI, HENSGENS, HEWITT, JOHNS, LAFLEUR,
LAMBERT, LONG, LUNEAU, MARTINY, MILKOVICH, MILLS,
MIZELL, MORRELL, MORRISH, PEACOCK, PETERSON, PRICE,
RISER, GARY SMITH, JOHN SMITH, TARVER, THOMPSON,
WALSWORTH, WARD AND WHITE
A RESOLUTION
To recognize and highly commend John L. "Jack" Donahue Jr. for twelve years of dedicated,
distinguished, and tireless service to the Senate of Louisiana, the people of the
parishes of St. Tammany and Tangipahoa (District 11), and the state of Louisiana.
WHEREAS, Jack Donahue received a degree in civil engineering from Louisiana
State University in Baton Rouge in 1967; and
WHEREAS, Jack Donahue began his professional career in 1971 when he started
Spartan Building Corporation and took a significant step forward in 1979 with the creation
of the highly successful, well-respected, award-winning DonahueFavret Contractors, which
recently celebrated its fortieth anniversary, and of which he currently serves as chairman of
the board; and
WHEREAS, Jack Donahue has deep ties with the business community through
memberships, past and present, in the Associated Builders and Contractors, the St. Tammany
West Chamber of Commerce, the Northshore Area Committee Business Congress for
Louisiana, GNO, Inc., and the Louisiana Association of Building and Industry; and
WHEREAS, understanding that you have to be involved in order to change the status
quo, Jack Donahue was motivated to run for state office by a desire to make government
more efficient, make sense for business, and to improve the lives of the people of his district
and the state; and
WHEREAS, Jack Donahue was first elected to the Senate in 2007, winning by a vote
of almost two-to-one; easily won reelection in 2011, earning more than eighty percent of the
vote; and was elected without opposition in 2015, proving he had fully earned the trust of
Page 1 of 4 SR NO. 148 ENROLLED
the people he serves; and
WHEREAS, a common thread running through his legislative tenure is the firm
belief that how well state finances are managed and monitored today determines the kind of
state we will have in the future and establishes the legacy we leave for generations to come;
and
WHEREAS, recognizing the critical need to reduce the cost and size of state
government and ensure that tax dollars are spent efficiently and effectively,
Senator Donahue introduced and passed numerous pieces of legislation to improve and
strengthen the state's budgetary and expenditure practices, including establishment of an
incentive expenditure forecast by the Revenue Estimating Conference, a requirement that
a nondiscretionary adjusted standstill budget be developed each year in addition to the
continuation budget, a requirement that the legislative auditor perform regular performance
audits for statutory dedications that include a fee for service, and the creation of the
landmark Commission on Streamlining Government; and
WHEREAS, Jack Donahue's business acumen, coupled with his frustration with the
myriad of arcane and often conflicting state regulations impacting the business sector and
the state's byzantine tax structure, led him to champion legislation to provide a fair
regulatory and tax structure for the state's business community and to request a study of the
feasibility of establishing a statewide business court to lower costs, enhance efficiency, and
promote predictable outcomes for business and industry; and
WHEREAS, understanding the vital role that education plays in a healthy economy,
Senator Donahue sponsored legislation to bolster our K-12 education system, strengthen the
state's postsecondary education institutions, and stabilize TOPS, the Taylor Opportunity
Program for Students, so it would be viable for years to come; and
WHEREAS, Jack Donahue recognizes the responsibility that citizens and
government share to care for those among us with great need and continually supported
legislation to provide increased access, services, and protections to the developmentally
disabled and, especially, children with special needs; and
WHEREAS, his bedrock principles of honesty and integrity, and his ability to
balance fairness, practicality, and compassion enabled Senator Jack Donahue to earn the
Page 2 of 4 SR NO. 148 ENROLLED
respect and trust of his colleagues and his constituents and thus become a proven and
effective legislator; and
WHEREAS, during his tenure in the Senate, Jack Donahue served with commitment
and distinction on many committees including the Senate Committee on Finance, serving
as chairman from 2012-2016, the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget, serving as
chairman in 2012 and 2013, the Joint Legislative Committee on Capital Outlay, the
Legislative Budgetary Control Council, the Senate Committee on Education, the Senate
Committee on Judiciary A, the Senate Committee on Local and Municipal Affairs, the
Senate Committee on Senate and Governmental Affairs, and the Senate Select Committee
on Vocational-Technical Education, serving as chairman from 2016-2020; and
WHEREAS, Senator Donahue balances his professional life with a distinguished
record of community involvement and philanthropic endeavors including the American
Heart Association, Habitat for Humanity, the American Red Cross, the Lake Pontchartrain
Basin Foundation, the Center for Development and Learning, and other worthy
organizations; and
WHEREAS, Senator Jack Donahue, an active member of Most Holy Trinity Catholic
Church, is guided by his strong faith, and he is ever mindful of the admonishment in
Luke 12:48, "to whom much is given, much will be required; and from the one to whom
much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded"; and
WHEREAS, after his faith, nothing is more important to Jack Donahue than the
enduring love and unending support of his precious family - his wife, Maura, and their six
children and their spouses, nineteen grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren, without
whom life has no meaning; and
WHEREAS, committed to the principle of a three-term limit for legislators, Jack
Donahue looks forward to returning home to spend quality time with his "bride", Maura, and
their family, and embrace whatever life may hold in store.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
does hereby recognize and highly commend John L. "Jack" Donahue Jr. for twelve years of
dedicated, distinguished, and tireless service to the Senate of Louisiana, the people of the
parishes of St. Tammany and Tangipahoa (District 11), and the state of Louisiana.
Page 3 of 4 SR NO. 148 ENROLLED
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
Honorable John L. "Jack" Donahue Jr., State Senator, District 11.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
Page 4 of 4