2022 Regular Session ENROLLED
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 164
BY SENATOR WHITE
A RESOLUTION
To urge and request the office of community development within the division of
administration to work with the Louisiana Watershed Initiative to create an
independent watershed region for the Amite River Basin.
WHEREAS, Governor John Bel Edwards launched the Louisiana Watershed
Initiative (LWI), governed by the Council on Watershed Management, to reform the state's
approach to flood mitigation; and
WHEREAS, the LWI pursues a holistic approach to watershed management, going
beyond conventional mitigation measures and incorporating nature-based solutions; and
WHEREAS, among the LWI's goals is the development of a management plan for
each of the watersheds in its eight districts; and
WHEREAS, the state of Louisiana established the Amite River Basin Drainage and
Water Conservation District by Act No. 896 of the 1981 Regular Session of the Legislature
to function as the floodplain manager and coordinator of flood risk reduction in the basin;
and
WHEREAS, the Amite River Basin is comprised of portions of the parishes of
Ascension, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Livingston, St. Helena, and St. James, all of
which were heavily impacted and declared federal disaster areas due to the catastrophic
flooding of 2016; and
WHEREAS, the Amite River Basin is currently included in LWI region seven, which
includes several parishes that are not within the basin; and
WHEREAS, the Amite River Basin includes the most populous parish and two of the
fastest growing parishes in Louisiana; and
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WHEREAS, given the urgent flood risk, large and growing population, rapid project
development, and the prolific availability of current flood data and analysis, the Amite River
Basin must exist as its own region with a unique management plan within the Louisiana
Watershed Initiative.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
does hereby urge and request the office of community development within the division of
administration to work with the Louisiana Watershed Initiative to create an independent
watershed region for the Amite River Basin.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
executive director of the office of community development within the division of
administration.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
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