Thread: Louisiana AG Supports Review Of Taxpayer-Funded NFL Stadium

Louisiana AG Supports Review Of Taxpayer-Funded NFL Stadium


KERRY PICKET
Reporter
7:35 PM 09/26/2017

Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry called upon the state’s Democratic governor John Bel Edwards to support the state legislature’s review of any taxpayer financing that goes towards the New Orleans Saints.

On Monday, Republican State Reps. Kenny Havard and Valerie Hodges proposed that the state legislature should review the taxpayer financing of the Mercedez Benz Super Dome stadium, which is used by the Saints, after 10 players refused to stand for the “Star-Spangled Banner.”

“This is a state-funded sporting event–or subsidized sporting event, not fully by the state, but it is, so we have all the right to defund that,” Havard stated. “I totally agree with their right to protest and I think it just needs to be done somewhere else. They can do it in the streets, they can do it on Sunday mornings… They can do it wherever they want, but not during our national anthem. I think it’s disgraceful.”

AG Landry agrees, telling The Daily Caller in an email statement Tuesday, “Representative Havard has sparked a great conversation. Why should the taxpayers subsidize with hundreds of millions of dollars a two-billion dollar organization that allows the blatant disregard for our flag and our anthem?”

Landry added, “I call on the Governor and Lieutenant Governor to take a stand and support the Legislature’s examination into his proposal.”

Forbes reported in 2015, that Saints owner Tom Benson could potentially make rake in up to $400 million from state taxpayer dollars through 2025 from the Superdome’s revenue.

http://dailycaller.com/2017/09/26/lo...d-nfl-stadium/

Louisiana lawmakers question New Orleans Saints state funding after players

on September 26, 2017 at 10:15 PMPosted on September 25, 2017 at 11:07 AM


State Rep. Kenny Havard, R-Jackson, has suggested Louisiana state government pull its support of the Saints professional football franchise because of players' protests during the national anthem. (Photo by Michael DeMocker, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)(Michael DeMocker)

By Julia O'Donoghue
julia_odonoghue@nola.com,
NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune

Offended by New Orleans Saints players who protested by sitting during the national anthem Sunday (Sept. 24), state House Rep. Kenny Havard, R-Jackson, called for Louisiana's government to pull state funding, tax breaks and other support from the professional football franchise.

"Disrespecting our national anthem and flag in the name of social injustice is the highest form of hypocrisy," Havard said in a written statement Monday.

State Rep. Valarie Hodges, R-Denham Springs, has also requested the Saints' state benefits be reviewed by the Legislature's Senate and House budget committees as a result of the players' protest. Hodges is a member of the House Appropriations Committee, which oversees state finances.

About $165 million of the Saints' $1.5 billion value can be attributed to public funding, tax breaks and incentives given to Saints owner Tom Benson each year, according to an analysis The Times-Picayune | NOLA.com conducted in 2016. Benson, Louisiana's richest resident, owes a good portion of his estimated $2.2 billion fortune to his ownership of two professional sports franchises, the Saints and the New Orleans Pelicans, which are both supported with taxpayer money.

"I believe in the right to protest, but not at a taxpayer-subsidized sporting event. Do it on your own time. There are plenty of disabled children, elderly and veterans in this state that would appreciate the money," Havard said.

The Saints organization did not want to comment on Havard's statements when contacted by a reporter Monday afternoon.

When critics balked at the taxpayer-funded incentives to keep the Saints in New Orleans, owner Tom Benson agreed in 2009 to renegotiate terms with the state. Seven years later, the resulting deal has proven just as lucrative -- and potentially more so.

The 10 Saints who protested were among 150 professional football players around the National Football League who refused to stand for the national anthem Sunday. Four other players also stood in solidarity near the 10 Saints players who sat out the national anthem, though they didn't sit down themselves.

These types of demonstrations initially started with former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick in 2016. Kaepernick refused to stand for the national anthem in order to draw attention to brutality against black people and other minorities.

Kaepernick got some support from players last year, though nothing like the demonstrations seen Sunday. Football player protests intensified this past weekend because of comments President Donald Trump made at a campaign rally in Alabama on Friday night.

Trump called on NFL team owners to fire players who refused to stand during the national anthem. The president referred to any player who protests as a "son of a b----" on national television.

"Obviously, everybody knows about the president's comments and I'm just trying to support, really, the movement that (Kaepernick) started," Saints safety Kenny Vaccaro said after Sunday's game. "I've always felt like we needed to do something and I didn't want to disrespect anyone."

Right before the Saints game, the team released a statement of behalf of Benson saying players should be allowed to "express their feelings," though Benson feels strongly about honoring the flag flown during the national anthem. Saints coach Sean Payton said he was proud of all of his players who protested.

Payton said of Trump after the Sunday game: "I want that guy to be one of the smarter guys in the room, and it seems like every time he's opening his mouth it's something that is dividing our country and not pulling us together."

At least two members of the Louisiana Legislature expressed their disagreement with Havard's proposal.

Rep. Ted James, D-Baton Rouge, posted his reaction to Havard's suggestion on Instagram.

"Y'all worried about Trump, I'm worried about my colleagues who believe as he believes. I can't wait to get my hands on this damn bill!!!!! Not surprised we will have the discussion. DAMN, I wish we were in session now," James said.

Rep. Gary Carter, D-New Orleans, said he was offended that any state official would want to discourage people from peacefully protesting. "He needs to decide whether or not he is on the side of traditional values like freedom of speech or whether he is on the side of the president who called women, the mother of athletes, b----es," Carter said about Havard.

"This should never be accepted as normal because it is not," Carter said of Trump's comments.

Harvard said he isn't opposed to the players protesting, but he doesn't think it should be done in a state-funded facility such as the Superdome. If the players are concerned about police shootings of black men, it would be more appropriate for them to protest outside a police station instead of during the national anthem, he said.

"I can't stress enough that I support their First Amendment and ability to protest," Havard said. "But there are a lot of people out there that feel the same way as me. I'm getting a lot of calls in support" of pulling the Saints public funding over the protests.

And even if the Saints reaction to Trump is new, the argument over public subsidies for the team and Benson is not. A handful of legislators, particularly those from north Louisiana who are farther from the Saints reach, have raised questions over the state's support of the team for several years. It's a perennial part of the state budget discussion, albeit one that doesn't get much traction.

In an interview, Havard said he has been bothered for a long time by the public funding and tax breaks that go to the Saints. His proposal to cut funding for Benson didn't just crop up because of the national anthem protest on Sunday.

The most lucrative part of the arrangement between the Saints and Louisiana is that Benson's teams are able to use the Mercedes-Benz Superdome and Smoothie King Center, both built and operated by taxpayers, without paying any rent. And even though Benson doesn't own those venues, his teams still get to keep all the revenue associated with games held there.

Are taxpayers getting their money's worth from state deals with Saints and Pelicans? Here's a summary of what Benson gets and how the public fares from the arrangement that keeps his teams in New Orleans.

All money made from ticket sales, concession sales and parking goes to Benson. No one has to pay sales tax on Saints and Pelicans revenue, which costs the state and city of New Orleans around $116 million combined. Benson also gets to keep revenue made from selling naming rights for the venues to Mercedes-Benz and Smoothie King.

There have been some adjustments made to the Saints contract with the state in recent years. They renegotiated their agreement in 2012 because of public outcry and legislators' agitation over the fact that Louisiana was paying the Saints $23.5 million every year to play in New Orleans on top of the team's other incentives.

Louisiana taxpayers are still agreeing to subsidize Benson's teams under the new contract though. Under the new deal, the Saints don't get paid that money anymore, but the state did pay for $85 million in upgrades to the Superdome.

The overhaul added 3,200 new seats, club lounges, 16 new box suites, a new team store and more concessions options. Any extra money coming from the new amenities made during games is Benson's to keep.

A number of teams have responded after President Trump's comments

Benson is supposed to clear at least $12 million each year off of the Superdome upgrades alone. If the Saints don't make at least that much, the state agreed to pay the team cash to make up the difference.

As part of the arrangement, Benson also bought and renovated a vacant office building and defunct mall across from the Superdome for around $82 million.

In exchange, the state agreed to move government agencies into two-thirds of the 488,000-square-foot office building, renamed Benson Tower. The lease is good for the duration of the Saints' agreement to remain in New Orleans. The Louisiana Stadium and Exposition District -- a state board that oversees the Superdome and Smoothie King Center -- also turned an empty mall adjacent to Benson Tower into Champions Square, an outdoor concert venue and fan zone.

This real estate deal served as a means to keep Benson's cash flow on par with what he was making under the old deal, when he was collecting checks worth $23.5 million.
It's hard to say exactly how much Benson is making overall, but business must be good. He has never come back to the state to ask for the money he would be entitled to receive if there was a shortfall.

The deal with Benson is aimed at keeping the Saints and the Pelicans in New Orleans. Only a handful of other NFL teams enjoy cost-free leases in stadiums that were entirely built with public money. Such deals are also rare in the NBA. Even in the world of professional sports where states and cities throw money at teams to get them to stay, Benson's Saints and Pelicans deals remain outliers.

But New Orleans' is a relatively small market. It is the 53rd largest television market in the country, which limits the teams' revenue, Benson's organization has argued.
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