After difficult redistricting battles, Louisiana leaders must work together promote growth

Editor's note: The following guest column has been submitted by Steven Procopio (Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana president) and Melinda Deslatte (PAR research director).

Candidates who qualified to run for Louisiana’s six congressional seats are qualifying under the map passed by lawmakers in a contentious February special session, while litigation continues over whether the state should have two majority-minority districts instead of one.

The U.S. Supreme Court stalled a federal judge’s ruling that would have required Louisiana to redesign its political boundaries to contain two majority-Black districts, suspending action in the case until after the high court rules on a similar Alabama dispute that it won’t even hear until October.

But as Louisiana’s redistricting lawsuits wind their way through what could be a years-long court dispute, state leaders might want to keep their eyes on the next decade’s redistricting cycle – and address the entrenched problems causing Louisiana’s younger and more mobile people to flee the state.

Fighting over whether to draw a second majority-Black congressional district could be moot within only a few years if officials don’t find a way to stem the outmigration and improve Louisiana’s anemic population growth.

Without significant strides on education, the economy and quality of life issues, the U.S. Census in 2030 might show the state has chased away enough people that Louisiana will shrink to five U.S. House districts when the next reapportionment cycle begins, rather than maintaining six seats.

That’s not to suggest the ongoing court dispute over what congressional map is needed to comply with the federal Voting Rights Act is inconsequential. Deciding fair and adequate representation is essential to a functioning democracy, which is why the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana has spent so much time and effort on redistricting.

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Still, Louisiana has lost two congressional districts in the last 30 years because its population growth hasn’t kept up with the rest of the country. That should be a cautionary reminder for elected officials and residents who want to see Louisiana’s influence grow, not wane.

The state’s U.S. House delegation dropped from eight members to seven after the 1990 Census and then declined to six members after the 2010 national population survey. The state has never grown enough to gain a district under the current method of divvying up U.S. House seats adopted by Congress in 1941.

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In the 2020 Census, Louisiana’s population growth lagged the South and the nation. The state had more than 4.6 million residents in the latest tally, a growth rate of only 2.7%, far below the national average growth of 7.4% and the Southern regional average of 10.2%. In the region, only Mississippi, which lost population, had a slower growth rate than Louisiana.

A state with such a wealth of resources, unique culture and exceptional people should be booming with interest from outsiders, rather than constantly struggling to hang onto its residents. Louisiana leaders must do more to attract people to the state, rather than chase them away to better opportunities elsewhere.

Parents need quality public schools that give their children strong foundations to future jobs and economic independence. Employers need a prepared workforce, infrastructure that isn’t crumbling and a tax system that incentivizes success and growth. Residents need safe streets, adequate health care and flood protection that acknowledges climate change and keeps their homes from washing away in the next round of storms.

These are not simple, short-term issues, and they won’t be solved by partisan feuds or efforts aimed at scoring cheap political points. Our leaders must work across party, regional and racial lines. They must focus on thoughtful policies that create fundamental change.

Louisiana and its residents have accepted entrenched poverty, inadequate education, dismal health rankings, wasteful spending and haphazard tax policy for far too long. Those who don’t agree to those terms often flee Louisiana and its problems, not only shrinking our population, but also our economy.

While Louisiana has made notable progress over the years, it’s not enough. If elected officials and lawmakers don’t find a way to work together and make the state a more enticing place to live, the best and brightest will continue to exit, leaving Louisiana with far more worries than its political clout in Congress.

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: Louisiana could lose another seat in Congress if it doesn't promote growth