MS leading blue economy efforts

Mississippi is on a mission to shore up its marine-related Blue Economy. 

With 62 miles of shoreline and a network of research-related resources, the Mississippi Gulf Coast is an ideal home for developing world-changing technologies and fostering next-generation innovations. 

It's been home to several leading marine companies anchored in the state, including Huntington Ingalls Industries. The region is also home to a thriving energy and petroleum sector, which includes the Chevron Pascagoula Refinery in Jackson County. 

Key to growing the Blue Economy in the state is a new initiative launched in July by the University of Southern Mississippi. 

The Gulf Blue Initiative aims to capitalize on the region’s geography and marine resources to position Mississippi’s Gulf Coast as a global leader in ocean- and maritime-related technologies. (Mississippi Business Journal 07/30/23) Coastal Mississippi leading worldwide blue economy efforts | Mississippi Business Journal | djournal.com

Exception to deficit aero job market

PARIS - Whether in the U.S. or Europe, aerospace/defense sector companies face a wave of retiring workers and are struggling to attract skilled "green" personnel to replace them, according to McKinsey & Company, a global management consulting firm. 

There's a deficit of highly skilled engineers and trade workers, said Andy Voelker, an associate at the firm. 

There is a “gray to green” workforce transition ... and a retirement bubble on the horizon where about 33% of workers in the sector are nearing retirement. 

The aerospace/defense sector has long benefited from veteran employees, but they're needed onboard now for the less experienced workers to transition. 

Green talent has fundamentally different expectations of work-life, he indicated, and that's led to attrition problems with those younger workers.

Younger workers leaving is making it harder for aerospace/defense firms to maintain a full staff, he said. 

The nature of the jobs is also undergoing a big change.

The hardware-to-software transition in the sector is real. The demand for highly skilled software engineers is “significantly outpacing” the demand for traditional engineers, he added.

There will be a 13-fold difference in the demand between the two kinds of engineers in the U.S. market over the next decade, he predicts. 

Workplace culture is also a factor, when workers decide to leave. 

Sector firms have a good reputation for aligning employees around a common vision of innovation and cutting-edge work, Voelker said. The problem is industries, such as automotive and technology, have a better reputation. 

There is more movement in and out of the sector. Employees have options and it's showing. 

Another trend is speed. Younger generation workers expect things to happen fast, but aerospace/defense firms operate at a deliberate pace, he said. 

Data show the sector lags other industries in the important factors that keep and retain talent, but it is behind when it comes to tech companies, he said. 

There is one exception, he noted: Motivation. (National Defense 07/24/23) Aerospace, Defense Industries Struggling To Attract Talent (nationaldefensemagazine.org)

Mississippi aerospace jobs

 25 Vertex Aerospace Jobs in Jackson, Miss., area. $80k-$210k Vertex Aerospace Jobs in Jackson, MS (NOW HIRING) (ziprecruiter.com) 

11 Stark Aerospace Jobs in Mississippi $15-$27/hr Stark Aerospace Jobs in Mississippi (NOW HIRING) (ziprecruiter.com)

DoD regional contracts July 31

* Aptim Federal Services, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was awarded an $11,440,662 modification (P00004) to contract W912DY-22-F-0271 for recurring maintenance and minor and emergency repair. Work will be performed in Baton Rouge with an estimated completion date of July 31, 2024. FY 2023 revolving funds in the amount of $11,440,662 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Engineering and Support Center, Huntsville, Alabama, is the contracting activity. 

* ECS Southeast, Memphis, Tennessee; S&ME Inc, Bartlett, Tennessee; and Terracon Consultants, Bartlett, Tennessee, will compete for each order of the $10,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for drilling and testing. Bids were solicited via the internet with four received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of July 31, 2028. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Memphis, Tennessee, is the contracting activity. 

* Alpha Marine Services LLC, Cut Off, Louisiana, is awarded a $12,944,322 firm-fixed-price option (P00011) with reimbursable elements contract N3220521C4030 for long-term charter of one U.S.-flagged Jones Act offshore supply vessel, MV Gary Chouest, to support Navy fleet requirements for towing, diving and salvage operations, submarine rescue, and training exercises. This contract includes a 12-month base period with two 12-month option periods, which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $38,008,507. Work will be performed primarily in the Atlantic Ocean and is expected to be completed if all options are exercised, by Aug. 1, 2024. Working Navy capital funds in the amount of $12,944,322 are obligated for the option period which begins in FY 2023 and will not expire. This contract was competitively procured with proposals solicited via the Federal Business Opportunities website and two offers were received. Military Sealift Command, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity. 

* Alpha Marine Services, Galliano, Louisiana, is awarded an option (P00032) in the amount of $11,252,385 for contract N3220520C2257. The option is a firm-fixed-price contract with reimbursable elements to support Military Sealift Command’s contract for the time charter of seven tractor-like tugs in support of Navy bases at Kings Bay, Georgia; and Mayport, Florida. This option is the third of the current contract. The current contract includes a one-year, firm period of the performance, three one-year options periods, and one 11-month option period. The cumulative value of this contract, if all options are exercised, is $52,884,546. Work will be performed in Kings Bay, Georgia (50 %); and Mayport, Florida (50 %), and is expected to be completed, if all options are exercised, by June 30, 2025. Working Navy capital funds in the amount of $11,252,385 for option three are currently available for performance under this contract action. This procurement was released under full and open competition, with an unlimited number of companies solicited via the Beta.SAM.Gov website and three offers were received. Military Sealift Command, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity. (DoD 07/31/23)

Prez to spurn Space Cmd HQ move

WASHINGTON - President Joe Biden has decided to keep U.S. Space Command's HQ in Colorado, overturning a decision by the Trump administration to move it to Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Ala., and ending months of politically fueled debate, according to unnamed senior U.S. officials. Those officials said Biden was convinced by the head of Space Command, Gen. James Dickinson, who argued that moving his headquarters now would jeopardize military readiness. ... However, in contrast to Air Force leadership, who studied the issue at length and determined that relocating to Huntsville, Alabama, was the right move. (The Ap 07/31/23) Biden to keep Space Command in Colorado, rejecting move to Huntsville | Alabama | wtva.com 

Editor's Note: In a political observation, Colorado voted for Biden in the 2020 presidential election. Alabama did not. ... Historically, another Democrat President, Lyndon Johnson, shut down an Alabama base in Alabama, and moved it to his home state of Texas, after failing to win the state's electoral college vote in 1964. Regarding the latter, whatever happened to the Base Closure Commission and the process of moving, closing bases in a non-partisan manner? 

MS ed's timeline for super search

The Mississippi State Board of Education announced its timeline for the state superintendent search process and selection.

The application period launches Aug. 14.

In September, a public survey will be released on desired qualities and priorities for the state’s next education leader. 

The application deadline ends Oct. 19. The board will undergo candidate reviews and make its selection in December. (WCBI 07/31/23) State Board of Education announces timeline for superintendent search (wcbi.com)

History July 31: Gen. Lafayette

 Today, July 31 in history

* In 1777, during the Revolutionary War, the Marquis de Lafayette, a 19-year-old French nobleman, was made a major-general in the American Continental Army. 

* In 1715, a fleet of Spanish ships carrying gold, silver and jewelry sank during a hurricane off the east Florida coast; of some 2,500 crew members more than 1,000 died.

* In 1945, Pierre Laval, premier of the pro-Nazi Vichy government, surrendered to U.S. authorities in Austria. He was turned over to France, which later tried and executed him. 

In 1971, Apollo 15 crew members David Scott and James Irwin became the first astronauts to use a lunar rover on the surface of the moon.

* In 1972, Democratic vice-presidential candidate Thomas Eagleton withdrew from the ticket with George McGovern following disclosures that Eagleton had once undergone psychiatric treatment. 

* In 1991, President George H.W. Bush and Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev signed the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty in Moscow.

* In 2003, the Vatican launched a global campaign against gay marriages, warning Catholic politicians that support of same-sex unions was “gravely immoral.” 

* In 2020, a federal appeals court overturned the death sentence of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev in the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, saying the judge who oversaw the case didn’t adequately screen jurors for potential biases. (The Supreme Court later reimposed the sentence.)

* In 2020, Mexico became the country with the third most COVID-19 deaths in the world, behind the United States and Brazil. 

* In 2022., NBA legend Bill Russell, who anchored the Boston Celtics dynasty that won 11 championships in 13 years - the last two as the first Black head coach in any major U.S. sport - died at age 88. 

* In 2022, Nichelle Nichols, who broke barriers for Black women in Hollywood when she played communications officer Lt. Uhura on the original “Star Trek” television series, died at 89. (History.com 07/31/23)

'Green' methanol plant proposed

SunGas Renewables, a division of GTI Energy, is considering building a $1.8B “green” methanol plant in Pineville, the Louisiana Economic Development said July 26. 

The Beaver Lake Renewable Energy plant would be built at the former International Paper facility in Rapides Parish, which has been vacant for 14 years. The plant would produce nearly 400,000 metric tons per year of “green” methanol. 

The complex would create 109 direct jobs. according to LED.

A front-end engineering and design study is planned for the site in October. 

SunGas Renewables is scheduled to make a final investment decision by August 2024. Commercial operations are tentatively slated to start in 2027. 

Methanol is a clear chemical used in plastics, paints and fuels, according to the Methanol Institute. 

Standard methanol is typically made using natural gas but “green” methanol is made from carbon dioxide and either biomass or renewable electricity, LED said. 

The fuel produced at the would-be plant would use wood fiber from local timber supplies as a biomass feedstock. The plant would use carbon capture to offset its carbon dioxide emissions, though SunGas has yet to determine where it would sequester the carbon dioxide. 

Though not formalized, Danish shipping company A.P. Moller-Maersk has signed up with SunGas to purchase fuel from the proposed facility. 

Louisiana has forked over a $6M performance-based grant for infrastructure. SunGas is also expected to apply for state tax incentives, such as Quality Jobs and the Industrial Tax Exemption Program. (NOLA.com 07/26/23)

July 30: Medicare becomes law

 Today July 30 in history 

* In 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signs Medicare, a health insurance program for elderly Americans, into law. At the bill-signing ceremony, which took place at the Truman Library in Independence, Missouri, former President Harry Truman was enrolled as Medicare’s first beneficiary and received the first Medicare card. 

* 1866: The New Orleans Massacre 

* 1956: President Eisenhower signs "In God We Trust" into law

1945: USS Indianapolis torpedoed | July 30, 1945 | HISTORY

Pitch your products to Walmart

NEW ORLEANS - Walmart has begun accepting applications for its 10th annual Open Call event, inviting small business owners and entrepreneurs to apply for the opportunity to pitch their wares to be sold at Walmart, Sam’s Club or via Walmart.com. 

Applications are open until Aug. 18.

Open Call is part of Walmart’s 10-year, $350B commitment to strengthening U.S. manufacturing by sourcing products that are made, grown or assembled in the U.S., and it was instrumental to Walmart achieving its previous $250B commitment. 

Open Call will take place on Oct. 24-25, during Manufacturing Month 2023. (Biz New Orleans 07/27/23) Walmart Accepting Applications for 'Open Call 2023' - Biz New Orleans

Revised flood plan for St. Tammany

The New Orleans district of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has been working for at least two years on a $4B plan to protect St. Tammany Parish from severe flooding. 

A revised plan, which the Corps made public July 14, is the latest in a string of drafts going back to 2021, when the mammoth plan was first announced. 

In the new version, the Corps proposes to lengthen an 18-mile levee that would run from near Lacombe, south Slidell and wrap around the eastern edge of the city. 

The plan proposes to build eight new pumping stations, floodgates and elevate a section of I-10 over the new levee. 

The big changes in this draft are that the levee has been extended toward Lacombe on its western side, and that 2,000 fewer structures would be elevated, dropping the number to 6,500. 

These updates strengthen the cost-benefit ratio and increase the chances for funding, experts say. 

Not everyone in the parish will get equal protection if this version of the plan goes into effect. 

“I think a lot of people think that, well, the schools are there and the well is there ... and the firehouse is there, surely they’re going to be protected,” said St. Tammany Parish Council Chairman Jake Airey, referring to Slidell area neighborhoods on the east side of Military Road. “That’s not necessarily the case.” 

Even though the specifics of the project have already been debated for two years, the Corps isn't likely to start construction for at least 3-to-5 years. "We don't know when Congress will authorize the project," Dixon said. 

The Corps will hold two public meetings on the plan, Aug. 15 at 6 p.m.at the Slidell Municipal Auditorium; and a second Aug. 16 at 6 p.m. at the Firehouse Event Center in Covington. The public comment period is open until Sept. 6 and can comments can be submitted by email to sttammanyfs@usace.army.mil. (NOLA.com 07/30/23) Longer levee, fewer home elevations in Tammany flood plan | One Tammany | nola.com

More $ for risk reduction system

The New Orleans district of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has completed an updated certified total project cost for the West Shore Lake Pontchartrain hurricane and storm damage risk reduction system. 

In order to deliver the project to its authorized levee elevations, and complete the system’s pump stations and drainage structures, about $1.27B will be required in additional funding.

Another $1.7B will be needed for environmental impact mitigation efforts and future levee lifts to ensure the authorized level of risk reduction is maintained for the duration of the project’s 50-year design life.

The Corps is pressing forward in completing ongoing work and will be awarding new construction contracts. Simultaneously, the Corps is pursuing options for securing additional funds required to deliver the system that will reduce hurricane storm damage risk for more than 60,000 residents in St. Charles, St. James and St. John the Baptist parishes, says Col. Cullen Jones, New Orleans District Commander. 

The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 committed $760M for design/construction of the storm damage risk reduction system. Those funds were applied towards more than $100M in active construction. The available funds will be used to award an additional five construction contracts by early FY 2024 and to finalize the system’s design. 

The initial project cost was based on 2014 economic conditions and preliminary designs to determine the feasibility of the project. The updated project cost is $3.7B and includes future levee lifts, operations, maintenance, monitoring costs and advanced engineering designs. 

The completed project will provide a 1-percent level of risk reduction through a combination of structural and non-structural features. (NOLA.com 07/30/23) Longer levee, fewer home elevations in Tammany flood plan | One Tammany | nola.com

Starter-homes up $7K+ from 2022

The real estate brokerage website Redfin released a report indicating first-time homebuyers in America now need 13% more earnings, compared to 2022, in order to afford a starter home. 

The report states that the necessary annual income to cover a starter home is approximately $64,500 - about $7,200 higher than last year. 

The increase can be attributed to two factors: Rising home prices and mortgage rates. 

The sale price of the type of home typically sought by first-time buyers increased by 2.1% compared to 2022, reaching $243,000. Rising prices can also be attributed to a limited supply of starter homes. New listings experienced a 23% decrease in June.

Sheharyar Bokhari, a senior economist at Redfin, explains the combo of rising prices/rising interest rates has made the most affordable homes out of reach for those with lower budgets. 

In some parts of the U.S., the lack of affordable starters makes it difficult for buyers to find suitable options. 

The overall housing market has also been impacted by the limited supply of homes. 

A recent Realtor.com report indicates there were over 47% fewer available homes in June compared to pre-pandemic levels. The shortage has driven up home prices. 

Mortgage rates have also played a role in affordability.

Redfin reports the average mortgage rate in June was about 6.7%, compared to 5.5% last year. The Federal Reserve's efforts to combat inflation have led to a 12 interest-rate hikes over the past year.

Fort Lauderdale, Fla., saw the largest increase in the income level needed to afford a starter home - 28% jump to $58,300.

But San Francisco, Phoenix and Austin, Texas, were the only major metros where income requirements decreased.

This upward trend highlights the challenges that prospective homeowners are facing in the market. (Redfin 07/28/23)

RELATED HOUSING INFO FROM NEW ORLEANS 

For the first six months of the year, the median sale price of a single-family home was down 3.6% across the nine-parish metro region compared to the same period in 2022, according to the New Orleans Metropolitan Association of Realtors. In Orleans and Jefferson parishes, the declines were nearly twice that steep. (NOLA.com 07/30/28) Housing prices fall across New Orleans metro area in 2023 | Business News | nola.com 

Regional maps of home prices in Louisiana: How home prices have changed in each New Orleans area parish | Business News | nola.com

Regional jobs at Vertex Aerospace

* Receiving/Stock Clerk - Madison, Miss., Vertex Aerospace. Inventory/Parts job at Vertex Aerospace - Receiving/Stock Clerk - Madison, MS (jsfirm.com)

* Procurement Specialist I (KC-10) - Madison, Miss., Vertex Aerospace. Finance job at Vertex Aerospace - Procurement Specialist I (KC-10) - Madison, MS (jsfirm.com) 

PortSL finalizing Avondale reports

NEW ORLEANS - The Port of South Louisiana (PortSL) announced July 28 it has concluded its due diligence of its proposed acquisition of the Avondale Global Gateway from terminal operator T. Parker Host, which moved its HQ to Jefferson Parish earlier this year. 

In January, PortSL announced plans to buy the former Avondale Shipyard site from Host, which purchased the 254-acre site for $60M in 2018 from Huntington Ingalls. 

Host said it invested $150M after the acquisition to bring the site back into commerce as Avondale Global Gateway. 

The port said its team of experts is compiling findings into reports to be used to negotiate final terms of the acquisition. If agreed upon, the port will seek approval for financing from the State Bond Commission, possibly at its September meeting. (Port of South Louisiana 07/28/23)

MP's 15 minority coastal biz grants

GULFPORT, Miss. - Fifteen small, minority-owned businesses in Harrison County walked from the 'Breaking Barriers: A Diversity Grant Showcase' with $29,000 in checks overall. 

Jason Weaver and Michael Massey, who are in the process of opening Altered Reality Brewing in Biloxi, walked away with a $15,000 grant. 

Mississippi Power (MP) has partnered with the Gulf Coast Chamber of Commerce for three years to award the 'Mississippi Power Shine A Light Grant' to local business owners. 

“(W)e want to make sure that we are investing in our communities and ... all our businesses,” said Mississippi Power Foundation Director Steven Dick. 

Dr. Zillah Fluker, among speakers at the event, offered advice for entrepreneurs and supporters: Together "we can advance the community" through "greater understanding" of personal accountability leadership traits ... required to be successful in society." (WLOX 07/28/23) Mississippi Power, Gulf Coast Chamber of Commerce award 15 small business owners with grants (wlox.com) 

Fluker is a 17-year leader in corporate America and higher education. She currently serves as the VP of Institutional Advancement at Central State University in Ohio where she has established the HBCU Center of Excellence for Corporate Engagement and Leadership.

St. Tammany flood buyout concerns

Louisiana and the Watershed Initiative are offering a buyout program for residents who live in flood-prone areas. 

The buyout program - a portion of a national FEMA initiative called Risk Rating 2.0 - gives residents options to buy-in or bypass a capped amount of $250,000 per residence in flood-prone areas. 

The program is allocating $10M to 75 homes in St. Tammany parish who voluntarily opt-in - 68 homes in Avery Estates, six in Covington and one in Slidell.  

The capped amount is leaving some residents in a quandary.  

"The buyout sounds like a great idea, but they don't want to give you the fair market value or fair current market value," Anthony Caronia told WDSU. 

"(I)f I'm valued over $250,0900, I'm going to stay" because isn't feasible to relocate.

 

Slidell Mayor Greg Cromer says residents across the parish will be forced to accept it or not in the midst of a strained flood insurance market filled with high premiums and inflation. 

St. Tammany Parish President Mike Cooper has been working with others to demand accountability and transparency for Risk Rating 2.0. It's costing citizens more to live in St. Tammany Parish "without any sense or clarity,” Cooper said. (WDSU 07/28/23) St. Tammany Parish flood buyouts program residents in flood-prone areas Slidell (wdsu.com) 

Risk Rating 2.0: Projected Premium Changes: State Totals: Projected Risk Rating 2.0 Premium Changes - All NFIP & SFH Policies (arcgis.com.)

Natchez biomass jet fuel plant

NATCHEZ, Miss. - An engineering change has delayed the start of construction date of the Velosys bio-refinery plant in here, the project is still going forward, according to Chandler Russ, executive director of Natchez Inc., the area’s economic development agency. 

Velosys announced plans to construct/operate a plant here using new technology to make jet fuel using woody biomass, which is waste from the paper and lumber industries.  

The company has decided to switch from solar to biopower at the facility. 

Velosys plans plans to begin site work now that Natchez Inc., City of Natchez and Adams County have secured $5.4M in state and federal funding to complete a levee around the site to protect it from Mississippi River flooding.

Two-thirds of the levee work has been done. (Natchez Democrat 07/28/23) 

Background: Biopower technologies convert renewable biomass fuels into heat and electricity using processes similar to those used with fossil fuels. There are three ways to release the energy stored in biomass to produce biopower: Burning, bacterial decay and conversion to gas/liquid fuel.

10th CG cutter completes sea trials

PASCAGOULA, Miss. - HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding division announced July 28 the successful completion of acceptance sea trials for the Coast Guard's newest national security cutter (NSC), Calhoun (WMSL 759).

During the trial, the ship spent time proving the ship’s systems including performing numerous tests in the areas of propulsion, electric plant, and mission systems in the Gulf of Mexico. 

The joint Ingalls-CG team received kudos for NSC 10 "performing well," according to Ingalls Shipbuilding President Kari Wilkinson. 

For more than 20 years, Ingalls Shipbuilding has designed and built the CG Legend-class NSCs. 

These ships are capable of embarking and supporting a wide range of CG, Navy and NATO missions. NSCs are ideal platforms for drug interdiction, global illegal fishing, disaster relief and defense support operations.

NSC 10 is named to honor Charles L. Calhoun, the first master chief petty officer of the U.S. Coast Guard. (HII 07/28/23)

July 29 history: NASA created

 July 29 in history

1958: The U.S. Congress passes legislation establishing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), a civilian agency responsible for coordinating America’s activities in space, on July 29, 1958. NASA has since sponsored space expeditions, both human and mechanical, that have yielded vital information about the solar system and universe. It has also launched numerous earth-orbiting satellites that have been instrumental in everything from weather forecasting to navigation to global communications. NASA created | July 29, 1958 | HISTORY 

1976: The Doors score their first #1 hit with "Light My Fire" * 1976: Son of Sam terrorizes New York  * 1981: Prince Charles marries Lady Diana | July 29, 1981 | HISTORY *1965: 101st Airborne Division arrives in Vietnam  1925: Adolf Hitler becomes the leader of the Nazi Party

Today July 28 in history

July 28, 1868: Following its ratification by the necessary three-quarters of U.S. states, the 14th Amendment, granting citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the United States—including formerly enslaved people—is officially adopted into the U.S. Constitution. Secretary of State William Seward issues a proclamation certifying the amendment. 

* In 1914, World War I began as Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. 

* In 1929, future President John F. Kennedy’s wife, Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy, is born into a prominent New York family. 

* In 1943, President Franklin D. Roosevelt announced the end of coffee rationing, which had limited people to one pound of coffee every five weeks since it began in November 1942.

* In 1945, the U.S. Senate ratified the United Nations Charter by a vote of 89-2. An Army bomber crashed into the 79th floor of New York’s Empire State Building, killing 14 people. 

* In 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson announced he was increasing the number of American troops in South Vietnam from 75,000 to 125,000 “almost immediately.”

* In 1976, an earthquake devastated northern China, killing at least 242,000 people, according to an official estimate.

* In 1978, National Lampoon’s Animal House, a movie spoof about 1960s college fraternities starring John Belushi, opens in U.S. theaters. 

* In 1984, the Los Angeles Summer Olympics opened.

* In 2015, it was announced that Jonathan Pollard, the former U.S. naval intelligence analyst who had spent nearly 30 years in prison for spying for Israel, had been granted parole.

* In 2016, Hillary Clinton accepted the Democratic presidential nomination at the party’s convention in Philadelphia. (History.com 07/28/23) 

75th mil.desegregation order

JOINT BASE ANDREWS, Md. -  Three Tuskegee Airmen joined Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. CQ Brown, Jr., at Joint Base Andrews July 26 to commemorate the 75th anniversary of desegregation in the military and officially induct a PT-17 Stearman into the National Museum of the Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. 

The event recognized the legacy of the Tuskegee Airmen and their impact of ensuring Airmen as well as other service members can serve to their full potential. 

On July 26, 1948, President Harry S. Truman signed Executive Order 9981, calling for the desegregation of the U.S. Armed Forces, renouncing 170 years of sanctioned discrimination. This crucial step forward inspired other parts of American society to move toward desegregation. 

As the first all-Black American unit in WWII, the Tuskegee Airmen’s actions, accomplishments and experiences helped inspire Truman’s executive order. (Secretary of the Air Force 07/27/23) CSAF, Tuskegee Airmen recognize 75 years of trailblazing > Air Force > Article Display

$20M Atchafalaya basin dredging

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. LLC, Houston, Texas, was awarded a $20,653,000 firm-fixed-price contract for Atchafalaya River basin maintenance dredging. Bids were solicited via the internet with two received. Work will be performed in Morgan City, Louisiana, with an estimated completion date of February 15, 2024. Fiscal 2023 civil construction funds in the amount of $20,653,000 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans, Louisiana, is the contracting activity (DoD 07/28/23)

Political tangles of O&G leases

WASHINGTON - If the Biden Administration continues to stall offshore oil and gas leases in the Gulf of Mexico, it could hurt coastal parishes and Louisiana oil service companies, Lafourche Parish President Archie Chaisson III and Danos CEO Paul Danos told the House Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources on July 27. 

Chaisson and Danos, whose oilfield services company is HQ'd in Gray, La., told lawmakers that revenues will dry up if the U.S. Department of Interior fails to sell offshore leases. 

The government's 5-year plan for those leases, supposed to have happen last summer, still isn’t complete and won’t be until the end of the year, and pushing the earliest possible lease sale into 2026. 

The leasing gap has created uncertain operating conditions, Chaisson added. “We’re not just talking about ... little old Lafourche Parish, but policy that impacts every American” due to increased energy prices.

Offshore rigs in the GoM get food, water and equipment shipped out from Port Fourchon, La., which produces about 8,0000 jobs. There are 10,000 more jobs in the parish tied to the oil service industries. They buy groceries, eat at restaurants and frequent local businesses.

Lafourche Parish has received $1.6M in royalties from offshore production in federal waters this year. 

The state added $124.9M to its treasury. The money goes towards coastal restoration and flood protection, but it only comes from production, he said. 

The U.S. Department of Interior generated $794M from lease sales from 2018-20. Once the sales are complete, the winner has to jump through hoops and regulations that could take up to eight years, Danos said.

Lease terms generally are for 10 years. 

President Joe Biden has sent conflicting imagery regarding onshore and offshore federal lease sales in favor of renewable energy sources. In 2022, Biden said “No more drilling.” 

In February, the President acknowledged the need for oil and natural gas. 

The administration is slow-walking those lease sales to bolster wind and solar energy as a replacement to "stop oil and gas production,” Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.), said.

Democrats say oil industry supporters are just whining.

The arguments "characterizing energy independence lose credibility when you discover the United States is currently exporting 50% more oil and gas than we did in 2019," said U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), the leading Democrat on the subcommittee. 

Oil companies' profits last year was $200B+, she said, adding that of the 11M acres of leases, 74% have never produced oil and gas. 

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) said the Biden Administration has "waged war on American energy," by canceling lease sales, delaying the offshore leasing plan, halting pipeline projects and issuing "unnecessary and devastating regulations" that result in higher costs to families, lost jobs and "dependence on hostile nations for our energy supply," he said. (NOLA.com 07/27/23) Delay in oil leases impacts bottom lines in Louisiana | Local Politics | nola.com