This story was originally published by Louisiana Illuminator.
Gov.-elect Jeff Landry on Tuesday announced his transition team’s co-chairs for 14 councils tasked with providing him policy guidance ahead of his inauguration Jan. 8.
At least five of the people running these councils are campaign donors to Landry. They include construction mogul Lane Grigsby, health care executive Keith Myers, shipbuilding magnate Boysie Bollinger, construction company owner Eddie Rispone and businessman Lee Mallett.
The 14 councils are expected to draw up a list of policy recommendations Landry will use to guide his legislative agenda as governor. It’s not clear when a full list of council participants will be released or whether their meetings will be held in public. Because they aren’t official government bodies, the councils aren’t required to conduct business in public.
Agriculture, fisheries and land management
Chair Joel Broussard is described as an avid outdoorsman and a person with two decades of experience in the oil and gas industry, according to Landry’s team. A Lafayette resident, Broussard is president of Lafayette Locksmith Service, according to social media accounts.
Coast and environment
Co-chair Tony Alford has been chairman of the Terrebonne Parish Levee and Conservation District for 17 years. A Houma resident, he owns the insurance company Alford & Associates.
Co-chair Tim Hardy is a Baton Rouge-based attorney known for his work defending petrochemical companies. Hardy was also a top adviser on environmental issues to former Gov. Buddy Roemer and serves on Gov. John Bel Edwards climate initiatives task force.
Until recently, Hardy was a longtime member of the Louisiana Community and Technical College System board. He is also one of the chairs of Landry’s overall transition efforts.
Constitutional reform
Chair Lane Grigsby is the founder and former head of Cajun Industries. A Baton Rouge resident, he is one of the largest political donors to Republicans and conservative causes across Louisiana.
He not only donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to Landry but also to conservative legislative candidates, BESE members and others running for state office. Grigsby has also been heavily involved with the influential Louisiana Association of Business and Industry (LABI) for several years. Traditionally, he helps drive the organization’s legislative agenda.
Grigsby is also one of the chairs of Landry’s overall transition. He is also close friends with Eddie Rispone, co-chair of the council overseeing K-12 education policy.
Crime and public safety
Co-chair Tony Clayton is the district attorney for Louisiana’s 18th Judicial District, which covers Iberville, West Baton Rouge and Pointe Coupee parishes.
As a West Baton Rouge resident, Clayton has been an advocate for Louisiana taking a “tough on crime” approach and has pushed back on criminal justice changes Gov. John Bel Edwards and bipartisan lawmakers made to reduce the state prison population.
Co-chair Laura Cannizzaro Rodrigue is an attorney who worked for the Orleans Parish District Attorney and the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office. A New Orleans resident, she is the daughter of the city's former DA Leon Cannizzaro, who also worked for Landry at the Louisiana Department of Justice.
Rodrigue also founded Bayou Mama Bears, a group that challenged New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s vaccine and masking mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Economic development and fiscal policy
Co-chair Ben Bordelon is president and chief executive officer of Bollinger Shipyards, the company founded by his grandfather, Donald G. Bollinger, and closely associated with his uncle, Boysie Bollinger, who is a contributor to Landry’s campaign. Bordelon also played football for LSU and the San Diego Chargers.
Co-chair Mandi Mitchell is the head of the Lafayette Economic Development Authority and a former assistant secretary for the state Louisiana Economic Development agency under current Gov. John Bel Edwards.
Energy, chemical and maritime industry
Chair Gray Stream is a Lake Charles businessman who owns several companies that include Stream Wetland Services and Gulf Coast Sequestration.
He wants to be a leader in carbon capture technology, according to one of his business websites, and has worked with industrial clients, golf courses and others to restore wetlands as an offset to environmental damage those businesses may have caused.
Stream is a former member of the Louisiana Board of Regents, appointed by former Gov. Bobby Jindal.
Health care and hospitals
Co-chair Keith Myers is the founder of LHC Group, a Lafayette business that was one of the country’s largest home healthcare companies. In 2023, LHC Group merged with Optum, owned by UnitedHealth Group of Minnesota.
Since 2017, Myers and his wife Ginger have given more than $600,000 to Landry’s campaigns and political action committees supporting him. Additionally, Myers gave $100,000 to the Republican Party of Louisiana shortly after it endorsed Landry in the governor’s race.
Co-chair Alyson Pharr is vice president and chief legal officer at Acadian Cos., one of the most prolific corporate political donors in Louisiana. Acadian Cos. is best known for Acadian Ambulance, an emergency medical transportation provider doing business in Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi and Tennessee.
Pharr lives in Lafayette.
Infrastructure
Chair David Madden is the co-manager of Madden Contracting Co., which operates in northwest Louisiana and eastern Texas. The company specializes in pavement and pavement resurfacing, according to Landry’s transition team.
Insurance crisis
Co-chair Tim Temple is the incoming state insurance commissioner who previously worked in the private insurance market. When he is sworn into office Jan. 8, he will oversee the regulation of insurance for the state.
A Baton Rouge resident, Temple has already outlined some of the changes he wants to make in order to try to drive down insurance costs. These include making it harder for people to sue insurance companies.
Co-chair Ross Laris owned Laris Insurance Agency, a family-run business in Lockport that recently became part of the global, Michigan-based company Acrisure. Laris has also invested in motorsports.
K-12 education
Co-chair Eddie Rispone is the founder of ISC Constructors and was the Republican nominee for Louisiana governor in 2019. He lost a runoff election to current Gov. John Bel Edwards.
A Baton Rouge resident, Rispone was a donor to Landry’s campaign and is a chairman of the governor-elect’s overall transition. He’s also been heavily involved with LABI for several years.
Rispone has been a supporter of school choice efforts, particularly voucher programs that allow public funding to be used for private schools. He is also close friends with Grigsby, who is serving as chair of Landry’s council on constitutional reform.
Co-chair Rebecca Boniol is on the leadership committee of Lake Charles College Prep, a public charter school in the Lake Charles area. Her husband, Mark Boniol, owns a Lake Charles auto dealership. The couple has donated a significant amount of money to McNeese State University.
Local and municipal affairs
Co-chair Guy Cormier is the current executive director of the Police Jury Association of Louisiana, one of the largest local government organizations in the state. A longtime friend of Landry’s, Cormier is also the former parish president in St. Martin, where Landry was raised.
Co-chair Jason Willis is the mayor of St. Martinville, where Landry grew up. Willis also served on the St. Martin Parish Council and is a school bus driver, according to Landry’s campaign.
Military issues
Chair Doug Judice is a military veteran who owns WestHem Consulting Services, a business based in Broussard.
WestHem helps U.S. companies operating in Latin America. One of its clients is Harvey Gulf International Marine, a business run by Landry’s mega-donor and friend Shane Guidry.
Judice served in the U.S. Army and Louisiana National Guard.
New Orleans
Chair Boysie Bollinger is a New Orleans resident and one of the state’s most prolific Republican donors. For years, he was the head of Bollinger Shipyards, which was recently taken over by his nephew Ben Bordelon. Bordelon is also the chair of a separate Landry transition council on economic development and fiscal policy.
Bollinger is also known for his substantial charitable giving, particularly to the National World War II Museum and Audubon Zoo, both of which have buildings named after him.
Workforce development and higher education
Chair Lee Mallet owns a variety of businesses in southwest Louisiana and has donated at least $109,000 to Landry since 2017. Mallet currently serves on the LSU Board of Supervisors and was appointed to several state boards by former Gov. Bobby Jindal.
Mallet is a Lake Charles resident.