An emergency city council meeting was held on Thursday evening at Bogalusa City Hall, attended by: Mayor Tyrin Truong and the members of the City Council. Present at the meeting were Council at Large Penny Douglas, District A Councilwoman Gloria Kates, District C Councilwoman Shelby Temples, Councilman and District D Council President Kenny Kellis, and District E Councilman Mark Irvine.

Mayor Truong commenced the meeting by delivering his opening remarks, addressing recent allegations against him and his proposed budget. He also took the opportunity to apologize for abruptly leaving the previous session on Tuesday, June 6th, stating, “I am not angry, I am not bitter, but I must provide accurate information to counter the rampant misinformation.”

Mayor Truong and his team listens to public questions about their proposed budget. (Alex Moraski/Picayune Item)

Following the mayor’s statement, the council president called for a motion to discuss the budget. Councilman Irvine motioned, asking the mayor’s Director of Administration Chiietra Brown if the budget was 100% accurate. Brown said the budget they were voting on was accurate. Councilwoman Kates then second the motion.

The floor was then opened to the public for comments and questions. While public members questioned the mayor and the council regarding the budget, most of the hour-and-a-half-long public portion was dedicated to urging the council to pass the budget.

Once the public had concluded their remarks, the council president called for a vote on the budget. Before the vote, the council members questioned Mayor Truong and his team to verify the budget’s balance. Assured by the mayor and his team, all five council members voted to pass the budget.

“We see the power of the people; I think without the people, we would still be at a stalemate. I want to commend the council for working with us; we look forward to an additional three and half years of unity and progress,” Mayor Truong said after the meeting concluded.

A correction was made to this story in the third paragraph between the interaction of Councilman Irvine and Director of Administration Chiietra Brown.