And for the administration to come in and do this, it just validates our efforts.. JavaScript appears to be disabled on this computer. Follow us on Hampton urged both Denka and DuPont to comply with the federal governments demands set forth in the lawsuit. Known as one of the greenest commercial buildings in the world, since it opened its doors on Earth Day in 2013 the Bullitt Center has been setting a new standard for sustainable design. ContractforProfessionalLegalServicesTemplate.pdf, GuidetoLAJPCourts2ndEdition9.28.2021forweb.pdf, AmendedOpenMeetingsGuidanceinlightofCOVID-19andtherecentpassageofR.S.4217.1.pdf. Have a question about Government Services? The Louisiana Department of Revenue provides for secured payment of returns through use of credit card vendors. met, within 72 hours, LDR will notify and authorize the issuing state agencies to remove such liens. Lock If you received one of the letters but havent responded yet, simply complete and return the attached voucher to LDR. The Louisiana Department of Natural Resources' SONRIS (Strategic Online Natural Resources Information System) tool provides data access (e.g., oil and gas information, coastal information), document access (e.g., Office of Conservation oil/gas production cards and field orders, Office of Mineral Resources lease records), GIS access (e.g . USE OF THIS SYSTEM BY ANY USER, AUTHORIZED OR UNAUTHORIZED, CONSTITUTES YOUR UNDERSTANDING AND CONSENT TO THIS MONITORING, INTERCEPTION, RECORDING, READING, COPYING, OR CAPTURING AND DISCLOSURE. AG Jeff Landry: Be cautious of where you place your bets to ensure you protect your information, receive fair odds, and get paid when you win. Now, the DOJ has filed a complaint to compel Denka to further reduce its hazardous emissions. A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. for more information. In the event that your payment takes over 6 days to post to your LDR account, please feel free to call our taxpayer services department for additional Your support keeps our unbiased, nonprofit news free. are NOT included in the balance due to LDR. BATON ROUGE Thousands of Louisiana taxpayers have until Thursday, Oct. 6 to claim millions of dollars in state income tax refunds before the Louisiana Department of Revenue (LDR) transfers them to the states Unclaimed Property fund. Denka Performance Elastomer, a synthetic rubber manufacturing plant owned by a Japanese company of the same name, is located half a mile from an elementary school in St. John the Baptist Parish, where the air is laced with toxic chemicals emitted by dozens of different industrial facilities and more than 60 percent of residents are Black. "This action is not the first step we have taken to reduce risks to the people living in Saint John the Baptist Parish, and it will not be the last.". New Orleans, Louisiana 70130. Be the first to find out about the latest legal news, updates, tips, and other information. You must be signed in to submit this form. The suit claims that emissions remain so high that a child breathing air near certain monitors around the facilitys fence line would exceed their lifetime excess cancer risk within two years. In August, LDR sent Notice of Unclaimed Property letters to 20,400 individual and business taxpayers. Denkas facility is the only one in the country that makes neoprene, a type of synthetic rubber used for wetsuits and mousepads, a process which releases the carcinogen chloroprene. Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry Loading. Maite Amorebieta is a senior investigative producer with the NBC News Investigative Unit. The air samples were taken at or across the street from a nearby elementary school. Please click here to see any active alerts. Denka's facility is along a stretch of the Mississippi River that activists and residents have nicknamed "Cancer Alley" because of the unusually high cancer risk among communities there and the emissions that come from the numerous plants in the area. EPA is finally treating this health crisis for what it isan emergency. What remains to be seen, she told Grist in an email, is how much and how fast it will be enforced. An official website of the United States government. Deena Tumeh, an attorney at the environmental watchdog Earthjustice, said in a statement that the complaint is a long-awaited answer to the communitys repeated calls for immediate action. Unveiled on Tuesday, the lawsuit alleges emissions at the Pontchartrain Works facility in Reserve, Louisiana, violate the Clean Air Act and present an imminent and substantial endangerment to public health and welfare. This complaint filed against Denka delivers on that promise.. If you have any questions regarding TEFRAs, Contracts, or Resolutions - you may contact Michelle Boutte at bouttem@ag.louisiana.gov or Monica Reed at reedm@ag.louisiana.gov. Director: Joe Picone More Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Twitter, Follow us on Its litigation reflects the diversity of government activities, involving, for example, the defense of challenges to state programs, actions and laws; debt collection owed to the state; and protection of the states natural resources, lands and water bottoms. St. Charles Parish Waterworks Water Bill Redirecting to account lookup page. 1999-2023 Grist Magazine, Inc. All rights reserved. It was part of the Biden administrations effort to spotlight concerns of environmental justice, a term that refers to the disproportionate pollution borne by so many low income communities of color across the country. The complaint asserts that the LaPlace plants operations present an imminent and substantial endangerment to public health and welfare due to the cancer risks from Denkas chloroprene emissions. But on-site inspections by the EPA in April and May 2022 found that Denkawas not meeting regulatory requirements for the storage and disposal of chloroprene waste, which contributes to emissions of chloroprene from the plant. In total, those changes have cost more than $35 million, the company said in its statement. The lawsuit also names a subsidiary of the US chemicals giant DuPont, which constructed the Pontchartrain Works facility as a neoprene plant and operated it for over half a century. Our suit aims to stop Denkas dangerous pollution.. Taxpayers can minimize delays in receiving their refunds by updating their contact information with LDR. To set up payment arrangements, please contact ODR at 225-219-2188 or 844-330-6176. WASHINGTON Federal officials sued a Louisiana chemical maker on Tuesday, alleging that it presents an unacceptable cancer risk to the nearby majority-Black community and demanding . The Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services works to keep children safe, helps individuals and families become self-sufficient and operates shelters during disasters. Oversees all departmentoperations. have been levied for prior non payment. In a statement Tuesday, EPA Administrator Michael Regan said the Justice Department's move followed his pledge to take strong action for communities living near the plant. Our mission is to protect and serve all residents of Southeast Louisiana through enforcement of the laws of the United States. Provides follow-up investigation services for the Criminal Division; responds to requests for investigative assistance from government agencies, including the apprehension of fugitives; and provides investigative services in cyber crimes, white collar crimes, and public corruption. That year, the agency published data indicating that the risk of developing cancer from air pollution in the census tract closest to Denka was nearly 50 times the national average, a result of the plants chloroprene emissions. Director: Chris Hebert, Louisiana Bureau of Investigation Provides legal representation to the State, its agencies, and its employees in all tort claims seeking damages and defends claims managed by the ORM or any post-secondary education institution granted an exemption from the States risk management program. This action is not the first step we have taken to reduce risks to the people living in St John the Baptist Parish, and it will not be the last.. 2021 Recap Video. WASHINGTON Today, on behalf of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and in coordination with the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a complaint under Section 303 of the Clean Air Act against Denka Performance Elastomer LLC (Denka) to compel Denka to significantly reduce hazardous chloroprene emissions from its neoprene manufacturing facility in LaPlace, Louisiana. This complaint filed against Denka delivers on that promise. Custom payment integrations and software development. Sonia Mallett has spent the majority of the last 25 years serving with the Louisiana Department of Justice. What should I do if I believe I have paid this debt? Sign In Serves as legal advisor and legal representative to all Louisiana gaming regulatory agencies. The US justice department has sued the two petrochemical giants behind a facility in Louisiana's "Cancer Alley" responsible for the highest cancer risk rates caused by air pollution in the . This complaint seeks to compel Denka to eliminate the public health endangerment caused by its emissions by greatly reducing the levels of chloroprene to which this community is being exposed. After the visit, Regan sent a letter to Denka urging executives to take steps to reduce the threat to those living in the surrounding towns of Laplace and Reserve. The remaining approximately $9.5 million in funds will be transferred by law to the Unclaimed Property Division of the state treasurers office later this month if not claimed by Oct. 6. THERE IS NO RIGHT TO PRIVACY IN THIS SYSTEM. Can you tell if a bomb train is coming to your town? Box 94005 Baton Rouge, LA 708049005 (225) 326-6079. Moreover, our priorities go beyond prosecuting criminals and litigating cases, as we serve our community through a variety ofoutreach programs, community resources, and victim-witness services. 1-877-297-0995 constituentservices@ag.louisiana.gov MENU Home About Divisions News Resources Collections Contact Search Protecting Innocence This form needs Javascript to display, which your browser doesn't support. & authorize PayStar to process this payment along with the service fee of $0.00 which will also be charged to the credit/debit card. Create an Account The Justice Departments environmental justice efforts require ensuring that every community, no matter its demographics, can breathe clean air and drink clean water. Environmental lawyers and residents of St. John have petitioned state and federal authorities to do more to tamp down Denkas emissions for years. The lawyers and staff in our office work hard every day to defend our national security, improve the safety and quality of life in all our communities through enforcement of federal laws, and protect the public funds of the United States. YouTube, Follow us on She also served as Executive Counsel to Louisiana State Employees' Retirement System and practiced law with a Baton Rouge firm. Serves as the principal liaison between the Attorney General's Office, the media, and the public. Note: This system may contain Sensitive But Unclassified (SBU) data that requires specific data privacy handling. Louisiana Bureau of Investigation Provides follow-up investigation services for the Criminal Division; responds to requests for investigative assistance from government agencies, including the apprehension of fugitives; and provides investigative services in cyber crimes, white collar crimes, and public corruption. On Jan. 23, taxpayers can begin filing their state income tax returns electronically through Louisiana File Online, the states free web portal for individual tax filers. The parish sits along the Mississippi River just north of New Orleans in the states main industrial corridor, a region commonly known as Cancer Alley., This brings us hope, said Mary Hampton, president of the local advocacy group Concerned Citizens of St. John, which was founded in 2016. An official website of the United States government. If you have moved or changed your name since your last tax filing, update your contact information at www.revenue.louisiana.gov/AddressChange. EPA administrator Michael Regan said in a statement that he had promised strong action for community members during a site visit to Reserve in November 2021. Neoprene is a synthetic rubber found in products such as wetsuits and adhesives. Mary Hampton, another founder of Concerned Citizens of St John Parish, said the lawsuit was the culmination of years of advocacy from community members and represented that finally we have a little hope. 3 min read. 0:00 / 3:50. Pay.gov requires the use of cookies. The justice department complaint does not directly specify that Denka should reduce its emissions to the 0.2 micrograms lifetime exposure recommendation, but cites the guidance throughout the complaint. All data contained on U.S. Government information systems is owned by the U.S. Government and may, for the purpose of protecting the rights and property of the U.S. Government, be monitored, intercepted, recorded, read, searched, copied, or captured in any manner and disclosed or used for any lawful government purpose at any time. On Tuesday, residents and advocates celebrated the news, describing it as justice long overdue. U.S. Government information systems are provided for the processing of official U.S. Government information only. DPE is in compliance with its air permits and applicable law. Jan. 27, 202206:15. Denkas facility manufactures neoprene, a flexible, synthetic rubber used to produce common goods like wetsuits, beverage cozies, laptop sleeves, orthopedic braces, and automotive belts and hoses. The EPA said it found during an investigation that state agencies had failed to provide residents with information about the cancer risks associated with chloroprene levels in the area, among other problems. Here's How, When I visited Saint John the Baptist Parish during my first Journey to Justice tour, I pledged to the community that EPA would take strong action to protect the health and safety of families from harmful chloroprene pollution from the Denka facility, Regan said. DuPont sold the plant to Denka in 2015 in a secretive deal, which the Guardian later revealed was motivated by concerns from DuPont that it would face heavier regulation after the EPAs decision to classify chloroprene as a likely human carcinogen. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. PayStar Payment Portal PayStar Payment Portal 95 Louisiana Attorney General Louisiana Attorney General Educational Other Debt Revenue State Agency Cancel P.O. Last January, the environmental watchdog Earthjustice, on behalf of the local advocacy group Concerned Citizens of St. John and the Sierra Club, filed a civil rights complaint with the EPA against Louisianas health department and environmental agency for subjecting Black residents of St. John to disproportionate air pollution from numerous industrial facilities, including Denka. 49:251.1, the Department of Justice has provided training for Louisiana's justices of the peace and constables each year since 1972. The complaint also names DuPont Specialty Products USA LLC the owner of the land beneath Denkas facility and Denkas landlord. The office, closed in 2012 due to state budget cuts, will re-open on Monday, Dec. 19, 2022. EPA is taking an unprecedented step deviating from its permitting and rulemaking authorities to allege an emergency based on outdated and erroneous science the agency released over 12 years ago, the statement said. EPA administrator gives update on commitment to curbing pollution in communities of color. . 0:10. Louisianas Department of Environmental Quality reached an agreement with Denka requiring the company to install pollution controls in 2017. For returns submitted electronically, taxpayers due refunds can expect them within 45 days of the filing date. 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