In a matter of minutes Thursday, the state Senate overwhelmingly approved three bills in a four-bill package that would change pensions for newly hired New Orleans firefighters and end a decades-old feud with city government.
Those three bills head to Gov. John Bel Edwards for his signature.
An agreement on the fourth measure was reached late Wednesday night, said Sen. JP Morrell, the New Orleans Democrat handling the House-passed bills in the upper chamber. The amendments weren’t ready by the time the Senate met Wednesday, so the final bill in package will be debated Friday, he said Thursday after the first three bills were approved.
The legislation represents the settlement of a dispute between successive mayors and city firefighters over back pay and pension support that has been going on for nearly 40 years. The battle most recently included dueling accusations about who was most at fault, two lawsuits, tens of millions of dollars in damages, and the threat of a contempt of court finding that nearly ended up with New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu being placed under house arrest. Generally under the pact, newly hired firefighters will have to work longer before retiring and receive less in benefits.