Jerome Zeringue (R-52nd District) is a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives. He has been in office since 2016. In 2020 he sponsored a bill in the Louisiana House of Representatives, HB197, that would add “ water control structures, including floodgates and pump stations to the list of critical infrastructure”. In reality, the bill was designed to punish opponents of the fossil fuel industry. Itwould dramatically increase penalties for trespassing on fossil fuel sites during a state of emergency, with a minimum prison sentence of three years and a maximum sentence of fifteen years. The bill was vetoed by Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards,
According to an article in the Huffington Post, there have been protests against the construction of a $9.4 billion petrochemical complex that would double toxic emissions in a region of Louisiana that has already been branded “Cancer Alley”. On top of the increased public health concerns, the land that they were planning to complete construction on contains the unmarked graves of enslaved black workers who used to work on the plantation where construction is taking place. According to one of the protesters, who has ancestors buried on the construction grounds, “These are our loved ones who are responsible for this great nation having free labor to build itself,” and the addition of the new bill proposed by Rep. Zeringue that if passed, would give felony charges to the protesters is, “just going back to slavery”.
In the same article it states that oil companies, such as Marathon Petroleum, Koch Industries, and Valero have donated $16,566 to Rep. Zeringue over the last two years, with a majority of that money being donated in 2019 after he helped pass the bill.
See also:
Sen. Bill Cassidy
Climate of Denial