Donations to the Elect Bridget Neal Campaign are not tax deductible.
True reform requires more than cooperation among elected branches, it demands a strategic examination of the institutional structures and practices that shape how New Orleans is actually governed.
The Circular Dysfunction
New Orleans, a city of just 370,000 residents, now supports nearly 100 external entities that operate alongside, rather than in concert with city government. Many were created as well-intentioned workarounds for chronic governance failures. But while these entities were established to “monitor” City Hall, City Hall was simultaneously building a siloed service system reliant on third-party contractors.
Yet monitoring City Hall and its service delivery is not a community shared responsibility, it is the core mandate of the City Council, backed by real budget authority. If the Council itself struggles to hold City Hall accountable, what chance do powerless external entities have? And what, exactly, is the taxpayer’s return on investment for this sprawling, duplicative governance structure?
It is structural insanity.
The Result: Boards spend their time critiquing City Hall’s lack of progress without recognizing that City Hall no longer has the capacity to execute basic city services. City staff are blamed for service failures they neither control nor deliver. Contractors escape scrutiny. A frustrated City Council begins to resemble an opposition bloc rather than a governing partner.
All the while, residents are left watching from the sidelines, wondering who’s in charge and whether this circular dysfunction can even be broken.
The Miami-Dade Model: Miami-Dade County has operated successfully under a “two-tier federation” system since 1957, serving as a proven model for streamlined governance. Unlike full consolidation, this approach maintains 34 municipalities while creating clear divisions of responsibility: cities handle local services (police, fire, zoning) while the county provides regional coordination and services to unincorporated areas.
This model has demonstrated remarkable sustainability over nearly seven decades, avoiding the fragmentation and accountability gaps that plague New Orleans. Miami-Dade’s success shows how governance can be rationalized without eliminating local identity—exactly what Neal’s proposal aims to achieve by cutting redundant oversight entities while strengthening core city functions.
Donations to the Elect Bridget Neal Campaign are not tax deductible.