VIDALIA — Legislation to change the way the state of Louisiana handles human services may be coming.

Victor Dennis talked to the Concordia Parish Police Jury Monday night about a plan to create human services districts, which would be responsible for managing the funds and employees needed for a set group of parishes.

Concordia would share a district with eight surrounding parishes, and the jury would appoint a parish resident to serve on the district advisory board.

Currently, one state office manages human services. Money made or left over goes back to the Baton Rouge office, but if district existed, Dennis said, the parishes would be allowed to keep leftover money for human services needs.

The plan has not yet been voted on by the legislature, and Dennis is working to educate parishes across the state about the possible change.

He invited all the jury members to attend a meeting in October or November in Alexandria to further discuss the details of a district.

“This is not going to be a tomorrow project,” Dennis said. “It’s going to take at least two years to do it.”

Dennis told the jury that they would have to decide whether or not they were a part of the local district, but the jury members felt differently.

“If it’s an act of the legislature, it doesn’t matter what we say,” Temple said. “It may be one of those unfunded mandates.”

Temple said he was worried that the “leftover money” Dennis spoke of would actually never exist, and that the state might decided at some point to stop funding the districts.

In other business:

The jury voted to accept the low bid from Soil Stabilizers for $564,887 to do roadwork on Mooselodge and Bob Rife roads. The funds for the project are left over from USDA funds for other roadwork in the parish. Approximately one mile of each road will be hard surfaced. Jury President Melvin Ferrington said he was hopeful work could begin by the end of the year.

The jury will have two public hearings at their Oct. 12 meeting. One hearing will be to discuss a 5-ton load limit on numerous parish roads. The other hearing will be to discuss using Louisiana Recovery Act funds to make improvements to the old courthouse in Vidalia and to the Ferriday water plant.