BATON ROUGE, LA – Officials with the Capital Area Transit System reassured the public Tuesday that the latest round of indictments tied to the agency’s ongoing theft and misappropriation case would not require any budget changes, explaining that criminal exposure was “fully anticipated during the planning phase.”
According to leadership, financial projections have long included a margin for arrests, resignations, and sudden employee unavailability due to legal obligations. Officials described the indictments as “operationally neutral,” noting that service levels were already performing at baseline expectations.
“This does not change anything,” a spokesperson said. “The buses were late before. They will remain late now. From a rider perspective, this is continuity.”
Internal documents reportedly list a standing contingency category for “legal interruptions,” positioned between fuel costs and outside consulting fees. One official confirmed the line item has existed for several budget cycles and has “never once been underutilized.”
Riders interviewed said the announcement was unsurprising. “I didn’t know they had a budget,” one commuter said. “But it makes sense they planned for this part.”
Agency leadership emphasized that future indictments are expected and encouraged the public not to overreact, explaining that CATS has previously operated through audits, strikes, empty buses, and prolonged investigations without noticeable impact.
CATS leadership confirmed the agency remains fully operational and sees no reason to adjust expectations, noting that consistency has always been the system’s strongest performance metric.
