BATON ROUGE, LA – Following a series of misconduct allegations, the Capital Area Transit System announced a new internal initiative designed to rebuild public confidence by formally adjusting what it considers acceptable levels of employee theft.
Agency leadership described the move as a “trust-forward recalibration,” explaining that large theft figures can overwhelm taxpayers and distract from the agency’s broader mission. By lowering acceptable limits, officials say future incidents will feel more manageable, relatable, and easier to contextualize.
“When the numbers get too big, people stop listening,” said a CATS spokesperson. “This policy is about keeping things within a range the public can emotionally process.”
Under the proposal, larger losses will be reclassified as operational discrepancies, while smaller amounts will still qualify as misconduct, though officials emphasized those cases would remain rare, isolated, and unrelated to leadership oversight.
CATS officials stressed that the agency is not endorsing theft, but rather acknowledging that unrealistic expectations around zero tolerance have contributed to unnecessary public alarm.
Leadership said the revised standards demonstrate a commitment to transparency and realism, noting that trust is not lost because money goes missing, but because too much goes missing too quickly.
Officials confirmed the updated theft limits would be reviewed annually, or sooner if public outrage exceeds acceptable tolerance thresholds.
