Why Louisiana towns ask for public input before a grant application

Kaplan’s upcoming public hearing offers a local example of a step Louisiana requires before a town develops a Community Development Block Grant application. The state’s Office of Community Development says a local government must develop and adopt a Citizen Participation Plan before developing an application. The same guidance says the plan must be available to the public at the beginning of the planning stage.

Those two requirements put public input at the start of the grant-planning process: the town adopts a participation plan, then makes that plan available while it is shaping the application. The state places public-notice and hearing requirements within citizen participation.

Kaplan’s Oct. 7 public notice calls for ideas about housing and community-development needs as the city discusses a possible fiscal-year 2027 application. The hearing is set for 9 a.m. Oct. 14 at City Hall.

For Kaplan residents, the immediate opportunity is to bring forward a need the city should consider while it is planning. The accompanying Kaplan hearing brief gives the meeting and written-comment details.