Dow recently hosted a forum for candidates vying for Louisiana’s open 3rd Congressional District seat. Participating in the forum were state Rep. Damon Baldone, D-Houma, Charmaine Caccioppi, D-Raceland, Dr. Kevin Chiasson, R-Choupic, Charlie Melancon, D-Napoleanville, state Sen. Craig Romero, R-New Iberia, and Billy Tauzin III, R-Thibodaux.

Dow held the forum at its St. Charles Operations facility in Hahnville on Wednesday, October 20. The audience included current and retired Dow employees, local and state elected officials, members of the area Community Advisory Panel and members of the local chambers of commerce.

Dow is one of the largest employers in the district, which consists of 13 parishes, including St. Charles. Dow hosted the forum to help increase community awareness of the upcoming election and allow the Congressional candidates to discuss issues regarding the state of the petrochemical industry, the economy and the state. The chemical industry employs more than 7,500 workers and has a payroll of $307 million at plants in the 3rd Congressional District.

The candidates rallied around the ideas of expanding current business in the state and providing a level playing field for Louisiana producers. Tauzin and Caccioppi agreed that small business tax incentives need to be provided, while Melancon called for tax incentives and improved health care coverage. “Helping Louisiana businesses stay in business and providing jobs is key,” Melancon said. Caccioppi stressed the importance of working with industry to provide a business-friendly environment in the state and Baldone’s plan revolves around existing business and infrastructure, including the ongoing Millennium Port project and the state’s tourism industry. Romero cited examples of jobs brought into Iberia Parish during his tenure as parish president.

The candidates attributed high natural gas prices to simple supply and demand, as well as the nation’s dependence on foreign producers. All agreed that more domestic drilling was one answer – Tauzin’s plan included shallow and deep water drilling, Baldone stressed the need for liquefied natural gas terminals and Caccioppi and Chiasson called for renewable and alternative energy sources. According to Melancon, the nation is “too dependent on foreign countries” for oil and gas. Romero promised to be a “strong voice in Washington” to showcase the potential for Louisiana’s oil and gas production as an alternative to expanding drilling only in Florida.

On the subject of health care, all candidates seemed to rally around the idea of “fair trade, not free trade.” All agreed that cheaper prescription drugs should be available. Tauzin blamed the high cost of prescription drugs in the nation on frivolous lawsuits and Baldone called for speedier patenting of drugs. Romero likened the reimportation of Canadian drugs to the crawfish industry’s struggle against cheaper, imported Chinese crawfish.

Dow is a leader in science and technology, providing innovative chemical, plastic and agricultural products and services to many essential consumer markets. With annual sales of $33 billion, Dow serves customers in more than 180 countries and a wide range of markets that are vital to human progress, including food, transportation, health and medicine, personal and home care, and building and construction, among others. Committed to the principles of sustainable development, Dow and its approximately 46,000 employees seek to balance economic, environmental and social responsibilities. References to "Dow" or the "Company" mean The Dow Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries unless otherwise expressly noted. St. Charles Operations is owned by Union Carbide Corporation, which is a subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company.