BATON ROUGE - After lawmakers restructured the makeup of the BREC board with the five mayors in East Baton Rouge Parish, another wants to add more representation.

Currently, the five mayors of East Baton Rouge Parish, or their designees, and four members chosen by the “governing authority of city of Baton Rouge, parish of East Baton Rouge, for three-year terms”, but there are concerns about whether that is enough representation for the various areas in the city-parish.

State Rep. C. Denise Marcelle is trying to add two additional seats to the BREC board, consisting of the members of the La. Senate representing District 14 and a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives who represents District 61. Like the mayors, those serving in these roles could also designate members to serve in their place on the commission.

Currently, Larry Selders and C. Denise Marcelle, respectively, serves in those roles. According to voting records for the legislation that changed the composition of the BREC board in 2025, the state senate unanimously supported the measure, while Marcelle and 66 other state representatives voted against it.

Last year, the mayors from Baker and Central both weighed in. At the time, Baker Mayor Darnell Waites told WBRZ he wanted better representation for the city of Baker. Central Mayor Wade Evans, at the time, said he wanted to see the condition of parks in his town improve and that it would happen if he served on the board.

The bill is awaiting a hearing in the Committee on Municipal, Parochial, and Cultural Affairs.