A better method for keeping track of Port Arthur residents that they are being hired for local jobs may be on the way.

The Port Arthur City Council listened to a presentation by Gayle Botley regarding the creation and maintenance of local employees and contractors in a database. Software would be developed that could be audited for the verification of the information given.

Mayor Pro Tem Michael “Shane” Sinegal” thinks the database will be helpful in employment verification.

“You send a kid in who’s drug-free, clean-cut, dressed right with his shirt tucked in and you think he’ll be interviewed or tested for the job and he doesn’t get the interview or the testing and you don’t know why. This will give me the data,” Sinegal said. “The kid may not have the training, but they’re (industries) supposed to be giving on-the-job-training. “It’s not about beating up on industry, but we need to hold industry accountable. It’s up to the (city) council because we give them (industry) the incentive agreements.”

City Manager Stephen Fitzgibbons said industry can’t be held accountable without the numbers.

“We don’t want to beat up on industry, but they need to live up to their end of the bargain. And if industry can’t improve (in hiring locals), they’re going to lose it,” he said.

Mayor Deloris “Bobbie” Prince was curious if the data could be retrieved from three to five years ago. Botley said the data should be available from that time.

Councilmember Willie “Bae” Lewis believes the city has not had their fair share of consideration in industry hiring practices and he’s in favor of budgeting for the hiring of a city compliance officer in the future.

The council also approved the awarding of contracts for the demolition and reconstruction of 14 Hurricane Rita damaged houses to James W. Turner Construction in the amount of $1,019,005.