As the Gonzales City Council prepares for Monday’s vote on the city's budget , at least two council members say they will not approve it because it includes more than $280,000 for several job positions not created by the council.

The budget conflict concerns how much power Mayor Tim Riley should wield. Several council members insist the mayor must seek council approval when creating new government jobs in his administration, pointing to an ordinance created roughly two decades ago that says as much.

Riley argues the ordinance violates the Lawrason Act, which states that no “ordinance may limit the authority granted to the mayor by this Paragraph.” Earlier this year, he asked the Louisiana Attorney General for an opinion on whether the ordinance unlawfully infringes on his mayoral pow

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