City Hall spats, missed warnings: How New Orleans spiraled into 'wild' $160M budget crisis

In late January, top officials in Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s administration were divided over a key question about a proposed multi-million dollar settlement with New Orleans schools: Could the city even afford the deal?

On one side was Romy Samuel, the city’s finance director. She warned in a draft letter to the City Council of a “serious deficit which is projected to worsen by mid-year,” and noted potential doomsday consequences, including the possibility that the city would falter on payroll and vendor payment obligations.

On the other was her boss, then-Chief Administrative Officer Gilbert Montaño, Cantrell’s budget chief. Montaño cast doubt on the problem’s severity in a Jan. 27 email to Samuel debating the letter’s wording. He favored presenting the situation in gentler terms — rem