The House passed bills on Tuesday that sharply cut Louisiana’s personal income tax, repeal the corporate franchise tax and rewrite the section of the state constitution that governs taxes and budgeting. Taken together, the proposals reduce tax revenue by nearly $2 billion annually. While the bills advanced with bipartisan support, there are still concerns from both sides of the aisle on what happens if lawmakers don’t approve new taxes to make up the lost revenue and where those taxes will fall hardest. The Times-Picayune | Baton Rouge Advocate’s Tyler Bridges reports:
Several Democrats Tuesday asked Rep. Julie Emerson, R-Carencro, the sponsor of the tax cut bills, what will happen if legislators do not approve the sales tax bills. Emerson said legislators would have to reduce spending or raise taxes in other ways to make up the difference. … In an interview afterward, Rep. Joe Stagni of Kenner said he was the only Republican to vote against HB3 “because it benefits out of state corporations. The entire package is being paid for on the backs of mom-and-pop businesses that are performing services and will be taxed under this plan.”
The House Ways and Means Committee will take up the more difficult part of Gov. Jeff Landry’s tax overhaul – around $1.4 billion in new and renewed sales taxes – on Wednesday. Bridges previews what’s on tap for a busy day at the Capitol:
Of the two sales tax bills that the Ways and Means Committee will hear on Wednesday, House Bill 9 by Rep. Neil Riser, R-Columbia, would raise $500 million a year by extending the state sales tax to such activities as interior decorating, personal fitness training, lobbying and personal shopping. House Bill 10 by Rep. Mark Wright, R-Covington, would raise $882 million per year by renewing a 0.45-cent sales tax scheduled to expire mid-2025, by making permanent a 2% tax on business utilities and by eliminating sales tax exemptions on dozens of purchases.
Reality check: Louisiana’s tax system needs to be improved, but this rushed special session is the wrong way to do it. The governor and his allies are pushing a plan that will mainly benefit corporations and the wealthy, while working and middle-class families will pay more for services and products they use every day. Learn more from our new tax session fact sheet.
Teacher pay proposal advances
The Legislature advanced two proposals on Tuesday aimed at replacing the temporary stipends that public school teachers and support staff have received in recent years with permanent raises. The Louisiana Illuminator’s Piper Hutchinson breaks down the scheme lawmakers are using to raise salaries and the strategy of folding the popular pay raise proposals into the governor’s larger, complicated tax overhaul package:
Together, House Bill 5 by Rep. Tony Bacala, R-Prairieville, and House Bill 7 by Rep. Julie Emerson, R-Carencro, would use constitutionally protected funds to pay down approximately $2 billion dollars in teacher retirement system debt and require local school districts to use money they would have put toward that debt to make a $2,000 stipend the Legislature provided on a temporary basis for two years a permanent part of teacher’s salaries. … Emerson’s bill is a constitutional amendment that requires voter approval and also contains several other constitutional changes required to make Republican Gov. Jeff Landry’s tax package complete. Tying in the teacher pay aspect could play a crucial role in turning out voters to support the amendment.
As Hutchinson notes, there are potential consequences for diverting dollars from education funds:
The three funds Emerson is seeking to use to pay down the debt – the Louisiana Quality Education Trust Fund, the Louisiana Education Quality Support Fund and the Education Excellence Fund – currently support various educational programs. Rep. Barbara Freiberg, R-Baton Rouge, a former teacher, said using those funds will lead to the elimination of 1,500 seats in early childhood education programs. The money also pays for certain higher education needs, including research and matching endowments.
Fixing the Social Security “windfall” provision
Approximately 90,000 former public-sector workers in Louisiana would be eligible to collect more Social Security benefits under legislation that advanced out of the U.S. House on Tuesday night. The Social Security Fairness Act – a top priority of U.S. Rep. Garret Graves of Baton Rouge – would eliminate federal provisions that reduce benefits for teachers, firefighters, police officers and other public employees who later moved to the private sector. The Shreveport Times’ Greg Hilburn reports:
It now moves to the U.S. Senate, where there is little time remaining in the current Congress for final passage. “For the first time ever, we gave Congress a chance to make things right and support our bill,” said Graves, who didn’t run for reelection after the boundaries of his 6th Congressional District was radically altered to create a majority Black district. “This was a hard-fought battle for the most popular bill in Congress. Our bill is equally popular in the Senate and should enjoy the same success.”
U.S. Education Department in Trump’s crosshairs
President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to eliminate the U.S. Department of Education, which administers federal dollars to schools with high poverty rates and students with disabilities, oversees the nation’s student loan program and enforces civil rights laws. But as the Washington Post’s Laura Meckler and Annabelle Timsit explain, Trump can’t shutter the agency on his own:
Doing so would not only require congressional approval but also a supermajority of 60 votes in the Senate as long as its filibuster rules remain in place. Politically, this would be difficult, if not impossible, with opposition from Democrats and probably some Republicans. … It’s unclear whether Trump would choose to make this a priority and expend political capital to fight this battle on Capitol Hill. On the campaign trail, several GOP candidates also called for closing the agency. But some conservatives are urging Trump to jettison the idea and instead use the agency’s powers to press conservative priorities.
Number of the Day
$1.4 billion – Annual tax revenue from the new and renewed sales taxes that are being proposed under Gov. Jeff Landry’s tax overhaul. The sales taxes on everyday products and services are meant to partially offset the tax cuts for corporations and individuals that are moving through the Legislature. (Source: The Legislative Fiscal Office via The Advocate)