Budget & Taxes

An article in the Wall Street Journal earlier this week highlighted the importance of SNAP (which stands for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps) to Louisiana families. The article noted that, in August, nearly 20 percent of the state’s population—more than 900,000 people—received food stamps benefits under SNAP. Nationwide, the number was 15 percent of the population.

Louisiana’s sales tax holiday, scheduled to occur on the first Friday and Saturday in August, is one of the most generous in the nation. According to a policy brief by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), a non-partisan research organization, sales tax holidays put a strain on states’ budgets, and are too temporary to significantly change the regressive nature of a state’s tax structure. The exemption is projected to cost $3.7 million this year.