Gov. Jeff Landry is urging state lawmakers to eliminate Louisiana’s personal income tax, and several bills to do so have been filed for the legislative session. But as the Louisiana Illuminator’s Wesley Muller reports, legislative leaders poured cold water on that idea for the 2026 session:
“We won’t do it at all this year,” Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, said when asked about the chances of repealing the state income tax. … Henry didn’t rule out the matter for consideration next year but said a modest income tax rate reduction would be more likely than a full repeal. He noted that one-half of a percentage point reduction in the income tax rate costs the state roughly $500 million annually.
Eliminating the state income tax and the revenue it generates would create a budget crisis and force legislators to make deep cuts to programs and services:
In a presentation to the House Ways & Means Committee Tuesday, legislative staffers who track the state’s revenue told lawmakers to beware of a potential shortfall as soon as next year. After nine years with annual cash surpluses, the state could now face an estimated deficit of $329 million by July 2027. Unless lawmakers take steps to reverse course, that deficit is forecast to balloon to over $900 million by 2030, according to the projections.
In 2024, Landry and state lawmakers replaced Louisiana’s progressive income-tax structure with a 3% flat rate, raised and expanded the state’s sales tax rate and eliminated the corporate franchise tax. The full effect of those changes remain unclear:
“We haven’t even gone through a full year of [tax] filings yet,” [House Speaker Phillip] Devillier said in a later interview, noting this tax season is the first for Louisiana under its new flat income tax rates.
Louisiana must also deal with the fiscal fallout from the federal tax and budget megabill, which shifts more costs from Washington to state budgets:
Jan Moller, executive director of Invest in Louisiana, said the state has so far seen a $42 million hit from the law with more expected to come. When the law takes full effect in 2027, he predicts the state could be on the hook for more than $400 million to keep Medicaid and food stamps funded. … “And we’re not even talking about the loss of coverage,” Moller said. “There’s people getting benefits now who are gonna lose those benefits … All in the name of paying for tax cuts for the wealthiest individuals and corporations.”
Louisiana needs more child welfare caseworkers
The head of the Department of Children and Family Services explained to state lawmakers on Tuesday ways her agency is improving its response to reports of neglect and abuse. The child welfare agency has come under intense scrutiny in recent years because of instances where it failed to follow up on reports that later led to child deaths. The Louisiana Illuminator’s Greg LaRose reports:
To reduce instances of child abuse ending with serious injury or death, [DCFS Secretary Rebecca] Harris said the department is now using what it’s calling a 3-by-3-by-3 rule. An investigation is triggered automatically if the agency receives three calls or reports of abuse within three months that meet one of three criteria: the call involves either the same victim, the same perpetrator or the same household.
State lawmakers urged Harris to request more money to fulfill the agency’s staffing needs:
“We can’t be so busy on what we call savings that we can’t give you what you need to take care of children,” (Sen. Katrina) Jackson-Andrews said. Harris has previously said she would not increase department staffing and instead would lean on technology and training to improve services. After Tuesday’s hearing, the secretary said she would be making a request for additional staffing and new vehicles for the agency’s field workers.
State Sen. Regina Barrow has filed legislation to dismantle DCFS and transfer its duties to other state agencies.
The many benefits of increasing the minimum wage
Minimum wage policies improve the lives of hardworking people by helping them make ends meet and care for their families. A new fact sheet from the Urban Institute explains how minimum wage policies raise the wage floor for all employees:
Based on the US Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey data from 1979 to 2014, nearly 8 percent of all workers earned within 10 percent of the effective minimum wage. Some estimates show that increases to the federal minimum wage would impact at least one-third of all workers in the US. Studies show that minimum wage laws also increase wages for some workers already above the threshold.
Minimum wage increases also encourage economic mobility:
When wage floors rise, workers save more, move to better jobs more frequently, experience improved job quality and greater financial well-being, and enjoy better prospects for economic mobility. Minimum wage increases are also associated with reduced debt and increased access to credit for households with low credit score. … Urban Institute research estimates that raising minimum wages to $15 would benefit millions of Black workers, reducing wage gaps and improving job quality in some sectors.
Minimum wage policies do not hurt local economies:
Increases in minimum wages have been shown to raise household spending and bolster local economies, and, in general, have not been shown to negatively affect overall employment. Dube and Lindner showed that city-level policies do not substantially change labor market allocations. Additionally, IRLE did not find significant negative effects on overall employment. Similarly, Derenoncourt and Montialoux found no evidence that the original extension of the federal minimum wage led to job losses.
Louisiana doesn’t have a state minimum wage and defaults to the federal minimum of $7.25 per hour. Three bills (Senate Bill 230, House Bill 209, House Bill 353) have been filed for the Louisiana legislative session to correct the problem.
WIC can help improve perinatal and child health
The federal Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) finances healthy foods and other support for pregnant and postpartum women and their children. A new report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities explains how too many eligible moms are not enrolled in the program.
People who are enrolled in Medicaid are automatically income-eligible for WIC, and both programs reach a significant portion of the roughly 2 million eligible infants. But while Medicaid reaches most eligible children and parents,[2]WIC reaches less than half of eligible pregnant people and young children. Among all WIC-eligible Medicaid enrollees, 56 percent do not participate in WIC. Among pregnant Medicaid enrollees, a staggering 85 percent do not participate in WIC even though they are all income eligible.
Number of the Day
33% – Percentage of Americans who skipped a meal, drove less or cut back on other expenses in order to afford health care. (Source: Gallup)