The Louisiana Legislature begins its 60 day regular session at noon today.
After both the House and Senate convene, Governor John Bel Edwards will deliver his State of the State address to a joint session.
High on the list of priorities are tax changes proposed by the Governor and state spending.
“The current tax and budgeting practices simply aren’t working for Louisiana and don’t provide a level playing field for both individuals and businesses,” Edwards has said. “Now, it’s up to us to find the courage to make the bold reforms that will allow us to invest in education, health care and other priorities that are important to the people of Louisiana. This isn’t about raising taxes. It’s about modernizing a broken system in Louisiana," the Governor says.
Edwards has released a plan that calls for raising some taxes and reducing others.
He has proposed the creation of a commercial activities tax which is facing strong opposition from business groups.
Edwards would exempt small businesses making less than $1.5 million per year. Of the 414,000 businesses in the state, 389,000 make less than $1.5 million annually. These businesses would be assessed a flat $250 tax, rather than the calculation for gross receipts.