Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards (D) has now issued his anticipated call for a second special legislative session in 2018 (from May 22nd to June 4th). This 14-day special session is meant to address a stated $648 million budget shortfall, commonly known as the “fiscal cliff.” This will be the sixth special session called since January of … Continue Reading
The Louisiana Legislature’s 2017 Regular Session has now concluded, and as previously reported, numerous tax measures were proposed. Ultimately, however, much of the proposed legislation addressing long-term tax reform was largely rejected by the Legislature during the Regular Session, leaving questions currently unanswered as to how the state will ultimately address the long-term issue of … Continue Reading
Standing on the edge of a $1.3 billion fiscal cliff, Governor John Bel Edwards (D‑La.) announced his 2017 Budget Stabilization Plan, which he intends to pursue during the 2017 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature beginning on April 10, 2017. The Plan notes that Louisiana is operating under a broken, outdated system, “that just simply does … Continue Reading
The Louisiana Task Force on Structural Changes in Budget & Tax Policy recently released its recommendations to reform Louisiana’s sales and use tax, individual income tax, corporate income & franchise taxes, ad valorem property tax and economic development incentives. The highlights of the Task Force’s recommendations include: Sales and Use Tax: Expand the sales and use … Continue Reading
Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Revenue and former Jones Walker LLP State & Local Tax Partner, Kimberly Robinson, sat down with our own Bill Backstrom and Jay Adams to discuss a few of the items that she will discuss at the Jones Walker SALT Team’s annual seminar in Houston, Texas on Thursday, October 6, 2016. … Continue Reading
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards has released his Call for the Second Special Session in 2016. The special session will begin at 6:30 p.m. on June 6, 2016, which is 30 minutes after the regular session ends. The special session will end on June 23, 2016. The Call focuses on the Governor’s tax plan, which was released … Continue Reading
Today, Louisiana Governor Edwards called for a special session of the Louisiana Legislature to begin on February 14, 2016 and end no later than March 9, 2016. The session has been called to address the current year $700 million budget deficit and a number of tax issues, including: Amend the Constitution “relative to deductible items … Continue Reading
Louisiana Governor Edwards’ Transition Committee on Fiscal Matters released its much-anticipated report on the Louisiana budget and taxes. In order to address Louisiana’s structural deficit, the Transition Committee offered the following options to reform the Louisiana tax system: Reduce Louisiana’s individual income tax rates across the board, if the voters agree to eliminate the deduction … Continue Reading
The Louisiana Department of Revenue has just issued a press release announcing that the 2015 tax amnesty program, scheduled to begin yesterday, November 16, 2015, has been delayed until December 1, 2015. The 30-day tax amnesty period will now run from December 1, 2015 until December 31, 2015. The delay results from an error in some … Continue Reading
Today, the 2015 tax amnesty program begins and will continue through December 15, 2015. In connection with the program, on November 3 the Louisiana Department of Revenue issued its Revenue Information Bulletin (RIB) No. 2015-037 providing taxpayers with specific information on this year’s amnesty. Notably, unlike the language of Act 822 (2014 Reg. Sess.) upon which the 2015 … Continue Reading
State & Local Tax Partners, Jesse R. “Jay” Adams, III, William M. Backstrom,Jr., John F. Fletcher, and Kimberly Lewis Robinson, were all quoted in the recent Bloomberg BNA article, “Corporate Taxpayers Face Changes in Louisiana, Mississippi, Attorneys Say.” The partners discuss how legislative sessions in 2014 and 2015 and some notable cases have brought significant changes … Continue Reading
Katie Friel, a partner in the New Orleans office, published an article entitled “‘Polychim’ Puts Louisiana Corporate Franchise Tax Against the Ropes,” in the July 17, 2015 edition of Bloomberg BNA’s Daily Tax Report. In the article, Katie examines the Louisiana First Circuit Court of Appeal’s new ruling in Bridges v. Polychim USA, Inc., rejecting—as it … Continue Reading
There’s a children’s book, “The Goose That Almost Got Cooked,” which tells the story of a Canadian goose who takes a break from her flight south for the winter to rest at a lovely farm where the other geese are fed three meals a day. The Canadian goose thinks this is the life until discovering one … Continue Reading
As the Texas Legislature wraps up its legislature session today, June 1, 2015, the Texas Legislature has approved a number of tax cuts to be sent to Governor Abbott. These tax cuts are expected to provide $3.8 billion in relief to Texas businesses and homeowners. First, the Texas Legislature adopted H.B. 32, which creates a … Continue Reading
The Louisiana Legislature’s ever-evolving tax and revenue “gumbo pot” is now really getting hot! And, as of this moment, the business community is still being served up as the main course. On May 18th, the Senate Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Committee moved forward several key tax bills that have already passed out of the Louisiana House of … Continue Reading
Don’t blink! Pay close attention, because things are moving quickly right now at the Louisiana Legislature! The Senate Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Committee met Monday, May 11th to hear a series of tax bills, including bills to implement combined reporting and an add-back provision for corporate income tax and clean-up provisions for the Louisiana Board … Continue Reading
The Louisiana House of Representatives took a major step yesterday in addressing the $1.6 billion budget hole for the 2016 fiscal year. All in, the House moved forward approximately $664 million in revenue raising bills, in spite of many protests by business and industry representatives. While the stated goal of many legislators was to have the burden … Continue Reading
On Friday, the Louisiana First Circuit Court of Appeal issued its highly-anticipated opinion in Cynthia Bridges, Secretary, Department of Revenue v. Polychim USA, Inc. In Polychim, the First Circuit considered whether the district court properly granted summary judgment in favor of the Louisiana Department of Revenue (the “Department”) in its holding that Polychim was subject … Continue Reading
We anticipated it was going to be a busy day for the folks at the Louisiana Legislature on Monday. And they certainly didn’t disappoint! Tornadoes, thunderstorms, floods, and power outages couldn’t stop the Louisiana House Ways & Means Committee from meeting late into the night yesterday to discuss – and pass through – many tax bills, all in … Continue Reading
