The Louisiana Legislature will go into a Special Session to address the state's major budget deficit in mid-February. On the table for this session are a number of tax increases proposed by newly inaugurated Gov. John Bel Edwards.
Happy New Year Louisiana Small Business Owners! We hope your 2016 is off to a great start and are excited about working with you to improve the business climate in Louisiana this year. But, we have an uphill fight and we need you and your fellow business owners to be engaged and active in the process.
The Louisiana Legislature will go into a Special Session to address the state’s major budget deficit in mid-February. On the table for this session are a number of tax increases proposed by newly inaugurated Gov. John Bel Edwards. While the proposal places the burden on all citizens – individuals and businesses – we did not see any proposals to cut state spending.
Additionally, Governor Edwards has already taken it upon himself to expand Medicaid which will ultimately cost the state additional dollars. He has vowed to pass “equal pay for equal work” which opens you up to additional paperwork and potential lawsuits. He has also proposed a new minimum wage for Louisiana at around $8.50 per hour.
Needless to say, I will have my hands full this Special Session and Regular Session fighting to make your voice heard. Please take this as a call to action now! Start reaching out to your local legislators and let them know how these taxes and government mandates will affect you. NFIB will keep you apprised of legislation affecting small business owners during the upcoming sessions and we just ask you to take the time to either respond to ballot questions or action alerts when you see them.
We have a great 2016 in store for NFIB members in Louisiana – engagement in the legislative process, Small Business Day at The Capitol, a US Senate Candidate forum, Congressional Roundtables in the fall and a lot of NFIB SAFE Trust PAC activity in the fall with candidate endorsements. Stay tuned for all of that!
Dawn Starns
State Director
NFIB/Louisiana
