Proposed legislation would bypass parish governments in the state.
The business community and NFIB are working to get a constitutional amendment that would create a centralized sales tax collection system in Louisiana on the October ballot, according to the Daily Comet.
If passed, the amendment could be implemented as early as January 2021. “That would give the Legislature the chance to educate itself, local governments the opportunity to explore the issue and lawmakers the shot to take their time creating statutory regulations,” said NFIB State Director Dawn Starns.
Although the details of the amendment are still unclear, it is expected to be written by State Rep. Tanner Magee. Currently, businesses in Louisiana pay sales tax to the 64 individual parish governments in the state. The amendment would make it so that businesses skip this and pay sales tax directly to the state, according to Red River Radio.
“The online sales tax component was the impetus for this, so it’s fitting that the Legislature would create the guidelines,” Starns said. “The legislation is broad for a reason, and at this point we have got to move forward.”
Legislators have already expressed some opposition to the amendment citing cash flow concerns.
