A bill that aims to hike the minimum wage in Louisiana was temporarily put on pause today after questions surfaced about how much it would increase the pay of state workers.
The delay was requested by the Governor’s Office, which still hopes to move forward with the legislation, one of Gov. John Bel Edwards’ centerpiece policy proposals.
Senate Bill 269 by Sen. Karen Carter Peterson, D-New Orleans, would slowly inch the state minimum wage up from its current rate of $7.25 per hour to $8 next year and then to $8.50 in 2018. Supporters say negotiations are ongoing.
The business lobby has put up a strong defense to stop the bill, but news last week about the cost to state government, for paying its 200 or so minimum wage workers more, may have worked to the lobby’s advantage for now.
The pay bump would reportedly cost the state more than $200,000 annually. Private companies have argued this session that if they had to absorb such a cost, they would have to trigger layoffs in their businesses.
—Gov. John Bel Edwards met with some 300 faith and community leaders today to discuss the state’s tax structure and the aftereffects of the Legislature’s first special session that resulted in a temporary sales tax increase.
Held at Mount Zion First Baptist Church and hosted by Together Louisiana, a coalition of religious congregations and civic organizations, the event highlighted an analysis of the special session conducted by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy.
“It’s now obvious to just about everyone that we need major changes to our state’s tax system, to make it less egregiously unfair and bring in enough money to run the state,” said the Rev. Lee T. Wesley, a member of Together Louisiana. “What’s most urgently needed is the political will, the sense of urgency among both elected officials and citizens, to stop passing the buck and start solving the problem.”
The findings presented included the assertion that the increased tax burden approved by lawmakers earlier this year falls far more heavily on low and moderate income earners.
For example, the Together Louisiana presentation suggested that the lowest-income families in Louisiana—the bottom 40% making less than $32,000 annually—now face a tax increase that’s six times greater as a percentage of their income than the top 1% of Louisiana earners who make $1.2 million per year on average.
During his remarks, the governor agreed that the sales tax hike was not the best option in terms of the way it impacts impoverished citizens and pointed to a coming overhaul of Louisiana’s tax system in 2017.
—The House Ways and Means Committee today approved a bill that would require online retailers like Amazon to track purchases made by Louisiana residents and report to the state how much in sales taxes they owe.
It also would force online retailers to notify customers of their obligation to self-report, which would be accomplished with a simple document that would arrive inside shipping boxes and alongside purchases. Read more about HB 1121 by Speaker Pro Tem Walt Leger, D-New Orleans, in Friday’s LaPolitics report.
—Jeremy Alford
Jeremy Alford and Gordon Brillon will publish a daily update throughout the legislative regular session on Daily Report PM. Alford reports on Louisiana politics at LaPolitics.com. Follow him on Twitter or on Facebook. He can be reached atJJA@LaPolitics.com.
