With the Legislature eyeing a fiscal session in the spring of 2025, Revenue Secretary Richard Nelson says he is beginning to work on policy proposals related to the income tax.
Both Nelson and Gov. Jeff Landry supported an elimination as gubernatorial candidates last year, but that doesn’t mean the concept will be a slam dunk.
“To just say we’re going to get rid of the income tax right off the bat [in the fiscal session] next year is going to be a difficult sale in all practicality,” Nelson says during the latest episode of the LaPolitics Report podcast. “I think that’s a good end goal to have, saying, ‘How do we put all the pieces in place so it’s a possibility?’”
Internally, Nelson says he has named Jarrod Coniglio as his deputy secretary at the Revenue Department. Coniglio will be a source of institutional knowledge at the department, having served in the same role under former Secretary Tim Barfield. Listen to the podcast now on both Spotify and Apple.
THE IMPEACHMENT MANAGER: Acadiana Congressman Clay Higgins has been named as a manager for the impeachment trial of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Higgins accused Mayorkas of refusing to comply with federal immigration laws and acting “in a manner subversive to the rule of law.” But getting a two-thirds vote to convict may be all but impossible in the Democrat-controlled Senate. Senate leaders are expected to act by the end of the month and work to bring the proceedings to a swift end, possibly by simply dismissing the charges without a full trial.
MJ TARGETS AI: U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson of Caddo Parish has launched a bipartisan task force focused on artificial intelligence. The group will produce a report that includes “guiding principles, forward-looking recommendations and bipartisan policy proposals in consultation with committees of jurisdiction,” according to Johnson’s office. Congressmen Jay Obernolte and Ted Lieu of California will be the Republican and Democratic co-chairs, respectively. Efforts in Congress to pass legislation addressing AI have so far stalled. In October, President Joe Biden issued an executive order meant to address concerns around AI while promoting American innovation in the space.
THEY SAID IT: “Texas has got so much money. They’re spending $400 million to fix the Alamo up. I’m about fixing our state.” — U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, on the plan by Gov. Jeff Landry to send Louisiana National Guard troops to the Texas border, on WBRZ-TV
Jeremy Alford publishes LaPolitics Weekly, a newsletter on Louisiana politics, at LaPolitics.com. Follow him on Twitter, or Facebook. He can be reached at JJA@LaPolitics.com.
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