Components of Governor Jeff Landry’s massive tax reform plan continue to receive favorable approval from the House Ways and Means Committee. The panel has approved legislation to lower the corporate income tax businesses have to pay from 7.5 percent to 3.5 percent. Economic Development Secretary Susan Bourgeois says this will help bring more jobs to the state.
“If you look at the states that have no or less tax than we do, they are seeing it immediately, it’s a very real thing, we hear it when we talk with site selection consultants, we hear it when we talk to owners,” Bourgeois said.
To make up for the loss revenue, the legislation calls for the elimination of the film tax credit program and a tax credit for digital media and software companies. Chris Reade, who owns software development companies in New Orleans, urged the panel not to get rid of the digital media and software tax credit, because it’s a job creator.
“Do not throw out the baby with the bath water, preserve this incentive, give LED (Louisiana Economic Development) the ability to keep leveraging it, create growth in this incredibly important sector,” Reade said.
The legislation also eliminates tax credits for those involved in the renovation of historic buildings. Revenue Secretary Richard Nelson argued these tax credits are not bring more jobs to the state.
“We can renovate all the buildings, we can have all the incentives, if everybody is leaving the state of Louisiana it’s not working, we are losing 40,000 people a year, what we are doing right now is not working,” Nelson said.
This legislation will receive more debate and a vote on the House floor
