HLS 17RS-1073 ENGROSSED
2017 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 354
BY REPRESENTATIVE THIBAUT
TAX/GASOLINE TAX: (Constitutional Amendment) Provides relative to the dedication
of proceeds of the tax levied on motor fuels
1 A JOINT RESOLUTION
2Proposing to amend Article VII, Section 27(B) of the Constitution of Louisiana, relative to
3 the Transportation Trust Fund; to establish the Construction Subfund; to provide for
4 the use of the monies deposited into the fund; to provide for the sources and uses of
5 monies in the subfund; to provide for effectiveness; to provide for submission of the
6 proposed amendment to the electors; and to provide for related matters.
7 Section 1. Be it resolved by the Legislature of Louisiana, two-thirds of the members
8elected to each house concurring, that there shall be submitted to the electors of the state of
9Louisiana, for their approval or rejection in the manner provided by law, a proposal to
10amend Article VII, Section 27(B) of the Constitution of Louisiana, to read as follows:
11 §27. Transportation Trust Fund
12 Section 27.(A)
13 * * *
14 (B)(1) Except as provided for in Subparagraph (2) of this Paragraph, the The
15 monies in the trust fund shall be appropriated or dedicated solely and exclusively for
16 the costs for and associated with construction and maintenance of the roads and
17 bridges of the state and federal highway systems, the Statewide Flood-Control
18 Program or its successor, ports, airports, transit, state police for traffic control
19 purposes, and the Parish Transportation Fund or its successor and for the payment
20 of all principal, interest, premium, if any, and other obligations incident to the
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HB NO. 354
1 issuance, security, and payment in respect of bonds or other obligations payable from
2 the trust fund as authorized in Paragraph (D) hereof. Unless pledged to the
3 repayment of bonds authorized in Paragraphs (C) or (D) of this Section, the monies
4 in the trust fund allocated to ports, airports, flood control, parish transportation, and
5 state highway construction shall be appropriated annually by the legislature only
6 pursuant to programs established by law which establish a system of priorities for the
7 expenditure of such monies, except that the Transportation Infrastructure Model for
8 Economic Development, which shall include only those projects enumerated in
9 House Bill 17 of the 1989 First Extraordinary Session of the Legislature* and US
10 Highway 61 from Thompson Creek to the Mississippi Line, in lieu of "US 61-Bains
11 to Mississippi Line", and US Highway 165 from I-10 to Alexandria to Monroe to
12 Bastrop and thence on US Highway 425 from Bastrop to the Arkansas Line, in lieu
13 of "US 165-I-10 Alexandria-Monroe-Bastrop-Arkansas Line" and LA 15-Natchez,
14 Mississippi to Chase in lieu of "LA 15-Natchez, Mississippi to Monroe", shall be
15 funded as provided by law. The state generated tax monies appropriated for ports,
16 Parish Transportation Fund, or its successor, and the Statewide Flood-Control
17 Program, or its successor, and state police for traffic control purposes shall not
18 exceed twenty percent annually of the state generated tax revenues in the trust fund;
19 provided, however, that no less than the avails of one cent of the tax on gasoline and
20 special fuels shall be appropriated each year to the Parish Transportation Fund, or its
21 successor. The annual appropriation for airports shall be a sum equal to, but not
22 greater than, the annual estimated revenue to be derived from the state taxes to be
23 collected and received on aviation fuel. Unencumbered and unexpended balances
24 at the end of each fiscal year shall remain in the trust fund. The earnings realized in
25 each fiscal year on the investment of monies in the trust fund shall be deposited in
26 and credited to the trust fund.
27 (2) There is hereby established in the Transportation Trust Fund a special
28 subfund to be known as the "Construction Subfund", hereinafter referred to as "the
29 subfund", in which shall be deposited the avails of any new taxes that become
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HB NO. 354
1 effective and are levied on gasoline, motor fuels, or special fuels on or after July 1,
2 2017. The monies in the subfund shall be appropriated and dedicated solely for the
3 direct costs associated with actual project delivery, construction, and maintenance
4 of transportation and capital transit infrastructure projects of the state and local
5 government. The monies in the subfund that are appropriated by the legislature to
6 the Department of Transportation and Development, or its successor, shall not be
7 utilized by the department as funding for any administrative costs for operation of
8 the department, including but not limited to the payment of employee wages and
9 related benefits or employee retirement benefits.
10 * * *
11 Section 2. Be it further resolved that this proposed amendment shall be submitted
12to the electors of the state of Louisiana at the statewide election to be held on October 14,
132017.
14 Section 3. Be it further resolved that on the official ballot to be used at the election,
15there shall be printed a proposition, upon which the electors of the state shall be permitted
16to vote YES or NO, to amend the Constitution of Louisiana, which proposition shall read as
17follows:
18 Do you support an amendment to prohibit any of the avails of the tax levied
19 on gasoline, diesel, and special fuels from being used by state police for
20 traffic control purposes, and to dedicate the avails of any new tax levied on
21 gasoline, diesel, and special fuels into the Construction Subfund, which shall
22 be used for project delivery, construction, and maintenance of transportation
23 and capital transit infrastructure projects and not for administrative costs of
24 the Department of Transportation and Development? (Effective November
25 1, 2017) (Amends Article VII, Section 27(B))
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HB NO. 354
DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
HB 354 Engrossed 2017 Regular Session Thibaut
Abstract: Removes authority of using Transportation Trust Fund (TTF) monies for state
police and deposits new gasoline and fuel taxed into the newly created "Construction
Subfund". Prohibits spending the subfund on administrative costs of the Dept. of
Transportation and Development.
Present constitution establishes the Transportation Trust Fund (TTF) as a special treasury
fund and requires that all state taxes levied on gasoline and motor fuels be deposited
annually into the fund. The current state excise taxes on gasoline and motor fuels total 20¢
per gallon. Monies in the fund are used to provide for construction and maintenance of
roads and bridges of the state and federal highway systems, the Statewide Flood-Control
Program, ports, airports, transit, state police for traffic control purposes, and the Parish
Transportation Fund.
Proposed constitution prohibits the use of any of the monies in the TTF from being used by
state police for traffic control.
Proposed constitution establishes the "Construction Subfund" as a special subfund within
the TTF and requires the avails of any new tax levied on gasoline, diesel, and special motor
fuels that become effective on or after July 1, 2017, to be deposited in the subfund for use
on direct costs associated with actual project delivery, construction, and maintenance of
transportation and capital transit infrastructure projects of the state and local government.
Proposed constitution prohibits any monies in the subfund from being used by the Dept. of
Transportation and Development for administrative costs to operate the department.
Provides for submission of the proposed amendment to the voters at the statewide election
to be held Oct. 14, 2017.
(Amends Const. Art. VII, §27(B))
Summary of Amendments Adopted by House
The Committee Amendments Proposed by House Committee on Appropriations to the
original bill:
1. Change deposits into subfund from avails of new taxes enacted on or after July
1, 2017, to avails of new taxes effective on or after July 1, 2017.
2. Change the purposes of the use of the subfund to include project delivery and to
apply to state and local transportation and capital infrastructure projects instead
of roads and bridges.
3. Make technical changes.
4. Change ballot language.
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