ENROLLED
2024 Third Extraordinary Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 7
BY REPRESENTATIVE EMERSON AND SENATOR F OIL
1 A JOINT RESOLUTION
2 Proposing to revise Article VII of the Constitution of Louisiana, relative to revenue and
3 finance; to provide with respect to the power of taxation including limitations
4 thereon; to require uniformity with respect to certain local and state tax measures;
5 to provide with respect to assessment of property and other items of taxation; to
6 provide with respect to remittal of some or all of certain tax revenues to local
7 entities; to provide with respect to rates of taxation; to provide with respect to
8 dedication of certain revenue; to provide with respect to bonded indebtedness
9 including limitations thereon; to provide with respect to the Interim Emergency
10 Board; to provide with respect to the State Bond Commission; to provide with
11 respect to deposit of monies received by the state or its instrumentalities; to provide
12 with respect to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund; to provide with respect to
13 expenditure of state revenues; to provide with respect to the Revenue Estimating
14 Conference; to provide with respect to appropriations; to provide with respect to
15 deficits; to provide with respect to budgets; to provide with respect to publication of
16 certain data; to provide with respect to the Budget Stabilization Fund; to provide
17 with respect to the Transportation Trust Fund including subfunds thereof; to provide
18 with respect to the Coastal Protection and Restoration Fund; to provide for
19 establishing certain classes of trusts and funds in the state treasury; to provide with
20 respect to designation of certain trusts and funds in the state treasury as a member
21 of such classes; to provide with respect to the Louisiana Education Quality Trust
22 Fund including subfunds thereof; to provide with respect to the Mineral Revenue
23 Audit and Settlement Fund; to provide with respect to the Oilfield Site Restoration
24 Fund; to provide with respect to the Oil Spill Contingency Fund; to provide with
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1 respect to the Millennium Trust and any funds within it; to provide with respect to
2 the Louisiana Fund; to provide with respect to the Artificial Reef Development Fund;
3 to provide with respect to the legislature's authority to take certain actions; to provide
4 with respect to the Hospital Stabilization Formula and Fund; to provide with respect
5 to the Louisiana Medical Assistance Trust Fund and any accounts therein; to provide
6 with respect to the Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund; to provide with respect to the
7 Conservation Fund; to provide with respect to public access to certain revenue and
8 expenditure information; to provide with respect to investment of certain monies; to
9 provide with respect to things of value; to provide with respect to cooperative
10 endeavors; to provide with respect to prior obligations regarding things of value; to
11 provide with respect to release or extinguishment of certain obligations; to provide
12 with respect to taxes; to require transfer of certain assets to the Teachers' Retirement
13 System of Louisiana; to provide with respect to the authority of the Teachers'
14 Retirement System of Louisiana regarding calculation of system liabilities and
15 required funding; to provide with respect to use by certain political subdivisions of
16 certain revenues to provide a salary increase for certain personnel; to provide with
17 respect to valuation of property for tax purposes; to provide with respect to treatment
18 of certain property, income, or things of value for tax purposes; to provide with
19 respect to tax liability; to provide with respect to reduction or elimination of tax
20 liability in certain circumstances; to provide with respect to certain payments to
21 political subdivisions; to provide with respect to invalidation or impairment of
22 certain taxes or obligations; to provide with respect to millage rates; to provide with
23 respect to tax assessors; to provide with respect to tax sales; to provide with respect
24 to liens and privileges; to provide with respect to the Revenue Sharing Fund; to
25 provide with respect to the Louisiana Unclaimed Property Permanent Trust Fund; to
26 create the Local Revenue Fund; to provide relative to the severance tax allocation on
27 brine; to make technical and conforming changes; to provide for submission of the
28 proposed amendment to the electors; and to provide for related matters.
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1 Section 1. Be it resolved by the Legislature of Louisiana, two-thirds of the members
2 elected to each house concurring, that there shall be submitted to the electors of the state of
3 Louisiana, for their approval or rejection in the manner provided by law, a proposal to revise
4 Article VII of the Constitution of Louisiana, to read as follows:
5 ARTICLE VII. REVENUE AND FINANCE
6 PART I. GENERAL PROVISIONS
7 §1. Power to Tax; Public Purpose
8 Section 1.(A) Except as otherwise provided by this constitution, the power
9 of taxation shall be vested in the legislature, shall never be surrendered, suspended,
10 or contracted away, and shall be exercised for public purposes only.
11 (B) The power to tax may shall not be exercised by any court in the state,
12 either by ordering the levy of a tax, an increase in an existing tax, or the repeal of an
13 existing tax exemption or by ordering the legislature or any municipal or parish
14 governing authority or any other political subdivision or governmental entity to do
15 so.
16 §2. Power to Tax; Limitation
17 Section 2. The levy of a new tax, tax; an increase in an existing tax, tax; the
18 enactment of a tax exemption, exclusion, deduction, credit, or rebate or an increase
19 in the amount of a tax deduction, credit, or rebate; or a repeal of an existing tax
20 exemption shall require the enactment of a law by two-thirds of the elected members
21 of each house of the legislature.
22 §2.1. §3. Fees and Civil Fines; Limitation
23 Section 2.1. Section 3.(A) Any new fee or civil fine or increase in an existing
24 fee or civil fine imposed or assessed by the state or any board, department, or agency
25 in the executive branch of the state shall require the enactment of a law by a two-
26 thirds vote of the elected members of each house of the legislature.
27 (B) The provisions of this Section shall not apply to any department which
28 is constitutionally created and headed by an officer who is elected by majority vote
29 of the electorate of the state.
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1 §2.2. Power to Tax; Sales and Use §4. Tax; Limitation
2 Section 2.2. Section 4.(A) Effective January 1, 2003, the sales and use tax
3 rate imposed by the state of Louisiana or by a political subdivision whose boundaries
4 are coterminous with those of the state shall not exceed two percent of the price of
5 the following items:
6 (1) Food for home consumption, as defined in R.S. 47:305(D)(1)(n) through
7 (r) on January 1, 2003.
8 (2) Natural gas, electricity, and water sold directly to the consumer for
9 residential use.
10 (3) Prescription drugs.
11 (B) Effective July 1, 2003, the The sales and use tax imposed by the state of
12 Louisiana or by a political subdivision whose boundaries are coterminous with those
13 of the state shall not apply to sales or purchases of the following items:
14 (1) Food for home consumption, as defined provided in R.S. 47:305(D)(1)(n)
15 through (r) on January 1, 2003 R.S. 47:305(C)(1) on January 1, 2025.
16 (2) Natural gas, electricity, and water sold directly to the consumer for
17 residential use.
18 (3) Prescription drugs.
19 (C) (B) As used in this Section, the term "sold directly to the consumer for
20 residential use" includes the furnishing of natural gas, electricity, or water to single
21 private residences, including the separate private units of apartment houses and other
22 multiple dwellings, actually used for residential purposes, which residences are
23 separately metered or measured, regardless of the fact that a person other than the
24 resident is contractually bound to the supplier for the charges, actually pays the
25 charges, or is billed for the charges. The use of electricity, natural gas, or water in
26 hotel or motel units does not constitute residential use.
27 (C) No ad valorem tax shall be imposed by the state of Louisiana or by a
28 political subdivision on prescription drugs.
29 (D) Notwithstanding the provisions of Article VI, Section 29 of this
30 constitution, the sales and use tax levied by a political subdivision shall apply to any
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1 sale at retail, use, lease, rental, consumption, or storage of goods, services, and other
2 products as authorized by or required by law.
3 (E) Notwithstanding any other provision of this constitution to the contrary,
4 all local taxing authorities are hereby authorized to amend their ordinances
5 concerning sales and use taxes to conform any existing levy to the authority granted
6 to those taxing authorities pursuant to applicable law.
7 §2.3. §5. Power to Tax; Limitation; Sale or Transfer of Immovable Property
8 Limitations
9 Section 2.3. Section 5.(A) A political subdivision shall not levy a severance
10 tax, income tax, inheritance tax, or tax on motor fuel.
11 (B) Effective January 1, 2026, no new sales and use tax exemption,
12 exclusion, credit, rebate, or refund shall be enacted unless the proposed exemption,
13 exclusion, credit, rebate, or refund is applicable to both sales and use taxes levied by
14 the state and those levied by political subdivisions.
15 (C) No new tax or fee upon the sale or transfer of immovable property,
16 including documentary transaction taxes or fees, or any other tax or fee, shall be
17 levied by the state of Louisiana, by a political subdivision whose boundaries are
18 coterminous with those of the state, or by a political subdivision, as defined in
19 Article VI, Section 44(2) of this constitution after November 30, 2011. A
20 documentary transaction is any transaction pursuant to any instrument, act, writing,
21 or document which transfers or conveys immovable property. Fees for the cost of
22 recordation, filing, or maintenance of documents, or records effectuating the sale or
23 transfer of immovable property, impact fees for development of property, annual
24 parcel fees, and ad valorem taxes shall not be considered taxes or fees upon the sale
25 or transfer of immovable property.
26 §3. §6. Collection of Taxes
27 Section 3. Section 6.(A) The legislature shall prohibit the issuance of process
28 to restrain the collection of any tax. It shall provide a complete and adequate remedy
29 for the prompt recovery of an illegal tax paid by a taxpayer.
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1 (B)(1) Notwithstanding any contrary provision of this constitution, sales and
2 use taxes levied by political subdivisions shall be collected by a single collector for
3 each parish or a central collection commission. On or before July 1, 1992, all
4 political subdivisions within each parish which levy a sales and use tax shall agree
5 between and among themselves to provide for the collection of such taxes by a single
6 collector or a central collection commission. The legislature, by general law, shall
7 provide for the collection of sales and use taxes, levied by political subdivisions, by
8 a central collection commission in those parishes where a single collector or a central
9 collection commission has not been established by July 1, 1992.
10 (2) The legislature, by local law enacted by two-thirds of the elected
11 members of each house of the legislature, may establish an alternate method of
12 providing for a single collector or a central collection commission in each parish.
13 (3) Except when authorized by the unanimous agreement of all political
14 subdivisions levying a sales and use tax within a parish, only those political
15 subdivisions levying a sales and use tax shall be authorized to act as the single
16 collector or participate on any commission established for the collection of such
17 taxes.
18 (4) The legislature shall provide for the prompt remittance to the political
19 subdivisions identified on the taxpayers' returns of funds collected pursuant to the
20 provisions of this Paragraph by a single collector or under any other centralized
21 collection arrangement.
22 (5) The provisions of Subparagraphs 1 and 2 of this Paragraph shall not
23 apply in those parishes which have a single collector or a centralized collection
24 arrangements as of July 1, 1992, that remains in effect.
25 (6) Taxes collected on behalf of a taxing authority by any collector shall be
26 held in trust by the collector and shall be the property of the taxing authority for
27 which they are collected.
28 (7) Nothing in this Paragraph or in Article VI of this constitution shall
29 impede the operations or funding of the Uniform Local Sales Tax Board established
30 by law. Notwithstanding any other provision of this constitution to the contrary, the
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1 Uniform Local Sales Tax Board shall exercise any authority provided to it by law,
2 provided that any change to the membership or reduction in the authority of the
3 board, as effective on July 1, 2024, shall be by law enacted only by a vote of
4 two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the legislature.
5 §4. §7. Income Tax; Severance Tax; Political Subdivisions Tax
6 Section 4.(A) Income Tax. Section 7. Equal and uniform taxes may be
7 levied on net incomes, and these taxes may be graduated according to the amount of
8 net income. incomes. However, the maximum state individual rate shall not exceed
9 four and three-quarters percent for tax years beginning after December 31, 2021.
10 Federal income taxes paid may be allowed as a deductible item in computing state
11 income taxes for the same period as provided by law. three and three-quarters
12 percent. For tax years beginning after December 31, 2025, a person sixty-five years
13 of age or older shall be entitled to an additional standard deduction equal to the
14 amount applicable for a single individual provided in R.S. 47:294.
15 §8. Severance Tax
16 (B) Severance Tax. (1) Section 8.(A) Taxes may be levied by the state on
17 natural resources severed from the soil or water, to be paid proportionately by the
18 owners thereof at the time of severance. Natural resources may be classified for the
19 purpose of taxation. Such taxes may be predicated upon either the quantity or value
20 of the products at the time and place of severance. No further or additional tax or
21 license shall be levied or imposed upon oil, gas, or sulphur leases or rights. No
22 additional value shall be added to the assessment of land by reason of the presence
23 of oil, gas, or sulphur therein or their production therefrom. However, sulphur in
24 place shall be assessed for ad valorem taxation to the person, firm, or corporation
25 having the right to mine or produce the same in the parish where located, at no more
26 than twice the total assessed value of the physical property subject to taxation,
27 excluding the assessed value of sulphur above ground, as is used in sulphur
28 operations in such parish. Likewise, the severance tax shall be the only tax on
29 timber; however, standing timber shall be liable equally with the land on which it
30 stands for ad valorem taxes levied on the land.
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1 (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of Subparagraph (1) of this Paragraph,
2 the presence of oil or gas or the production thereof, may be included in the
3 methodology to determine the fair market value of an oil or gas well for ad valorem
4 taxes.
5 (C) Political Subdivisions; Prohibitions. A political subdivision of the state
6 shall not levy a severance tax, income tax, inheritance tax, or tax on motor fuel.
7 (D)(1) Severance Tax Allocation. (B) One-third of the sulphur severance
8 tax, but not to exceed one hundred thousand dollars; one-third of the lignite
9 severance tax, but not to exceed one hundred thousand dollars; one-half of severance
10 tax on brine that is not produced as an incident to the production of oil and gas,
11 unless the brine is saved, retained, used, or sold for the purpose of extracting the
12 constituent parts, minerals, elements, or compounds, one-fifth of the severance tax
13 on all natural resources, other than sulphur, lignite, brine, or timber, but not to
14 exceed five hundred thousand dollars; and three-fourths of the timber severance tax
15 shall be remitted to the governing authority of the parish in which severance or
16 production occurs. The legislature may, by law, do any of the following:
17 (1) Increase or decrease the proportion of tax avails to be remitted for any
18 of the severance taxes pursuant to the provisions of this Paragraph.
19 (2) Establish an annual maximum that may be remitted pursuant to the
20 provisions of this Paragraph for any of the severance taxes, provided that the
21 limitation shall not be an amount less than the amount provided for on July 1, 2024.
22 (2) Effective July 1, 1999, one-third of the sulphur severance tax, but not to
23 exceed one hundred thousand dollars; one-third of the lignite severance tax, but not
24 to exceed one hundred thousand dollars; one-fifth of the severance tax on all natural
25 resources, other than sulphur, lignite, or timber, but not to exceed seven hundred fifty
26 thousand dollars; and three-fourths of the timber severance tax shall be remitted to
27 the governing authority of the parish in which severance or production occurs.
28 (3) Effective July 1, 2007, one-fifth of the severance tax on all natural
29 resources other than sulphur, lignite, or timber shall be remitted to the governing
30 authority of the parish in which severance or production occurs. The initial
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1 maximum amount remitted to the parish in which severance or production occurs
2 shall not exceed eight hundred fifty thousand dollars. The maximum amount
3 remitted shall be increased each July first, beginning in 2008, by an amount equal to
4 the average annual increase in the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers, as
5 published by the United States Department of Labor, for the previous calendar year,
6 as calculated and adopted by the Revenue Estimating Conference.
7 (4) Effective April 1, 2012, the provisions of this Subparagraph shall be
8 implemented if and when the last official forecast of revenues adopted for a fiscal
9 year before the start of that fiscal year contains an estimate of severance tax revenues
10 derived from natural resources other than sulphur, lignite, or timber in an amount
11 which exceeds the actual severance tax revenues from such natural resources
12 collected in Fiscal Year 2008-2009. Upon the adoption of such official forecast, the
13 Revenue Estimating Conference shall certify that the requirements for the
14 implementation of the provisions contained in this Subparagraph have been met. In
15 such event, the following distributions and allocations of severance tax revenues and
16 other revenues provided in this Subparagraph shall be effective and implemented for
17 the fiscal year for which the official forecast was adopted, and each year thereafter.
18 The legislature shall provide by law for the administrative procedures necessary to
19 change the severance tax allocation to parishes from a calendar year basis to a fiscal
20 year basis.
21 (a) Remittance to parishes.
22 (i) In the first fiscal year of implementation of this Subparagraph, the
23 maximum amount of severance tax on all natural resources other than sulphur,
24 lignite, or timber which is remitted to the parish in which severance or production
25 occurs shall not exceed one million eight hundred fifty thousand dollars. For all
26 subsequent fiscal years, the maximum amount remitted to a parish shall not exceed
27 two million eight hundred fifty thousand dollars.
28 (ii) On July first of each year the maximum amount remitted to the parish in
29 which severance or production occurs, as provided in Item (i) of this
30 Subsubparagraph, shall be increased by an amount equal to the average annual
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1 increase in the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers for the previous
2 calendar year, as published by the United States Department of Labor, which amount
3 shall be as calculated and adopted by the Revenue Estimating Conference.
4 (iii) Of the total amount of severance tax revenues remitted in a fiscal year
5 to a parish governing authority pursuant to the provisions of this Subparagraph, any
6 portion which is in excess of the amount of such tax revenues remitted to that parish
7 in Fiscal Year 2011-2012 shall be known as "excess severance tax". At least fifty
8 percent of the excess severance tax received by a parish governing authority in a
9 fiscal year shall be expended within the parish in the same manner and for the same
10 purposes as monies received by the parish from the Parish Transportation Fund.
11 (E) (C) Royalties Allocation. One-tenth of the royalties from mineral leases
12 on state-owned land, land and lake and river beds and other water bottoms belonging
13 to the state or the title to which is in the public for mineral development shall be
14 remitted to the governing authority of the parish in which severance or production
15 occurs. A parish governing authority may fund these royalties into general
16 obligation bonds of the parish in accordance with law. The provisions of this
17 Paragraph shall not apply to properties comprising the Russell Sage Wildlife and
18 Game Refuge.
19 §4.1. Cigarette Tax Rates
20 Section 4.1. To ensure revenue for the dedication provided for in Article VII,
21 Section 10.8(C)(2)(c) of this constitution, the rate of the tax levied pursuant to R.S.
22 47:841(B)(3) shall not be less than the rate set forth in that provision as it exists on
23 January 1, 2012.
24 §5. §9. Motor Vehicle License Tax
25 Section 5. Section 9. The legislature shall impose an annual license tax of not
26 more than one dollar per each one thousand dollars of actual value on automobiles
27 for private use based on the actual value of the vehicle, as provided by law.
28 However, the annual license tax shall not be less than ten dollars per automobile for
29 private use. On other motor vehicles, the legislature shall impose an annual license
30 tax based upon carrying capacity, horsepower, value, weight, or any of these. After
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1 satisfying the requirements of Section 9(B) of this Article, and after satisfying
2 pledges respecting that portion of the revenues attributable to the tax rates in effect
3 at the time of such pledges for the payment of obligations for bonds or other
4 evidences of indebtedness and upon the creation of a Transportation Trust Fund
5 within this constitution, the revenues from the license tax on automobiles for private
6 use shall be deposited therein. In the event no such trust fund is established in this
7 constitution, the revenues shall be used exclusively and solely as provided by law for
8 the construction, maintenance, and safety of the federal and state system of roads and
9 bridges, for the parish and municipal road systems, for the operations of the office
10 of state police, Department of Public Safety and Corrections or its successor, and for
11 the payment of any obligation for bonds issued or indebtedness incurred in
12 connection with any of the foregoing, which bonds may be issued as revenue bonds
13 under Article VII, Section 6(C) of this constitution, subject to existing pledges only
14 as to that portion of the tax collections attributable to the rates in effect at the time
15 of such pledges for the payment of any obligations for bonds or other evidences of
16 indebtedness outstanding on the effective date of this Section. No parish or
17 municipality may impose a license fee on motor vehicles.
18 §6. §10. State Debt; Full Faith and Credit Obligations
19 Section 6. Section 10.(A) Authorization. Unless otherwise authorized by
20 this constitution, the state shall have no power, directly or indirectly, or through any
21 state board, agency, commission, or otherwise, to incur debt or issue bonds except
22 by law enacted by two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the legislature.
23 The debt may be incurred or the bonds issued only if the funds are to be used to repel
24 invasion; suppress insurrection; provide relief from natural catastrophes; refund
25 outstanding indebtedness at the same or a lower effective interest rate; or make
26 capital improvements, but only in accordance with a comprehensive capital budget,
27 which the legislature shall adopt.
28 (B) Capital Improvements. (1) If the purpose is to make capital
29 improvements, the nature and location and, if more than one project, the amount
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1 allocated to each and the order of priority shall be stated in the comprehensive
2 capital budget which the legislature adopts.
3 (2) The estimated amount of debt service to be paid for capital improvements
4 for the next fiscal year shall be stated as a separate item and by budget unit in the
5 budget estimate required to be submitted by the governor in accordance with Section
6 11 Section 23 of this Article.
7 (C) Full Faith and Credit. The full faith and credit of the state shall be
8 pledged to the repayment of all bonds or other evidences of indebtedness issued by
9 the state directly or through any state board, agency, or commission pursuant to the
10 provisions of Paragraphs (A) and (B) hereof. of this Section. The full faith and credit
11 of the state is not hereby pledged to the repayment of bonds of a levee district,
12 political subdivision, or local public agency. In addition, any state board, agency,
13 or commission authorized by law to issue bonds, in the manner so authorized and
14 with the approval of the State Bond Commission or its successor, may issue bonds
15 which are payable from fees, rates, rentals, tolls, charges, grants, or other receipts or
16 income derived by or in connection with an undertaking, facility, project, or any
17 combination thereof, without a pledge of the full faith and credit of the state. Such
18 revenue bonds may, but are not required to, be issued in accordance with the
19 provisions of Paragraphs (A) and (B) hereof. of this Section. If issued other than as
20 provided in Paragraphs (A) and (B), such revenue bonds shall not carry the pledge
21 of the full faith and credit of the state and the issuance of the bonds shall not
22 constitute the incurring of state debt under this constitution. The rights granted to
23 deep-water port commissions or deep-water port, harbor, and terminal districts under
24 this constitution shall not be impaired by this Section.
25 (D) Referendum. The legislature, by law enacted by two-thirds of the
26 elected members of each house, may propose a statewide public referendum to
27 authorize incurrence of debt for any purpose for which the legislature is not herein
28 authorized to incur debt.
29 (E) Exception. Nothing in this Section shall apply to any levee district,
30 political subdivision, or local public agency unless the full faith and credit of the
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1 state is pledged to the payment of the bonds of the levee district, political
2 subdivision, or local public agency.
3 (F) Limitation. (1) The legislature shall provide for the determination of a
4 limit to the amount of net state tax supported debt which may be issued by the state
5 in any fiscal year. Net state tax supported debt shall be defined by law. When
6 enacted, such definition shall not be changed except by specific legislative
7 instrument which receives a favorable vote of two-thirds of the elected members of
8 each house of the legislature. The limitation shall be established so that by Fiscal
9 Year 2003-2004 and thereafter the amount necessary to service outstanding net state
10 tax supported debt shall not exceed six percent of the estimate of money to be
11 received by the state general fund and dedicated funds contained in the official
12 forecast adopted by the Revenue Estimating Conference at its first meeting after the
13 beginning of each fiscal year and any other money required to be included in the
14 estimate by this Paragraph. In making such estimate, the conference shall include
15 all amounts which are to be used to service net state tax supported debt. For
16 purposes of this Paragraph, servicing outstanding net state tax supported debt
17 includes payments of principal, interest, and sinking fund requirements. The
18 limitation established pursuant to this Paragraph shall not be construed to prevent the
19 payment of debt service on net state tax supported debt.
20 (2) The limitation established pursuant to this Paragraph may be changed by
21 passage of a specific legislative instrument by a favorable vote of two-thirds of the
22 elected members of each house of the legislature. The limitation may be exceeded
23 by passage of a specific legislative instrument for a project or related projects by a
24 favorable vote of two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the legislature,
25 provided that any debt service payment required for such the projects shall, once
26 bonds have been issued in connection therewith, not be impaired in any future year
27 by application of this limitation. The limitation established pursuant to this
28 Subparagraph shall be deemed to be increased as necessary to accommodate any
29 projects approved to exceed this limit if approved as provided in this Paragraph, but
30 only as long as there are bonds outstanding for the projects.
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1 (3) Except as provided in Subparagraph (2) of this Paragraph, the State Bond
2 Commission shall not approve the issuance of any net state tax supported debt, the
3 debt service requirement of which would cause the limit herein established to be
4 exceeded.
5 §7. §11. State Debt; Interim Emergency Board Board; Composition; Powers
6 Section 7. Section 11.(A) Composition. The Interim Emergency Board is
7 created. It shall be composed of the governor, lieutenant governor, state treasurer,
8 presiding officer of each house of the legislature, chairman of the Senate Finance
9 Committee, and chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, or their
10 designees.
11 (B) Powers. (1) Between sessions of the legislature, when the board by
12 majority vote determines that an emergency or impending flood emergency exists,
13 it may appropriate from the state general fund or borrow on the full faith and credit
14 of the state an amount to meet the emergency. The appropriation may be made or
15 the indebtedness incurred only for a purpose for which the legislature may
16 appropriate funds and then only after the board obtains, as provided by law, the
17 written consent of two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the legislature.
18 (2) For the purposes of this Paragraph, an emergency is an event or
19 occurrence not reasonably anticipated by the legislature and an impending flood
20 emergency shall be an anticipated situation which endangers an existing flood
21 protection structure. The appropriation or indebtedness incurred for an impending
22 flood emergency shall not exceed two hundred fifty thousand dollars for any one
23 event or occurrence. For an impending emergency to qualify for funding it must be
24 determined as such by the United States Army Corp Corps of Engineers or the
25 United States Coast Guard. Total funding for such impending emergencies shall not
26 exceed twenty-five percent of the funds annually available to the Interim Emergency
27 Board.
28 (C) Limits. The aggregate of indebtedness outstanding at any one time and
29 the amount appropriated from the state general fund for the current fiscal year under
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1 the authority of this Section shall not exceed one-tenth of one percent of total state
2 revenue receipts for the previous fiscal year.
3 (D) Allocation. An amount sufficient to pay indebtedness incurred during
4 the preceding fiscal year under the authority of this Section is allocated, as a first
5 priority, each year from the state general fund.
6 §8. §12. State Bond Commission
7 Section 8. Section 12.(A) Creation. The State Bond Commission is created.
8 Its membership and authority shall be determined by law.
9 (B) Approval of Bonds. No bonds or other obligations shall be issued or
10 sold by the state, directly or through any state board, agency, or commission, or by
11 any political subdivision of the state, unless prior written approval of the bond
12 commission is obtained.
13 (C) Contesting State Bonds. Bonds, notes, certificates, or other evidences
14 of indebtedness of the state (hereafter state, hereafter referred to as "bonds") "bonds",
15 shall not be invalid because of any irregularity or defect in the proceedings or in the
16 issuance and sale thereof and shall be incontestable in the hands of a bona fide
17 purchaser or holder. The issuing agency, after authorizing the issuance of bonds by
18 resolution, shall publish once in the official journal of the state, as provided by law,
19 a notice of intention to issue the bonds. The notice shall include a description of the
20 bonds and the security therefor. Within thirty days after the publication, any person
21 in interest may contest the legality of the resolution, any provision of the bonds to
22 be issued pursuant to it, the provisions securing the bonds, and the validity of all
23 other provisions and proceedings relating to the authorization and issuance of the
24 bonds. If no action or proceeding is instituted within the thirty days, no person may
25 contest the validity of the bonds, the provisions of the resolution pursuant to which
26 the bonds were issued, the security of the bonds, or the validity of any other
27 provisions or proceedings relating to their authorization and issuance, and the bonds
28 shall be presumed conclusively to be legal. Thereafter no court shall have authority
29 to inquire into such matters.
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1 §9. §13. State Funds
2 Section 9. Section 13.(A) Deposit in State Treasury. All money received by
3 the state or by any state board, agency, or commission shall be deposited
4 immediately upon receipt in the state treasury, except that monies received:
5 (1) as a result of grants or donations grants, donations, or other forms of
6 assistance when the terms and conditions thereof or of agreements pertaining thereto
7 require otherwise;
8 (2) by trade or professional associations;
9 (3) by the employment security administration fund or its successor;
10 (4) by retirement system funds;
11 (5) by state agencies operating under authority of this constitution
12 preponderantly from fees and charges for the shipment of goods in international
13 maritime trade and commerce; and
14 (6) by a state board, agency, or commission, but pledged by it in connection
15 with the issuance of revenue bonds as provided in Paragraph (C) of Section 6 10 of
16 this Article, other than any surplus as may be defined in the law authorizing such
17 revenue bonds.
18 (B) Bond Security and Redemption Fund. Subject to contractual obligations
19 existing on the effective date of this constitution, all state money deposited in the
20 state treasury shall be credited to a special fund designated as the Bond Security and
21 Redemption Fund, except money received as the result of grants or donations or
22 other forms of assistance when the terms and conditions thereof or of agreements
23 pertaining thereto require otherwise. In each fiscal year an amount is allocated from
24 the bond security and redemption fund sufficient to pay all obligations which that are
25 secured by the full faith and credit of the state and which become due and payable
26 within the current fiscal year, including principal, interest, premiums, sinking or
27 reserve fund, and other requirements. Thereafter, except as otherwise provided by
28 law, money remaining in the fund shall be credited to the state general fund.
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1 (C) Exception. Nothing in this Section shall apply to a levee district or
2 political subdivision unless the full faith and credit of the state is pledged to the
3 payment of the bonds of the levee district or political subdivision.
4 §10. §14. Expenditure of State Funds Revenue
5 Section 10. Section 14.(A) Revenue Estimating Conference. The Revenue
6 Estimating Conference shall be composed of four members: the governor, or his
7 designee, the president of the senate, or his designee, the speaker of the house or his
8 designee, and a faculty member of a university or college in Louisiana who has
9 expertise in forecasting revenues. Changes to the membership beyond the four
10 members shall be made by law enacted by a favorable vote of two-thirds of the
11 elected members of each house of the legislature.
12 (B) Official Forecast. The conference shall prepare and publish initial and
13 revised estimates of money to be received by the state general fund and dedicated
14 funds for the current and next fiscal years which are available for appropriation. In
15 each estimate, the conference shall designate the money in the estimate which is
16 recurring and which is nonrecurring. All conference decisions to adopt these
17 estimates shall be by unanimous vote of its members. Changes to the unanimous
18 vote requirement shall be made by law enacted by a favorable vote of two-thirds of
19 the elected members of each house of the legislature. The most recently adopted
20 estimate of money available for appropriation shall be the official forecast.
21 (C) Expenditure Limit. and Government Growth Limits. (1) Expenditure
22 Limit. (a) The legislature shall provide for the determination of an expenditure limit
23 for each fiscal year to be established during the first quarter of the calendar year for
24 the next fiscal year. However, the expenditure limit for the 1991-1992 Fiscal Year
25 shall be the actual appropriations from the state general fund and dedicated funds for
26 that year except funds allocated by Article VII, Section 4, Paragraphs (D) and (E).
27 For subsequent fiscal years, the limit shall not exceed the expenditure limit for the
28 current fiscal year plus an amount equal to that limit times a positive growth factor.
29 The growth factor is the average annual percentage rate of change of personal
30 income for Louisiana as defined and reported by the United States Department of
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1 Commerce for the three calendar years prior to the fiscal year for which the limit is
2 calculated.
3 (2) (b) The expenditure limit may be changed in any fiscal year by a
4 favorable vote of two-thirds of the elected members of each house. Any such change
5 in the expenditure limit shall be approved by passage of a specific legislative
6 instrument which clearly states the intent to change the limit.
7 (3) (c) Beginning with the 1995-1996 Fiscal Year, the expenditure limit shall
8 be determined in accordance with the provisions of Paragraph (J) of this Section.
9 The redetermination of the expenditure limit for each fiscal year from the 1991-1992
10 Fiscal Year through the 1994-1995 Fiscal Year shall only be used in computing the
11 expenditure limit for the 1995-1996 Fiscal Year and shall not affect the expenditure
12 limit already computed in accordance with this Paragraph for such fiscal years.
13 (4) The provisions of this Paragraph shall not apply to or affect funds
14 allocated by Article VII, Section 4, Paragraphs (D) and (E).
15 (2) Government Growth Limit. (a) Beginning with the 2026-2027 Fiscal
16 Year, there shall be a limit for each fiscal year above which appropriation of
17 recurring revenue from the State General Fund (Direct) means of finance shall only
18 be made for the purposes provided in this Subparagraph. Such limit shall be known
19 as the Government Growth Limit and shall be established by the Revenue Estimating
20 Conference no later than the first quarter of the calendar year for the next fiscal year.
21 The legislature shall establish procedures by law for the calculation and application
22 of such limit.
23 (b) Notwithstanding any provision of this Subparagraph, if the Government
24 Growth Limit calculated for any fiscal year exceeds the expenditure limit calculated
25 for the same fiscal year, the Government Growth Limit shall be set equal to the
26 expenditure limit. If the legislature alters the expenditure limit in a fiscal year and
27 the resulting limit is lower than the Government Growth Limit for that fiscal year,
28 the Government Growth Limit for that fiscal year shall automatically be lowered to
29 equal the limit set by the legislature for the expenditure limit.
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1 (c) Recurring revenue amounts recognized in the official forecast for the
2 State General Fund (Direct) means of finance above the Government Growth Limit
3 and below the expenditure limit may be appropriated only for nonrecurring expenses.
4 For the purposes of this Item, the term "nonrecurring expense" means an expense
5 that is not of a continuing or recurring character and that in the normal course of
6 administration is not expected to be necessary in approximately the same amounts
7 each year.
8 (d) The legislature may provide by law for exceptions to application of the
9 limit calculated pursuant to the provisions of this Section.
10 (e) A Government Growth Limit may be changed by a favorable vote of
11 two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the legislature if each of the
12 growth factors for any of the three fiscal years immediately preceding the year to be
13 changed was two and one-half percent or less. Any change in the Government
14 Growth Limit authorized by this Subsubparagraph shall be approved by passage of
15 a specific legislative instrument which clearly states the intent to change the limit.
16 (3) The provisions of this Paragraph shall not apply to or affect funds
17 allocated by Article VII, Section 8, Paragraphs (B) and (C).
18 (D) Appropriations. (1) Except as otherwise provided by this constitution,
19 money shall be drawn from the state treasury only pursuant to an appropriation made
20 in accordance with law. Appropriations from the state general fund and dedicated
21 funds except funds allocated by Article VII, Section 4, Paragraphs (D) and (E)
22 Section 8, Paragraphs (B) and (C) shall not exceed the expenditure limit for the fiscal
23 year.
24 (2) Except as otherwise provided in this constitution, the appropriation or
25 allocation of any money designated in the official forecast as nonrecurring shall be
26 made only for the following purposes:
27 (a) Retiring or for the defeasance of bonds in advance or in addition to the
28 existing amortization requirements of the state.
29 (b)(i) Providing for payments against the unfunded accrued liability of the
30 public retirement systems which are in addition to any payments required for the
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1 annual amortization of the unfunded accrued liability of the public retirement
2 systems, as required by Article X, Section 29(E)(2)(c) of this constitution; however,
3 any such payments to the public retirement systems shall not be used, directly or
4 indirectly, to fund cost-of-living increases for such systems.
5 (ii) For Fiscal Year 2015-2016 through Fiscal Year 2023-2024, the
6 legislature shall appropriate no less than ten percent of any money designated in the
7 official forecast as nonrecurring to the Louisiana State Employees' Retirement
8 System and the Teachers' Retirement System of Louisiana for application to the
9 balance of the unfunded accrued liability of such systems existing as of June 30,
10 1988, in proportion to the balance of such unfunded accrued liability of each such
11 system. Any such payments to the public retirement systems shall not be used,
12 directly or indirectly, to fund cost-of-living increases for such systems.
13 (iii) For Fiscal Year 2024-2025 and each fiscal year thereafter, the The
14 legislature shall appropriate no less than twenty-five percent of any money
15 designated in the official forecast as nonrecurring to the state retirement systems for
16 application to their unfunded accrued liability. Money appropriated pursuant to this
17 Item shall be applied by the receiving system to its outstanding positive amortization
18 bases in the order in which they were created, from oldest to newest. The legislature
19 may provide by law for a formula to distribute the nonrecurring money between
20 those state retirement systems that have unfunded accrued liability. If the legislature
21 has not provided by law for a distribution formula, nonrecurring money shall be
22 appropriated pursuant to this Item to each system in the proportion that the system's
23 total unfunded accrued liability bears to the total of all state system unfunded
24 accrued liability, using the most recent system valuations adopted by the Public
25 Retirement Systems' Actuarial Committee or its successor. Any payment to a state
26 retirement system made pursuant to the provisions of this Item shall not be used,
27 directly or indirectly, to fund cost-of-living increases for such system.
28 (c) Providing funding for capital outlay projects in the comprehensive state
29 capital budget.
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1 (d) Providing Unless prohibited by the provisions of Article VII, Section 15
2 of this constitution, providing for allocation or appropriation for deposit into the
3 Budget Stabilization Fund established in Article VII, Section 10.3 15 of this
4 constitution.
5 (e) Providing for allocation or appropriation for deposit into the Coastal
6 Protection and Restoration Fund established in Article VII, Section 10.2 17 of this
7 constitution.
8 (f) Providing for new highway construction for which federal matching
9 funds are available, without excluding highway projects otherwise eligible as capital
10 projects under other provisions of this constitution.
11 (3)(a) The legislature shall provide by law for the payment by the state of
12 supplements to the salaries of full-time local law enforcement and fire protection
13 officers of the state. No law shall reduce any payments by the state provided as a
14 supplement to the salaries of full-time local law enforcement and fire protection
15 officers of the state. Beginning with the fiscal year which begins July 1, 2003, the
16 The legislature shall appropriate funds sufficient to fully fund the cost of such state
17 supplement to the salaries of full-time law enforcement and fire protection officers.
18 (b) For the purposes of this Subparagraph, local law enforcement and fire
19 protection officers shall mean and include the same classes of officers which are
20 eligible for such state salary supplements under the law as of July 1, 2003.
21 (c) Full funding as required in Subsubparagraph (a) of this Subparagraph
22 shall be equal to the amount which is required to meet the requirements of law.
23 (d) Neither the governor nor the legislature may reduce an appropriation
24 made pursuant to this Subparagraph except that the governor may reduce such an
25 appropriation using means provided in the Act containing the appropriation,
26 provided that two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the legislature
27 consent to any such reduction in writing.
28 (E) Balanced Budget. Appropriations by the legislature from the state
29 general fund and dedicated funds for any fiscal year year, except funds allocated by
30 Article VII, Section 4, Paragraphs (D) and (E) Section 8, Paragraphs (B) and (C),
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1 shall not exceed the official forecast in effect at the time the appropriations are made.
2 Appropriations of recurring revenue from the state general fund and dedicated funds,
3 shall comply with the provisions of Subparagraph (C)(2) of this Section.
4 (F) Projected Deficit. (1) The legislature by law shall establish a procedure
5 to determine if appropriations will exceed the official forecast and an adequate
6 method for adjusting appropriations in order to eliminate a projected deficit. Any
7 law establishing a procedure to determine if appropriations will exceed the official
8 forecast and methods for adjusting appropriations, including any constitutionally
9 protected or mandated allocations or appropriations, once enacted, shall not be
10 changed except by specific legislative instrument which receives a favorable vote of
11 two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the legislature. Notwithstanding
12 the provisions of Article III, Section 2 of this constitution, such law may be
13 introduced and considered in any regular session of the legislature.
14 (2)(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this constitution to the
15 contrary, adjustments to any constitutionally protected or mandated allocations or
16 appropriations, and transfer of monies associated with such adjustments, are
17 authorized when state general fund allocations or appropriations have been reduced
18 in an aggregate amount equal to at least seven-tenths of one percent of the total of
19 such allocations and appropriations for a fiscal year. Such adjustments may not
20 exceed five percent of the total appropriation or allocation from a fund for the fiscal
21 year. For purposes of this Subsubparagraph, reductions to expenditures required by
22 Article VIII, Section 13(B) of this constitution shall not exceed one percent and such
23 reductions shall not be applicable to instructional activities included within the
24 meaning of instruction pursuant to the Minimum Foundation Program formula.
25 Notwithstanding any other provisions of this constitution to the contrary, monies
26 transferred as a result of such budget adjustments are deemed available for
27 appropriation and expenditure in the year of the transfer from one fund to another,
28 but in no event shall the aggregate amount of any transfers exceed the amount of the
29 deficit.
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1 (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this constitution to the contrary,
2 for the purposes of the budget estimate and enactment of the budget for the next
3 fiscal year, when the official forecast of recurring revenues for the next fiscal year
4 is at least one percent less than the official forecast for the current fiscal year, the
5 following procedure may be employed to avoid a budget deficit in the next fiscal
6 year. An amount not to exceed five percent of the total appropriations or allocations
7 for the current fiscal year from any fund established by law or this constitution shall
8 be available for expenditure in the next fiscal year for a purpose other than as
9 specifically provided by law or this constitution. For the purposes of this
10 Subsubparagraph, an amount not to exceed one percent of the current fiscal year
11 appropriation for expenditures required by Article VIII, Section 13(B) of this
12 constitution shall be available for expenditures for other purposes in the next fiscal
13 year. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this constitution to the contrary,
14 monies made available as authorized under this Subsubparagraph may be transferred
15 to a fund for which revenues have been forecast to be less than the revenues in the
16 current fiscal year for such fund. Monies transferred as a result of the budget actions
17 authorized by this Subsubparagraph are deemed available for appropriation and
18 expenditure, but in no event shall the aggregate amount of any such transfers exceed
19 the amount of the difference between the official forecast for the current fiscal year
20 and the next fiscal year.
21 (c) The legislature may provide by law for the implementation of the
22 provisions of this Subparagraph.
23 (3) If within thirty days of the determination that appropriations will exceed
24 the official forecast the necessary adjustments in appropriations are not made to
25 eliminate the projected deficit, the governor shall call a special session of the
26 legislature for this purpose unless the legislature is in regular session. This special
27 session shall commence as soon as possible as allowed by the provisions of this
28 constitution, including but not limited to Article III, Section 2(B).
29 (4) The provisions of Subparagraphs (1) and (2) of this Paragraph shall not
30 be applicable to, nor affect:
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1 (a) The Bond Security and Redemption Fund or any bonds secured thereby,
2 or any other funds pledged as security for bonds or other evidences of indebtedness.
3 (b) The allocations provided for by Article VII, Section 4(D) and (E) Section
4 8, Paragraphs (B) and (C) of this constitution.
5 (c) The contributions made in accordance with Article X, Section 29(E) of
6 this constitution.
7 (d) The Louisiana Education Quality Trust Fund as defined in Article VII,
8 Section 10.1(A)(1) of this constitution.
9 (e) The Millennium Trust as provided in Article VII, Section 10.8 20 of this
10 constitution, except for appropriations from the trust.
11 (f) (e) Any monies not required to be deposited in the state treasury as
12 provided in Article VII, Section 9 13 of this constitution.
13 (g) (f) The Medicaid Trust Fund for the Elderly created under the provisions
14 of R.S. 46:2691 et seq.
15 (h) The Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund, as provided in Article VII,
16 Section 10.15 of this constitution.
17 (i) (g) The Louisiana Unclaimed Property Permanent Trust Fund, as provided
18 in Article VII, Section 28 42 of this Constitution.
19 (G) Year End Deficit. If a deficit exists in any fund at the end of a fiscal
20 year, that deficit shall be eliminated no later than the end of the next fiscal year.
21 (H) Publication. The legislature shall have published a regular statement of
22 receipts and expenditures of all state money at intervals of not more than one year.
23 (I) Public Purpose. No appropriation shall be made except for a public
24 purpose.
25 (J) Definition of Funds. For the purposes of this Article, the state general
26 fund and dedicated funds shall be all money required to be deposited in the state
27 treasury, except that money the origin of which is:
28 (1) The federal government.
29 (2) Self-generated collections by any entity subject to the policy and
30 management authority established by Article VIII, Sections 5 through 7.
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1 (3) A transfer from another state agency, board, or commission.
2 (4) The provisions of this Paragraph shall not apply to or affect funds
3 allocated by Article VII, Section 4, Paragraphs (D) and (E) Section 8, Paragraphs (B)
4 and (C).
5 §15. Budget Stabilization Fund
6 Section 15.(A) There is hereby established in the state treasury a Budget
7 Stabilization Fund, hereafter referred to in this Section as the "fund". After
8 compliance with the provisions of Article VII, Section 13(B) of this constitution
9 relative to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund, the treasurer shall make deposits
10 into the fund as follows:
11 (1) All money available for appropriation from the state general fund and
12 dedicated funds in excess of the expenditure limit, except funds allocated by Article
13 VII, Section 8, Paragraphs (B) and (C) of this constitution.
14 (2) Twenty-five percent of any money designated in the official forecast as
15 nonrecurring as provided in Article VII, Section 14(D)(2) of this constitution.
16 (3) Any money appropriated or transferred to the fund by the legislature.
17 (4) An amount equivalent to the money received by the state from the federal
18 government for the reimbursement of costs associated with a federally declared
19 disaster, not to exceed the amount of costs appropriated out of the fund for the same
20 disaster pursuant to Subparagraph (C)(3) of this Section.
21 (B) Money in the fund shall be invested as provided by law. Earnings
22 realized in each fiscal year on the investment of monies in the fund shall be
23 deposited to the credit of the fund. All unexpended and unencumbered monies in the
24 fund at the end of the fiscal year shall remain in the fund.
25 (C) The money in the fund shall not be available for appropriation or use
26 except under the following conditions:
27 (1) If the official forecast of recurring money for the next fiscal year is less
28 than the official forecast of recurring money for the current fiscal year, the
29 difference, not to exceed one-third of the fund shall be incorporated into the next
30 year's official forecast only after the consent of two-thirds of the elected members
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1 of each house of the legislature is obtained. If the legislature is not in session, the
2 two-thirds consent requirement shall be obtained by procedures provided by law.
3 (2) If a deficit for the current fiscal year is projected due to a decrease in the
4 official forecast, an amount equal to one-third of the fund not to exceed the projected
5 deficit may be appropriated after the consent of two-thirds of the elected members
6 of each house of the legislature is obtained. If the legislature is not in session, the
7 two-thirds consent requirement shall be obtained by procedures provided by law.
8 (3) If there is a federally declared disaster in the state, up to one-third of the
9 fund, not to exceed the state costs associated with the disaster, may be appropriated
10 after the consent of two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the
11 legislature is obtained. If the legislature is not in session, the two-thirds consent
12 requirement shall be obtained by procedures provided by law.
13 (4) In no event shall the amount included in the official forecast for the next
14 fiscal year pursuant to Subparagraph (1) of this Paragraph, plus the amount
15 appropriated in the current fiscal year pursuant to Subparagraph (2) of this
16 Paragraph, plus the amount appropriated pursuant to Subparagraph (3) of this
17 Paragraph exceed one-third of the fund balance at the beginning of the current fiscal
18 year.
19 (5) No appropriation or deposit to the fund shall be made if such
20 appropriation or deposit would cause the balance in the fund to exceed seven and
21 one-half percent of total state revenue receipts for the previous fiscal year.
22 §16. Transportation Trust Fund
23 Section 16.(A) Creation of fund. There shall be established in the state
24 treasury a special trust fund known as the Transportation Trust Fund ("the trust
25 fund") in which shall be deposited the "excess revenues" as defined herein which are
26 a portion of the avails received in each year from all taxes levied on gasoline and
27 motor fuels and on special fuels (said avails referred to as the "revenues") as
28 provided herein. After satisfying pledges respecting that portion of the revenues
29 attributable to the tax rates in effect at the time of such pledges for the payment of
30 obligations for bonds or other evidences of indebtedness on January 1, 1990, the
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1 treasurer shall allocate such portion of the revenues received in each year as
2 necessary to pay all principal, interest, premium, if any, and other obligations
3 incident to the issuance, security, and payment in respect of bonds as authorized in
4 Paragraph (C) of this Section. Thereafter, the portion of the revenues remaining shall
5 be deposited in the Bond Security and Redemption Fund in the state treasury. After
6 (1) the payment of any obligations for bonds or other evidences of indebtedness in
7 existence on January 1, 1990, which are secured by revenues; (2) payments in
8 respect of bonds authorized in Paragraph (C) of this Section; and (3) credit to the
9 Bond Security and Redemption Fund, the treasurer shall deposit in and credit to the
10 trust fund all of the revenues remaining (the "excess revenues") from the avails of
11 all taxes levied on gasoline and motor fuels and on special fuels. Purchases of
12 gasoline, diesel fuel, or special fuels which are subject to excise tax under Chapter
13 7 of Subtitle II of Title 47 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950 shall be exempt
14 from the state sales tax and any sales tax levied by a political subdivision as defined
15 by Article VI, Section 44(2). All monies appropriated by the Federal Highway
16 Administration and the Federal Aviation Administration, or their successors, either
17 reimbursed or paid directly, shall be paid directly or deposited in and credited to the
18 trust fund.
19 (B)(1) Except as provided for in Subparagraph (2) of this Paragraph, the
20 monies in the trust fund shall be appropriated or dedicated solely and exclusively for
21 the costs for and associated with construction and maintenance of the roads and
22 bridges of the state and federal highway systems, the Statewide Flood-Control
23 Program or its successor, ports, airports, transit, and the Parish Transportation Fund
24 or its successor and for the payment of all principal, interest, premium, if any, and
25 other obligations incident to the issuance, security, and payment in respect of bonds
26 or other obligations payable from the trust fund as authorized in Paragraph (D) of
27 this Section. Unless pledged to the repayment of bonds authorized in Paragraphs (C)
28 or (D) of this Section, the monies in the trust fund allocated to ports, airports, flood
29 control, parish transportation, and state highway construction shall be appropriated
30 annually by the legislature only pursuant to programs established by law which
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1 establish a system of priorities for the expenditure of such monies, except that the
2 Transportation Infrastructure Model for Economic Development, which shall include
3 only those projects enumerated in House Bill 17 of the 1989 First Extraordinary
4 Session of the Legislature and US Highway 61 from Thompson Creek to the
5 Mississippi Line, in lieu of "US 61-Bains to Mississippi Line", and US Highway 165
6 from I-10 to Alexandria to Monroe to Bastrop and thence on US Highway 425 from
7 Bastrop to the Arkansas Line, in lieu of "US 165-I-10 Alexandria-Monroe-Bastrop-
8 Arkansas Line" and LA 15-Natchez, Mississippi to Chase in lieu of "LA 15-Natchez,
9 Mississippi to Monroe", shall be funded as provided by law. The state-generated tax
10 monies appropriated for ports, Parish Transportation Fund, or its successor, and the
11 Statewide Flood-Control Program, or its successor shall not exceed twenty percent
12 annually of the state-generated tax revenues in the trust fund; provided, however, that
13 no less than the avails of one cent of the excise tax on gasoline and special fuels shall
14 be appropriated each year to the Parish Transportation Fund, or its successor.
15 Beginning with the appropriation for Fiscal Year 2025-2026, the annual
16 appropriation for airports shall be calculated as provided by law. Unencumbered and
17 unexpended balances at the end of each fiscal year shall remain in the trust fund. The
18 earnings realized in each fiscal year on the investment of monies in the trust fund
19 shall be deposited in and credited to the trust fund.
20 (2) There is hereby established in the Transportation Trust Fund a special
21 subfund to be known as the "Construction Subfund", hereinafter referred to as "the
22 subfund". The monies in the subfund shall be appropriated and dedicated solely for
23 the direct costs associated with actual project delivery, construction, and
24 maintenance of transportation and capital transit infrastructure projects of the state
25 and local government. The monies in the subfund that are appropriated by the
26 legislature to the Department of Transportation and Development, or its successor,
27 shall not be utilized by the department for the payment of employee wages and
28 related benefits or employee retirement benefits.
29 (C) The State Bond Commission or its successor, may issue and sell bonds,
30 notes, or other obligations ("Bonds") secured by a pledge of a portion of the revenues
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1 not to exceed the avails of four cents per gallon of the taxes on gasoline and motor
2 fuels and on special fuels received by the state treasurer. Bonds so issued may also
3 be secured by a pledge of all or a portion of excess revenues as additional security
4 therefor, and if so pledged any portion thereof needed to pay principal, interest, or
5 premium, if any, and other obligations incident to the issuance, security, and
6 payment in respect to Bonds may be expended by the treasurer without the need for
7 legislative appropriation. The Bonds may be issued in the manner set forth in this
8 Section to provide for the costs for and associated with construction and maintenance
9 of the roads and bridges of the state and federal highway systems, Statewide Flood-
10 Control Program, ports, airports, and for any other purpose for which monies in the
11 trust fund may be expended as provided by law. Such Bonds shall not be considered
12 to be debt under Article VII, Section 10 of this constitution, unless the provisions of
13 Article VII, Section 10, relative to incurring debt by the state are met, in which case
14 the full faith and credit of the state may also be pledged in addition to the revenues
15 received by the treasurer.
16 (D) The State Bond Commission or its successor may also issue and sell
17 bonds, notes, or other obligations secured by a pledge of the excess revenues
18 deposited in the trust fund, which shall otherwise be issued in the manner and for the
19 purposes provided for in this Section, and if so pledged any portion thereof needed
20 to pay principal, interest, or premium, if any, and other obligations incident to the
21 issuance, security, and payment in respect thereof may be expended by the treasurer
22 without the need for legislative appropriation.
23 (E) Bonds, notes, or other obligations issued pursuant to the provisions of
24 Paragraphs (C) or (D) of this Section may be issued in the manner provided by
25 resolution of the State Bond Commission or its successor under the authority of said
26 Paragraphs without compliance with any other requirement of this constitution or
27 law. Paragraphs (C) and (D) of this Section shall be deemed self-operative.
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1 §17. Coastal Protection and Restoration Fund
2 Section 17.(A) There shall be established in the state treasury the Coastal
3 Protection and Restoration Fund to provide a dedicated, recurring source of revenues
4 for the development and implementation of a program to protect and restore
5 Louisiana’s coastal area.
6 (B) The money in the fund shall be invested as provided by law and any
7 earnings realized on investment of money in the fund shall be deposited in and
8 credited to the fund. Money from donations, transfers, appropriations, or dedications,
9 may be deposited in and credited to the fund. Any unexpended money remaining in
10 the fund at the end of the fiscal year shall be retained in the fund.
11 (C) The money in the fund may be appropriated for purposes consistent with
12 the Coastal Protection Plan developed by the Coastal Protection and Restoration
13 Authority or its successor. No appropriation shall be made from the fund inconsistent
14 with the purposes of the plan.
15 (D)(1)(a) Subject to Section 13(B) of this Article, in each fiscal year, the
16 federal revenues that are received by the state generated from Outer Continental
17 Shelf energy production, including but not limited to oil and gas activity, wind
18 energy, solar energy, tidal energy, wave energy, geothermal energy, and other
19 alternative or renewable energy production or sources, and eligible, as provided by
20 federal law, to be used for the purposes of this Paragraph shall be deposited and
21 credited by the treasurer to the Coastal Protection and Restoration Fund.
22 (b) Federal revenues credited to the Coastal Protection and Restoration Fund
23 pursuant to this Paragraph shall be used only for the purposes of coastal protection,
24 including conservation, coastal restoration, hurricane protection, and infrastructure
25 directly impacted by coastal wetland losses.
26 (2) The treasurer shall deposit in and credit to the Coastal Protection and
27 Restoration Fund all other monies dedicated to the fund by law. Once enacted, such
28 dedication shall not be changed except by law enacted by the favorable vote of
29 two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the legislature.
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1 §18. Permanent Trust Funds
2 Section 18. (A) Funds created by the legislature and designated as permanent
3 trust funds shall be subject to the following restrictions:
4 (1) Except as otherwise provided in this Section, funds deposited into a
5 permanent trust fund shall constitute its principal and shall be held in trust
6 permanently and invested by the state treasurer as provided by law.
7 (2) Except as authorized in this constitution, no portion of the principal of a
8 permanent trust fund, except for investment purposes as authorized by law, may be
9 removed.
10 (3) Interest and investment earnings from monies held in a permanent trust
11 shall not constitute any portion of the principal and may be dedicated as provided by
12 law. Once enacted, any such dedication shall not be changed except by a law
13 enacted by the favorable vote of two-thirds of the elected members of each house of
14 the legislature.
15 (B) Unless provided otherwise by this constitution or by the provisions of
16 the subfund, the provisions of Paragraph (A) of this Section shall apply to any
17 subfund created within a permanent trust.
18 (C) A fund's status as a permanent trust fund may only be changed by law
19 enacted by the favorable vote of two-thirds of the elected members of each house of
20 the legislature.
21 (D) Each of the following shall be permanent trust funds:
22 (1) The Millennium Trust.
23 (2) The Louisiana Unclaimed Property Permanent Trust Fund.
24 (3) Any other trust designated by law as a permanent trust fund.
25 §19. Program Funds
26 Section 19.(A) By a law enacted by two-thirds of the elected members of
27 each house, the legislature may create or designate a fund as a program fund in the
28 state treasury. A program fund shall not be changed except by a law enacted by the
29 favorable vote of two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the legislature.
30 The two-thirds vote required herein may only be changed by two-thirds vote of the
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1 elected members of each house of the legislature. The purposes of the program
2 funds designated herein shall be retained and may only be changed by a two-thirds
3 vote of the elected members of each house of the legislature.
4 (B) Each of the following funds shall be a program fund:
5 (1) The Artificial Reef Development Fund.
6 (2) The Oil Spill Contingency Fund.
7 (3) The Oilfield Site Restoration Fund.
8 (4) The Louisiana Fund.
9 (5) The Local Revenue Fund.
10 (6) Any other fund designated by law as a program fund.
11 §10.1. Quality Trust Fund; Education
12 Section 10.1.(A) Louisiana Education Quality Trust Fund. (1) Effective
13 January 1, 1987, there shall be established in the state treasury as a special permanent
14 trust fund the Louisiana Education Quality Trust Fund, hereinafter referred to as the
15 "Permanent Trust Fund." After allocation of money to the Bond Security and
16 Redemption Fund as provided in Article VII, Section 9(B) of this constitution, and
17 notwithstanding Article XIV, Section 10 of this constitution, the treasurer shall
18 deposit in and credit to the Permanent Trust Fund all money which is received after
19 the first one hundred million dollars from the federal government under Section
20 1337(g) of Title 43 of the United States Code which is attributable to mineral
21 production activity or leasing activity on the Outer Continental Shelf which has been
22 held in escrow pending a settlement between the United States and the state of
23 Louisiana; twenty-five percent of the recurring revenues received under Section
24 1337(g) of Title 43 of the United States Code which are attributable to mineral
25 production activity or leasing activity on the Outer Continental Shelf; twenty-five
26 percent of the interest income earned on investment of monies in the Permanent
27 Trust Fund; seventy-five percent of the realized capital gains on investment of the
28 Permanent Trust Fund, unless such percentage is changed by law enacted by two-
29 thirds of the elected members of each house of the legislature; and twenty-five
30 percent of the dividend income earned on investment of the Permanent Trust Fund.
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1 No appropriation shall be made from the Permanent Trust Fund. If any such money
2 has been received prior to the effective date of this Section, the treasurer shall
3 transfer from the state general fund to the Permanent Trust Fund on the effective date
4 of this Section an amount of money which shall make the Permanent Trust Fund
5 balance equal to the amount of such money previously received, except for the first
6 one hundred million dollars. After six hundred million dollars has been credited to
7 the Permanent Trust Fund, the sum of fifty million dollars shall be credited to the
8 Coastal Environment Protection Trust Fund, as established in R.S. 30:313, from
9 those monies received from the federal government under Section 1337(g) of Title
10 43 of the United States Code which is attributable to mineral production activity or
11 leasing activity on the Outer Continental Shelf and which has been held in escrow
12 pending a settlement between the United States and the state of Louisiana; all funds
13 in excess of seven hundred fifty million dollars shall be credited to the Permanent
14 Trust Fund.
15 (2) After allocation of money to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund as
16 provided in Article VII, Section 9(B) of the constitution, and notwithstanding Article
17 XIV, Section 10 of the constitution, seventy-five percent of the recurring revenues
18 received under Section 1337(g) of Title 43 of the United States Code which are
19 attributable to mineral production activity or leasing activity, and the percent
20 remaining of the realized capital gains and interest income and dividend income
21 earned on investment of the Permanent Trust Fund after the deposit required to the
22 Permanent Trust Fund in Paragraph A(1) of this Section shall be deposited and
23 credited to a special fund which is hereby created in the state treasury and which
24 shall be known as the Louisiana Quality Education Support Fund, hereinafter
25 referred to as the "Support Fund".
26 (3) All recurring revenues and interest earnings shall be credited to the
27 respective funds as provided in Subparagraphs (1) and (2) above until the balance in
28 the Permanent Trust Fund equals two billion dollars. After the Permanent Trust
29 Fund reaches a balance of two billion dollars, all interest earnings on the Permanent
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1 Trust Fund shall be credited to the Support Fund and all recurring revenues shall be
2 credited to the State General Fund.
3 (B) Investment. The money credited to the Permanent Trust Fund pursuant
4 to Paragraph (A) of this Section shall be permanently credited to the Permanent Trust
5 Fund and shall be invested by the treasurer. Notwithstanding any provision of this
6 constitution or other law to the contrary, a portion of money in the Permanent Trust
7 Fund, not to exceed thirty-five percent, may be invested in stock. The legislature
8 shall provide for procedures for the investment of such monies by law. The treasurer
9 shall contract, subject to the approval of the State Bond Commission, for the
10 management of such investments. The amounts in the Support Fund shall be
11 available for appropriation to pay expenses incurred in the investment and
12 management of the Permanent Trust Fund and for educational purposes only as
13 provided in Paragraphs (C) and (D) of this Section.
14 (C) Reports; Allocation. (1) The State Board of Elementary and Secondary
15 Education and the Board of Regents shall annually submit to the legislature and the
16 governor not less than sixty days prior to the beginning of each regular session of the
17 legislature a proposed program and budget for the expenditure of the monies in the
18 Support Fund. Proposals for such expenditures shall be designed to improve the
19 quality of education and shall specifically designate those monies to be used for
20 administrative costs, as defined and authorized by law.
21 (2) Except for appropriations to pay expenses incurred in the investment and
22 management of the Permanent Trust Fund, the legislature shall appropriate from the
23 Support Fund only for educational purposes provided in Paragraph (D) of this
24 Section and shall appropriate fifty percent of the available funds for higher
25 educational purposes and fifty percent for elementary and secondary educational
26 purposes. Those monies to be used for administrative costs shall be expended for
27 such purposes only if so approved and appropriated by the legislature.
28 (3) The legislature shall appropriate the total amount intended for higher
29 educational purposes to the Board of Regents and the total amount intended for
30 elementary and secondary educational purposes to the State Board of Elementary and
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1 Secondary Education which boards shall allocate the monies so appropriated to the
2 programs as previously approved by the legislature.
3 (4) The monies appropriated by the legislature and disbursed from the
4 Support Fund shall not displace, replace, or supplant appropriations from the general
5 fund for elementary and secondary education, including implementing the Minimum
6 Foundation Program, or displace, replace, or supplant funding for higher education.
7 For elementary and secondary education and for higher education, this Paragraph
8 shall mean that no appropriation for any fiscal year from the Support Fund shall be
9 made for any purpose for which a general fund appropriation was made in the
10 previous year unless the total appropriations for that fiscal year from the state general
11 fund for such purpose exceed general fund appropriations for the previous year. This
12 Paragraph shall in no way limit general fund appropriations in excess of the
13 minimum amounts herein established.
14 (D) Disbursement; Higher Education and Elementary and Secondary
15 Education.
16 (1) The treasurer shall disburse not more than fifty percent of the monies in
17 the Support Fund as that money is appropriated by the legislature and allocated by
18 the Board of Regents for any or all of the following higher educational purposes to
19 enhance economic development:
20 (a) The carefully defined research efforts of public and private universities
21 in Louisiana.
22 (b) The endowment of chairs for eminent scholars.
23 (c) The enhancement of the quality of academic, research, or agricultural
24 departments or units within a community college, college, or university. These funds
25 shall not be used for athletic purposes or programs.
26 (d) The recruitment of superior graduate students.
27 (2) The treasurer shall disburse not more than fifty percent of the monies in
28 the Support Fund as that money is appropriated by the legislature and allocated by
29 the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education for any or all of the
30 following elementary and secondary educational purposes:
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1 (a) To provide compensation to city or parish school board professional
2 instructional employees.
3 (b) To insure an adequate supply of superior textbooks, library books,
4 equipment, and other instructional materials.
5 (c) To fund exemplary programs in elementary and secondary schools
6 designed to improve elementary or secondary student academic achievement or
7 vocational-technical skill.
8 (d) To fund carefully defined research efforts, including pilot programs,
9 designed to improve elementary and secondary student academic achievement.
10 (e) To fund school remediation programs and preschool programs.
11 (f) To fund the teaching of foreign languages in elementary and secondary
12 schools.
13 (g) To fund an adequate supply of teachers by providing scholarships or
14 stipends to prospective teachers in academic or vocational-technical areas where
15 there is a critical teacher shortage.
16 §10.2. Coastal Protection and Restoration Fund
17 Section 10.2(A) There shall be established in the state treasury the Coastal
18 Protection and Restoration Fund to provide a dedicated, recurring source of revenues
19 for the development and implementation of a program to protect and restore
20 Louisiana's coastal area.
21 Of revenues received in each fiscal year by the state as a result of the
22 production of or exploration for minerals, hereinafter referred to as mineral revenues
23 from severance taxes, royalty payments, bonus payments, or rentals, and excluding
24 such revenues received by the state as a result of grants or donations when the terms
25 or conditions thereof require otherwise, the treasurer shall make the following
26 allocations:
27 (1) To the Bond Security and Redemption Fund as provided in Article VII,
28 Section 9(B) of this constitution.
29 (2) To the political subdivisions of the state as provided in Article VII,
30 Sections 4(D) and (E) of this constitution.
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1 (3) As provided by the requirements of Article VII, Sections 10-A and 10.1
2 of this constitution.
3 (B)(1) After making the allocations provided for in Paragraph (A), the
4 treasurer shall then deposit in and credit to the Coastal Protection and Restoration
5 Fund any amount of mineral revenues that may be necessary to insure that a total of
6 five million dollars is deposited into such fund for the fiscal year from this source;
7 provided that the balance of the fund which consists of mineral revenues from
8 severance taxes, royalty payments, bonus payments, or rentals shall not exceed an
9 amount provided by law, but in no event shall the amount provided by law be less
10 than five hundred million dollars.
11 (2) After making the allocations and deposits provided for in Paragraphs (A)
12 and (B)(1) of this Section, the treasurer shall deposit in and credit to the Coastal
13 Protection and Restoration Fund as follows:
14 (a) Ten million dollars of the mineral revenues in excess of six hundred
15 million dollars which remain after the allocations provided for in Paragraph (A) are
16 made by the treasurer.
17 (b) Ten million dollars of the mineral revenues in excess of six hundred fifty
18 million dollars which remain after the allocations provided in Paragraph (A) are
19 made by the treasurer.
20 However, the balance of the fund which consists of mineral revenues from
21 severance taxes, royalty payments, bonus payments, or rentals shall not exceed an
22 amount provided by law, but in no event shall the amount provided by law be less
23 than five hundred million dollars.
24 (C) The money in the fund shall be invested as provided by law and any
25 earnings realized on investment of money in the fund shall be deposited in and
26 credited to the fund. Money from other sources, such as donations, appropriations,
27 or dedications, may be deposited in and credited to the fund; however, the balance
28 of the fund which consists of mineral revenues from severance taxes, royalty
29 payments, bonus payments, or rentals shall not exceed an amount provided by law,
30 but in no event shall the amount provided by law be less than five hundred million
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1 dollars. Any unexpended money remaining in the fund at the end of the fiscal year
2 shall be retained in the fund.
3 (D) The money in the fund may be appropriated for purposes consistent with
4 the Coastal Protection Plan developed by the Coastal Protection and Restoration
5 Authority, or its successor.
6 No appropriation shall be made from the fund inconsistent with the purposes
7 of the plan.
8 (E)(1) Subject to Sections 9(B) and 10.1 of this Article, in each fiscal year,
9 the federal revenues that are received by the state generated from Outer Continental
10 Shelf energy production, including but not limited to oil and gas activity, wind
11 energy, solar energy, tidal energy, wave energy, geothermal energy, and other
12 alternative or renewable energy production or sources, and eligible, as provided by
13 federal law, to be used for the purposes of this Paragraph shall be deposited and
14 credited by the treasurer to the Coastal Protection and Restoration Fund.
15 (2) Federal revenues credited to the Coastal Protection and Restoration Fund
16 pursuant to this Paragraph shall be used only for the purposes of coastal protection,
17 including conservation, coastal restoration, hurricane protection, and infrastructure
18 directly impacted by coastal wetland losses.
19 (3) The fund balance limitations provided for in Paragraph (B) of this
20 Section relative to the mineral revenues deposited to this fund shall not apply to
21 revenues deposited pursuant to the provisions of this Paragraph.
22 (F)(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of Article VII, Section 10, Article VII,
23 Section 10.3, Article VII, Section 10.8, or any other provision of this constitution to
24 the contrary, if, after July 1, 2006, the state securitizes any portion of the revenues
25 received from the Master Settlement Agreement executed November 23, 1998, and
26 approved by Consent Decree and Final Judgment entered in the case "Richard P.
27 Ieyoub, Attorney General, ex rel. State of Louisiana v. Philip Morris, Incorporated,
28 et al.," bearing Number 98-6473 on the docket of the Fourteenth Judicial District for
29 the parish of Calcasieu, state of Louisiana, the treasurer shall transfer to the fund
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1 established in Paragraph A of this Section twenty percent in the aggregate of the
2 revenues received as a result of the securitization occurring after July 1, 2006.
3 (2) The legislature may appropriate up to twenty percent of the funds
4 deposited into the fund pursuant to Subparagraph (1) of this Paragraph to the Barrier
5 Island Stabilization and Preservation Fund to be used for purposes of the Louisiana
6 Coastal Wetlands Conservation and Restoration Program.
7 (3) The fund balance limitations provided for in Paragraph (B) of this
8 Section relative to the mineral revenues deposited to this fund shall not apply to
9 revenues deposited pursuant to the provisions of this Paragraph.
10 §10.3. Budget Stabilization Fund
11 Section 10.3.(A) There is hereby established in the state treasury a Budget
12 Stabilization Fund hereinafter referred to as the fund. Money shall be deposited in
13 the fund as follows:
14 (1) All money available for appropriation from the state general fund and
15 dedicated funds in excess of the expenditure limit, except funds allocated by Article
16 VII, Section 4, Paragraphs (D) and (E), shall be deposited in the fund.
17 (2)(a) All revenues received in each fiscal year by the state in excess of
18 seven hundred fifty million dollars, hereinafter referred to as the base, as a result of
19 the production of or exploration for minerals, hereinafter referred to as mineral
20 revenues, including severance taxes, royalty payments, bonus payments, or rentals,
21 and excluding such revenues designated as nonrecurring pursuant to Article VII,
22 Section 10(B) of the constitution, any such revenues received by the state as a result
23 of grants or donations when the terms or conditions thereof require otherwise, and
24 revenues derived from any tax on the transportation of minerals, shall be deposited
25 in the fund after the following allocations of said mineral revenues have been made:
26 (i) To the Bond Security and Redemption Fund as provided by Article VII,
27 Section 9 (B) of this constitution.
28 (ii) To the political subdivisions of the state as provided in Article VII,
29 Sections 4 (D) and (E) of this constitution.
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1 (iii) As provided by the requirements of Article VII, Section 10-A and 10.1
2 of this constitution.
3 (b) The base may be increased every ten years beginning in the year 2000
4 by a law enacted by two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the
5 legislature. Any such increase shall not exceed fifty percent in the aggregate of the
6 increase in the consumer price index for the immediately preceding ten years.
7 (3) Twenty-five percent of any money designated in the official forecast as
8 nonrecurring as provided in Article VII, Section 10(D)(2) of this constitution shall
9 be deposited in and credited to the fund.
10 (4) Any money appropriated to the fund by the legislature including any
11 appropriation to the fund from money designated in the official forecast as provided
12 in Article VII, Section 10(D)(2) of this constitution shall be deposited in the fund.
13 (5) An amount equivalent to the money received by the state from the federal
14 government for the reimbursement of costs associated with a federally declared
15 disaster, not to exceed the amount of costs appropriated out of the fund for the same
16 disaster pursuant to Subparagraph (C)(3) of this Section.
17 (B) Money in the fund shall be invested as provided by law. Earnings
18 realized in each fiscal year on the investment of monies in the fund shall be
19 deposited to the credit of the fund. All unexpended and unencumbered monies in the
20 fund at the end of the fiscal year shall remain in the fund.
21 (C) The money in the fund shall not be available for appropriation or use
22 except under the following conditions:
23 (1) If the official forecast of recurring money for the next fiscal year is less
24 than the official forecast of recurring money for the current fiscal year, the
25 difference, not to exceed one-third of the fund shall be incorporated into the next
26 year's official forecast only after the consent of two-thirds of the elected members
27 of each house of the legislature. If the legislature is not in session, the two-thirds
28 requirement may be satisfied upon obtaining the written consent of two-thirds of the
29 elected members of each house of the legislature in a manner provided by law.
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1 (2) If a deficit for the current fiscal year is projected due to a decrease in the
2 official forecast, an amount equal to one-third of the fund not to exceed the projected
3 deficit may be appropriated after the consent of two-thirds of the elected members
4 of each house of the legislature. Between sessions of the legislature the
5 appropriation may be made only after the written consent of two-thirds of the elected
6 members of each house of the legislature.
7 (3) If there is a federally declared disaster in the state, up to one-third of the
8 fund, not to exceed the state costs associated with the disaster, may be appropriated
9 after the consent of two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the
10 legislature. Between sessions of the legislature, the appropriation may be made only
11 with written consent of two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the
12 legislature.
13 (4) In no event shall the amount included in the official forecast for the next
14 fiscal year pursuant to Subparagraph (1) of this Paragraph, plus the amount
15 appropriated in the current fiscal year pursuant to Subparagraph (2) of this
16 Paragraph, plus the amount appropriated pursuant to Subparagraph (3) of this
17 Paragraph exceed one-third of the fund balance at the beginning of the current fiscal
18 year.
19 (5) No appropriation or deposit to the fund shall be made if such
20 appropriation or deposit would cause the balance in the fund to exceed four percent
21 of total state revenue receipts for the previous fiscal year.
22 §10.5. Mineral Revenue Audit and Settlement Fund
23 Section 10.5.(A) There shall be established in the state treasury the Mineral
24 Revenue Audit and Settlement Fund, hereinafter referred to as the "fund". Of
25 revenues received in each fiscal year by the state through settlements or judgments
26 which equal, in both principal and interest, five million dollars or more for each such
27 settlement or judgment, resulting from underpayment to the state of severance taxes,
28 royalty payments, bonus payments, or rentals, the treasurer shall make the following
29 allocations as required:
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1 (1) To the Bond Security and Redemption Fund as provided in Article VII,
2 Section 9(B) of this constitution.
3 (2) To the political subdivisions of the state as provided in Article VII,
4 Section 4(D) and (E) of this constitution.
5 (3) As provided by the requirements of Article VII, Sections 10-A, 10.1,
6 10.2, and 10.3 of this constitution.
7 (B) After making the allocations provided for in Paragraph (A), the treasurer
8 shall then deposit in and credit to the Mineral Revenue Audit and Settlement Fund
9 any such remaining revenues. Any revenues deposited in and credited to the fund
10 shall be considered mineral revenues from severance taxes, royalty payments, bonus
11 payments, or rentals for purposes of determining deposits and credits to be made in
12 and to the Coastal Protection and Restoration Fund as provided in Article VII,
13 Section 10.2 of this constitution. Any revenues deposited in and credited to the fund
14 shall not be considered mineral revenues for purposes of the Budget Stabilization
15 Fund as provided in Article VII, Section 10.3 of this constitution. Money in the fund
16 shall be invested as provided by law. The earnings realized in each fiscal year on the
17 investment of monies in the Mineral Revenue Audit and Settlement Fund shall be
18 deposited in and credited to the Mineral Revenue Audit and Settlement Fund.
19 (C) After making the allocations provided for in Paragraph (A), the treasurer
20 shall credit thirty-five million dollars to the Coastal Protection and Restoration Fund,
21 and thereafter any monies credited to the fund in any fiscal year may be annually
22 appropriated by the legislature only for the purposes of retirement in advance of
23 maturity through redemption, purchase, or repayment of debt of the state, pursuant
24 to a plan proposed by the State Bond Commission to maximize the savings to the
25 state; for payments against the unfunded accrued liability of the public retirement
26 systems which are in addition to any payments required for the annual amortization
27 of the unfunded accrued liability of the public retirement systems, required by
28 Article X, Section 29 of this constitution; however, any such payment to the public
29 retirement systems shall not be used, directly or indirectly, to fund cost-of-living
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1 increases for such systems; and for deposit in the Coastal Protection and Restoration
2 Fund.
3 §10.6. Oilfield Site Restoration Fund
4 Section 10.6.(A) Oilfield Site Restoration Fund. Effective January 4, 1996,
5 there shall be established in the state treasury, as a special fund, the Oilfield Site
6 Restoration Fund, hereinafter referred to as the restoration fund. Out of the funds
7 remaining in the Bond Security and Redemption Fund after a sufficient amount is
8 allocated from that fund to pay all obligations secured by the full faith and credit of
9 the state which become due and payable within any fiscal year as required by Article
10 VII, Section 9(B) of this constitution, the treasurer shall pay into the restoration fund
11 all of the following:
12 (1) All revenue from the types and classes of fees, penalties, other revenues,
13 or judgments associated with site cleanup activities paid into the restoration fund as
14 provided by law on the effective date of this Section. Such revenue shall be
15 deposited in the restoration fund even if the names of such fees, other revenues, or
16 penalties are changed.
17 Any increase in the amount charged for such fees, penalties, other revenues,
18 or judgments associated with site cleanup activities enacted by the legislature after
19 the effective date of this Section, for the purpose of orphaned oilfield site restoration
20 shall be irrevocably dedicated and deposited in the restoration fund.
21 (2) The balance remaining on January 4, 1996 in the Oilfield Site Restoration
22 Fund established by law.
23 (3) All funds or revenues which may be donated expressly to the restoration
24 fund.
25 (4) All site-specific trust account funds established by law.
26 (B) The monies in the restoration fund shall be appropriated by the
27 legislature to the Department of Natural Resources, or its successor, and shall be
28 used solely for the programs and purposes of oilfield site restoration as required by
29 law.
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1 (C) All unexpended and unencumbered monies in the restoration fund at the
2 end of the fiscal year shall remain in the fund. The monies in the fund shall be
3 invested by the treasurer in the manner provided by law. All interest earned on
4 monies invested by the treasurer shall be deposited in the fund. The treasurer shall
5 prepare and submit to the department on a quarterly basis a printed report showing
6 the amount of money contained in the fund from all sources.
7 (D) The provisions of this Section shall not apply to or affect funds allocated
8 by Article VII, Section 4, Paragraphs (D) and (E).
9 §10.7. Oil Spill Contingency Fund
10 Section 10.7.(A) Oil Spill Contingency Fund. Effective January 4, 1996,
11 there shall be established in the state treasury, as a special fund, the Oil Spill
12 Contingency Fund, hereinafter referred to as the contingency fund. Out of the funds
13 remaining in the Bond Security and Redemption Fund after a sufficient amount is
14 allocated from that fund to pay all obligations secured by the full faith and credit of
15 the state which become due and payable within any fiscal year as required by Article
16 VII, Section 9(B) of this constitution, the treasurer shall pay into the contingency
17 fund all of the following, on the effective date of this Section:
18 (1) All revenue from the types and classes of fees, taxes, penalties,
19 judgments, reimbursements, charges, and federal funds collected or other revenue
20 paid into the contingency fund as provided by law on the effective date of this
21 Section. Such revenue shall be deposited in the contingency fund even if the names
22 of such fees, taxes, penalties, judgments, reimbursements, charges, and federal funds
23 collected or other revenues are changed.
24 Any increase in the amount charged for such fees, taxes, penalties,
25 judgments, reimbursements, charges, and federal funds collected or other revenue,
26 or any new fees, taxes, penalties, judgments, reimbursements, charges, and federal
27 funds collected or other revenue enacted by the legislature for the purposes of
28 abatement and containment of actual or threatened unauthorized discharges of oil
29 after the effective date of this Section, shall be irrevocably dedicated and deposited
30 in the contingency fund.
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1 (2) The balance remaining on January 4, 1996 in the Oil Spill Contingency
2 Fund established by law.
3 (3) All funds or revenues which may be donated expressly to the
4 contingency fund.
5 (B) The monies in the contingency fund shall be appropriated by the
6 legislature to be used solely for the programs and purposes of abatement and
7 containment of actual or threatened unauthorized discharges of oil as provided by
8 law; and for administrative expenses associated with such programs and purposes as
9 provided by law.
10 (C) All unexpended and unencumbered monies in the contingency fund at
11 the end of the fiscal year shall remain in the fund. The monies in the fund shall be
12 invested by the treasurer in the manner provided by law. All interest earned on
13 monies invested by the treasurer shall be deposited in the fund. The balance of the
14 fund shall not exceed thirty million dollars or otherwise as provided by law.
15 (D) The provisions of this Section shall not apply to or affect funds allocated
16 by Article VII, Section 4, Paragraphs (D) and (E).
17 §10.8. §20. Millennium Trust
18 Section 10.8. Section 20. Millennium Trust
19 (A) Creation
20 (1) There shall be established in the state treasury as a special permanent
21 trust known as the "Millennium Trust". After allocation of money to the Bond
22 Security and Redemption Fund as provided in Article VII, Section 9(B) Section
23 13(B) of this constitution, the treasurer shall deposit in and credit to the Millennium
24 Trust certain monies received as a result of the Master Settlement Agreement,
25 hereinafter the "Settlement Agreement", executed November 23, 1998, and approved
26 by Consent Decree and Final Judgment entered in the case "Richard P. Ieyoub,
27 Attorney General, ex rel. State of Louisiana v. Philip Morris, Incorporated, et al.",
28 bearing Number 98-6473 on the docket of the Fourteenth Judicial District for the
29 parish of Calcasieu, state of Louisiana; and all dividend and interest income and all
30 realized capital gains on investment of the monies in the Millennium Trust.
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1 Louisiana. The treasurer shall deposit in and credit to the Millennium Trust the
2 following amounts of monies received as a result of the Settlement Agreement:
3 (a) Fiscal Year 2000-2001, forty-five percent of the total monies received
4 that year.
5 (b) Fiscal Year 2001-2002, sixty percent of the total monies received that
6 year.
7 (c) Fiscal Year 2002-2003 and each fiscal year thereafter, seventy-five
8 percent of the total monies received that year. each fiscal year However, beginning
9 in Fiscal Year 2011-2012 after the balance in the Millennium Trust reaches a total
10 of one billion three hundred eighty million dollars, the monies deposited in and
11 credited to the Millennium Trust, received as a result of the Settlement Agreement,
12 which shall be allocated to the various funds TOPS Fund within the Millennium
13 Trust as provided in Subsubparagraphs (2)(b), (3)(b), and (4)(b) and (c) of this
14 Paragraph. Trust.
15 (d) For Fiscal Year 2000-2001, Fiscal Year 2001-2002, and Fiscal Year
16 2002-2003, ten percent of the total monies received in each of those years for credit
17 to the Education Excellence Fund which, notwithstanding the provisions of
18 Subparagraph (C)(1) of this Section, shall be appropriated for the purposes provided
19 in Subsubparagraph (d) of Subparagraph (3) of Paragraph (C) of this Section.
20 (2)(a) The Health Excellence Fund shall be established as a special fund
21 within the Millennium Trust. Funding for the Health Excellence Fund shall be
22 provided by law; however, no portion of the settlement agreement proceeds shall be
23 deposited into the fund. The treasurer shall credit to the Health Excellence Fund
24 one-third of the Settlement Agreement proceeds deposited each year into the
25 Millennium Trust, and one-third of all investment earnings on the investment of the
26 Millennium Trust. The treasurer shall report annually to the legislature as to the
27 amount of Millennium Trust investment earnings credited to the Health Excellence
28 Fund.
29 (b) Beginning Fiscal Year 2011-2012, and each fiscal year thereafter, the
30 treasurer shall credit to the Health Excellence Fund one-third of all investment
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1 earnings on the investment of the Millennium Trust. The treasurer shall report
2 annually to the legislature as to the amount of Millennium Trust investment earnings
3 credited to the Health Excellence Fund.
4 (c) Beginning on July 1, 2012, after allocation of money to the Bond
5 Security and Redemption Fund as provided in Article VII, Section 9(B) of this
6 constitution, the state treasurer shall deposit in and credit to the Health Excellence
7 Fund an amount equal to the revenues derived from the tax levied pursuant to R.S.
8 47:841(B)(3).
9 (3)(a) The Education Excellence Fund shall be established as a special fund
10 within the Millennium Trust. The treasurer shall credit to the Education Excellence
11 Fund one-third of the Settlement Agreement proceeds deposited each year into the
12 Millennium Trust, and one-third of all investment earnings on the investment of the
13 Millennium Trust. The treasurer shall report annually to the legislature and the state
14 superintendent of education as to the amount of Millennium Trust investment
15 earnings credited to the Education Excellence Fund.
16 (b) Beginning Fiscal Year 2011-2012, and each fiscal year thereafter, the
17 treasurer shall credit to the Education Excellence Fund one-third of all investment
18 earnings on the investment of the Millennium Trust. The treasurer shall report
19 annually to the legislature and the state superintendent of education as to the amount
20 of Millennium Trust investment earnings credited to the Education Excellence Fund.
21 (4)(a) The TOPS Fund shall be established as a special fund within the
22 Millennium Trust. In addition to the deposits required pursuant to the provisions of
23 Subparagraph (A)(1) of this Section, additional amounts may be deposited into the
24 fund as provided by law. Settlement Agreement proceeds allocated to the TOPS
25 Fund each year shall not constitute trust principal for purposes of Section 18 of this
26 Article and may be appropriated as provided by law. The treasurer shall deposit in
27 and credit to the TOPS Fund one-third of the Settlement Agreement proceeds
28 deposited into the Millennium Trust, and one-third of all investment earnings on the
29 investment of the Millennium Trust. The treasurer shall report annually to the
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1 legislature as to the amount of Millennium Trust investment earnings credited to the
2 TOPS Fund.
3 (b) Beginning Fiscal Year 2011-2012, and each fiscal year thereafter, the
4 treasurer shall credit to the TOPS Fund one hundred percent of the Settlement
5 Agreement proceeds deposited into the Millennium Trust, and one-third of all
6 investment earnings on the investment of the Millennium Trust. The treasurer shall
7 report annually to the legislature as to the amount of Millennium Trust Settlement
8 Agreement proceeds and investment earnings credited to the TOPS Fund.
9 (c) Upon the effective date of this Subsubparagraph, the state treasurer shall
10 deposit, transfer, or otherwise credit funds in an amount equal to such Settlement
11 Agreement proceeds deposited in and credited to the Millennium Trust received by
12 the state between April 1, 2011 and the effective date of this Subsubparagraph to the
13 TOPS Fund.
14 (5) (4) The amount of Settlement Agreement revenues deposited in the
15 Millennium Trust and credited to the respective funds may be increased and the
16 amount of such revenues deposited into the Louisiana Fund may be decreased by a
17 specific legislative instrument which receives a favorable vote of two-thirds of the
18 elected members of each house of the legislature.
19 (B) Investment. Monies credited to the Millennium Trust pursuant to
20 Paragraph (A) of this Section shall be invested by the treasurer with the same
21 authority and subject to the same restrictions as the Louisiana Education Quality
22 Trust Fund. However, the portion of monies in the Millennium Trust which may be
23 invested in stock may be increased to no more than fifty percent by a specific
24 legislative instrument which receives a favorable vote of two-thirds of the elected
25 members of each house of the legislature. The legislature shall provide for
26 procedures for the investment of such monies by law. The treasurer may contract,
27 subject to the approval of the State Bond Commission, for the management of such
28 investments and, if a contract is entered into, amounts necessary to pay the costs of
29 the contract shall be appropriated from the Millennium Trust.
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1 (C) Appropriations. (1)(a) Appropriations from the Education Excellence
2 Fund shall be limited to an annual amount not to exceed the estimated aggregate
3 annual earnings from interest, dividends, and realized capital gains on investment of
4 the trust allocated as provided by Paragraph (A) of this Section and as recognized by
5 the Revenue Estimating Conference. Amounts determined to be available for
6 appropriation shall be those aggregate investment earnings which are in excess of an
7 inflation factor as determined by the Revenue Estimating Conference. The amount
8 of realized capital gains on investment which may be included in the aggregate
9 earnings available for appropriation in any year shall not exceed the aggregate of
10 earnings from interest and dividends for that year.
11 (b)(i) For Fiscal Year 2011-2012, appropriations from the Health Excellence
12 Fund shall be limited to an annual amount not to exceed the estimated aggregate
13 annual earnings from interest, dividends, and realized capital gains on investment of
14 the trust and credited to the Health Excellence Fund as provided by Subsubparagraph
15 (A)(2)(b) of this Section and as recognized by the Revenue Estimating Conference.
16 (ii) For Fiscal Year 2012-2013, and each fiscal year thereafter,
17 appropriations from the Health Excellence Fund shall be limited to an annual amount
18 not to exceed the estimated aggregate annual earnings from interest, dividends, and
19 realized capital gains on investment of the trust and credited to the Health Excellence
20 Fund as provided by Subsubparagraph (A)(2)(b) of this Section and as recognized
21 by the Revenue Estimating Conference and the amount of proceeds credited to and
22 deposited into the Health Excellence Fund as provided by Subsubparagraph (A)(2)(c)
23 of this Section.
24 (c)(i) For Fiscal Year 2011-2012, appropriations from the TOPS Fund shall
25 be limited to the amount of Settlement Agreement proceeds credited to and deposited
26 into the TOPS Fund as provided by Subsubparagraphs (A)(4)(b) and (c) of this
27 Section, and an annual amount not to exceed the estimated aggregate annual earnings
28 from interest, dividends, and realized capital gains on investment of the trust and
29 credited to the TOPS Fund as provided by Subsubparagraph (A)(4)(b) of this Section
30 and as recognized by the Revenue Estimating Conference.
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1 (ii) For Fiscal Year 2012-2013, and each fiscal year thereafter,
2 appropriations from the TOPS Fund shall be limited to the amount of annual
3 Settlement Agreement proceeds credited to and deposited into the TOPS Fund as
4 provided in Subsubparagraph (A)(4)(b) of this Section, and an annual amount not to
5 exceed the estimated aggregate annual earnings from interest, dividends, and realized
6 capital gains on investment of the trust and credited to the TOPS Fund as provided
7 in Subsubparagraph (A)(4)(b) of this Section and as recognized by the Revenue
8 Estimating Conference.
9 (iii) Further, for Fiscal Year 2011-2012, and each fiscal year thereafter,
10 amounts determined to be available for appropriation from the TOPS Fund from
11 interest earnings shall be those aggregate investment earnings which are in excess
12 of an inflation factor as determined by the Revenue Estimating Conference. The
13 amount of realized capital gains on investment which may be included in the
14 aggregate earnings available for appropriation in any year shall not exceed the
15 aggregate of earnings from interest and dividends for that year.
16 (2) Appropriations from the Health Excellence Fund shall be restricted to the
17 following purposes:
18 (a) Initiatives to ensure the optimal development of Louisiana's children
19 through the provision of appropriate health care, including children's health
20 insurance, services provided by school-based health clinics, rural health clinics, and
21 primary care clinics, and early childhood intervention programs targeting children
22 from birth through age four including programs to reduce infant mortality.
23 (b) Initiatives to benefit the citizens of Louisiana with respect to health care
24 through pursuit of innovation in advanced health care sciences, and the provision of
25 comprehensive chronic disease management services.
26 (c) Each appropriation from the Health Excellence Fund shall include
27 performance expectations to ensure accountability in the expenditure of such monies.
28 (3) Appropriations from the Education Excellence Fund shall be limited as
29 follows:
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1 (a) Fifteen percent of monies available for appropriation in any fiscal year
2 from the Education Excellence Fund shall be appropriated to the state superintendent
3 of education for distribution on behalf of all children attending private elementary
4 and secondary schools that have been approved by the State Board of Elementary
5 and Secondary Education, both academically and as required for such school to
6 receive money from the state.
7 (b) Appropriations shall be made each year to the Louisiana Educational
8 Television Authority in the amount of seventy-five thousand dollars and to the
9 Louisiana School for the Deaf, the Louisiana School for the Visually Impaired, the
10 Louisiana Special Education Center in Alexandria, the Jimmy D. Long, Sr. Louisiana
11 School for Math, Science, and the Arts, the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts,
12 the Louis Armstrong High School for the Arts, and Thrive Academy, after such
13 schools are operational, to provide for a payment to each school of seventy-five
14 thousand dollars plus an allocation for each pupil equal to the average statewide per
15 pupil amount provided each city, parish, and local school system pursuant to
16 Subsubparagraph (e) of this Subparagraph.
17 (c) Appropriations may be made for independent public schools approved
18 by the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education or any city, parish, or
19 other local school system, laboratory schools approved by the State Board of
20 Elementary and Secondary Education and operated by a public postsecondary
21 education institution, and for alternative schools and programs which are authorized
22 and approved by the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education but are not
23 subject to the jurisdiction and management of any city, parish, or local school system
24 to provide for an allocation for each pupil, which shall be the average statewide per
25 pupil amount provided in each city, parish, or local school system pursuant to
26 Subsubparagraph (e) of this Subparagraph.
27 (e) Beginning Fiscal Year 2007-2008 and for each fiscal year thereafter, of
28 the monies available for appropriation after providing for the purposes enumerated
29 in Subsubparagraphs (a), (b), and (c) of this Subparagraph, one hundred percent of
30 the monies available for appropriation in any fiscal year shall be appropriated for
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1 each city, parish, and other local school system on a pro rata basis which is based on
2 the ratio of the student population of that school or school system to that of the total
3 state student population as contained in the most recent Minimum Foundation
4 Program.
5 (f) Monies appropriated pursuant to this Subparagraph shall be restricted to
6 expenditure for pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade instructional enhancement
7 for students, including early childhood education programs focused on enhancing the
8 preparation of at-risk children for school, remedial instruction, and assistance to
9 children who fail to achieve the required scores on any tests passage of which are
10 required pursuant to state law or rule for advancement to a succeeding grade or other
11 educational programs approved by the legislature. Expenditures for maintenance or
12 renovation of buildings, capital improvements, and increases in employee salaries
13 are prohibited. The state superintendent of education shall be responsible for
14 allocating all money due private schools.
15 (g) Each recipient entity shall annually prepare and submit to the state
16 Department of Education, hereinafter the "department", a prioritized plan for
17 expenditure of funds it expects to receive in the coming year from the Education
18 Excellence Fund. The plan shall include performance expectations to ensure
19 accountability in the expenditure of such monies. The department shall review such
20 plans for compliance with the requirements of this Subparagraph and to assure that
21 the expenditure plans will support excellence in educational practice. No funds may
22 be distributed to a recipient entity until its plan has received both legislative and
23 departmental approval as provided by law.
24 (h) No amount appropriated as required in this Paragraph shall displace,
25 replace, or supplant appropriations from the general fund for elementary and
26 secondary education, including implementing the Minimum Foundation Program.
27 This Subsubparagraph shall mean that no appropriation for any fiscal year from the
28 Education Excellence Fund shall be made for any purpose for which a general fund
29 appropriation was made in the previous year unless the total appropriations for the
30 fiscal year from the state general fund for such purpose exceed general fund
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1 appropriations of the previous year. Nor shall any money allocated to a city or parish
2 school board pursuant to this Paragraph displace, replace, or supplant locally
3 generated revenue, which means that no allocation to any city or parish school board
4 from the investment earnings attributable to the Education Excellence Fund shall be
5 expended for any purpose for which a local revenue source was expended for that
6 purpose for the previous year unless the total of the local revenue amount expended
7 that fiscal year exceeds the total of such local revenue amounts for the previous
8 fiscal year.
9 (i) The treasurer shall maintain within the state treasury a record of the
10 amounts appropriated and credited for each entity through appropriations authorized
11 in this Subparagraph and which remain in the state treasury. Notwithstanding any
12 other provisions of this constitution to the contrary, such amounts, and investment
13 earnings attributable to such amounts, shall remain to the credit of each recipient
14 entity at the close of each fiscal year.
15 (4) (2) Appropriations from the TOPS Fund shall be restricted to support of
16 state programs for financial assistance for students attending Louisiana institutions
17 of postsecondary education.
18 §10.9. Louisiana Fund
19 Section 10.9. Louisiana Fund
20 (A) The Louisiana Fund is established in the state treasury as a special fund.
21 After allocation of money to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund as provided
22 in Article VII, Section 9(B) of this constitution, the treasurer shall deposit in and
23 credit to the Louisiana Fund all remaining monies received as a result of the
24 Settlement Agreement after deposits into the Millennium Trust as provided in
25 Section 10.8 of this Article, and all interest income on the investment of monies in
26 the Louisiana Fund. Monies in the Louisiana Fund shall be invested by the treasurer
27 in the same manner as the state general fund.
28 (B) Appropriations from the Louisiana Fund shall be restricted to the
29 following purposes:
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1 (1) Initiatives to ensure the optimal development of Louisiana's children
2 through enhancement of educational opportunities and the provision of appropriate
3 health care, which shall include but not be limited to:
4 (a) Early childhood intervention programs targeting children from birth
5 through age four, including programs to reduce infant mortality.
6 (b) Support of state programs for children's health insurance.
7 (c) School-based health clinics, rural health clinics, and primary care clinics.
8 (2) Initiatives to benefit the citizens of Louisiana with respect to health care
9 through pursuit of innovation in advanced health care sciences, provision of
10 comprehensive chronic disease management services, and expenditures for capital
11 improvements for state health care facilities.
12 (3) Provision of direct health care services for tobacco-related illnesses.
13 (4) Initiatives to diminish tobacco-related injury and death to Louisiana's
14 citizens through educational efforts, cessation assistance services, promotion of a
15 tobacco-free lifestyle, and enforcement of the requirements of the Settlement
16 Agreement by the attorney general.
17 (C) Each appropriation from the Louisiana Fund shall include performance
18 expectations to ensure accountability in the expenditure of such monies. Any
19 unexpended and unencumbered monies in each fund at the end of a fiscal year shall
20 remain in the respective fund.
21 §10.11. Artificial Reef Development Fund
22 (A) Artificial Reef Development Fund. There shall be established in the state
23 treasury, as a special fund, the Artificial Reef Development Fund. Out of the funds
24 remaining in the Bond Security and Redemption Fund after a sufficient amount is
25 allocated from that fund to pay all obligations secured by the full faith and credit of
26 the state that become due and payable within any fiscal year as required by Article
27 VII, Section 9(B) of this constitution, the treasurer shall pay into the Artificial Reef
28 Development Fund the monies received as provided in Paragraph (B) of this Section.
29 (B) The secretary of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries is authorized
30 to accept and receive grants, donations of monies, and other forms of assistance from
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1 private and public sources that are provided to the state for the purpose of siting,
2 designing, constructing, permitting, monitoring, and otherwise managing an artificial
3 reef system.
4 (C) The monies in the Artificial Reef Development Fund shall be
5 appropriated by the legislature to the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, or its
6 successor, and shall be allocated solely for the following:
7 (1) For the programs and purposes of siting, designing, constructing,
8 permitting, monitoring, and otherwise managing an artificial reef system.
9 (2) For the salaries of personnel assigned to the Artificial Reef Development
10 Program and for related operating expenses.
11 (3) An amount not to exceed ten percent of the monies deposited to the fund
12 each year and ten percent of the interest income credited to the fund each year may
13 be used by the department to provide funding in association with the wild seafood
14 certification program, particularly in support of wild-caught shrimp, established by
15 the department. Such funding may be used for a subsidy granted to seafood
16 harvesters or processors to assist in their efforts to comply with the certification
17 program requirements and may be used for administration of the program.
18 (4) An amount not to exceed ten percent of the funds deposited to the fund
19 each year and ten percent of the interest income credited to the fund each year may
20 be used by the department to provide funding for inshore fisheries habitat
21 enhancement projects, particularly in support of the Artificial Reef Development
22 Program established by the department. Such funding may be used for grants to
23 nonprofit conservation organizations working in cooperation with the department.
24 (D) All unexpended and unencumbered monies in the Artificial Reef
25 Development Fund at the end of the fiscal year shall remain in the fund. The monies
26 in the fund shall be invested by the treasurer in the manner provided by law. All
27 interest earned on monies invested by the treasurer shall be deposited in the fund.
28 The treasurer shall prepare and submit to the department on a quarterly basis a
29 written report showing the amount of money contained in the fund from all sources.
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1 §10.12. Farmers and fishermen assistance programs; Agricultural and Seafood
2 Products Support Fund
3 (A) The legislature is authorized to provide by law for programs to assist
4 Louisiana farmers and fishermen with support and expansion of their industries.
5 §10.13. §21. Hospital stabilization formula and assessment; Hospital Stabilization
6 Fund
7 (A) Hospital Stabilization Formula. (1) The legislature may annually adopt
8 a Hospital Stabilization Formula, hereafter referred to in this Section as "the
9 formula", by concurrent resolution by a favorable vote of a majority of the elected
10 members of each house. Such resolution shall be referred to the standing committees
11 of the legislature that hear the general appropriation bill. The formula shall, to the
12 maximum extent possible, enhance the economic viability of Louisiana hospitals and
13 reduce shifting the cost of caring for Louisiana's needy residents to the state's insured
14 residents.
15 (2)(a) The first formula established pursuant to Subparagraph (1) of this
16 Paragraph, which shall require a favorable vote of two-thirds of the elected members
17 of each house for adoption, shall define and establish as the base reimbursement
18 level under the Louisiana medical assistance program provided for in Title XIX of
19 the Social Security Act, hereafter referred to as the "Medicaid Program", to hospitals
20 for inpatient and outpatient services in Fiscal Year 2012-2013. The formula shall
21 also provide for the preservation and protection of rural hospitals as provided for by
22 law. Each formula established thereafter may apply a rate of inflation, which shall
23 not be a negative rate, to the base reimbursement level from the previous formula
24 adopted by the legislature.
25 (b) Each formula shall also include and establish assessments to be paid by
26 hospitals and the basis on which such assessments shall be calculated, provided the
27 amount of the assessments does not exceed the nonfederal share of the
28 reimbursement enhancements.
29 (c) Each formula shall also establish reimbursement enhancements under the
30 Medicaid Program, or its successor, achieving the maximum reimbursement by
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1 federal law and resulting in distributing such reimbursement enhancements
2 exclusively among hospitals for hospital services. Reimbursement enhancements
3 may also be distributed for uninsured services delivered.
4 (d) Each formula shall also include any additional provisions necessary to
5 the implementation of the formula. Neither the assessments nor the reimbursement
6 enhancements established in the formula adopted by the legislature shall be
7 implemented until each has been approved by the federal authority which
8 administers the Medicaid Program.
9 (3) The base reimbursement level resulting from the formula shall not be
10 paid from the Hospital Stabilization Fund.
11 (4) No additional assessment shall be collected and any assessment shall be
12 terminated for the remainder of the fiscal year from the date on which any of the
13 following occur:
14 (a) The legislature fails to adopt a formula for the subsequent fiscal year.
15 (b) The Louisiana Department of Health, or its successor or contractors,
16 reduces or does not pay reimbursement enhancements established in the current
17 formula as adopted by the legislature.
18 (c) The appropriations provided for in Subparagraph (B)(2) of this Section
19 are reduced.
20 (5) The treasurer shall return any monies collected after the date of
21 termination of an assessment to the hospital from which it was collected.
22 (B) Appropriation. (1) The legislature shall annually appropriate an amount
23 necessary to fund the base reimbursement level for hospitals established in the most
24 recent formula adopted by the legislature.
25 (2) The legislature shall annually appropriate the balance of the Hospital
26 Stabilization Fund solely to fund the reimbursement enhancements as provided in the
27 most recent formula adopted by the legislature.
28 (3) Notwithstanding Article VII, Section 10(F) 14(F) of this constitution,
29 neither the governor nor the legislature may reduce the appropriation funding the
30 base reimbursement level or the reimbursement enhancements to satisfy a budget
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1 deficit, except the governor may reduce the appropriation to the base reimbursement
2 level if the following occur:
3 (a) Such reduction does not exceed the average reduction of those made to
4 the appropriations and reimbursement for other providers under the Medicaid
5 Program, or its successor; and
6 (b)(i) If the legislature is in session, the reduction is consented to in writing
7 by two-thirds of the elected members of each house in a manner provided by law; or
8 (ii) If the legislature is not in session, the reduction is approved by two-thirds
9 of the members of the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget, or its successor.
10 (C) Hospital Stabilization Fund. There is hereby established as a special
11 fund in the state treasury the Hospital Stabilization Fund, hereafter referred to as "the
12 fund". After compliance with the requirements of Article VII, Section 9(B) 13(B)
13 of this constitution relative to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund, the treasurer
14 shall deposit all proceeds from the assessment collected pursuant to the Hospital
15 Stabilization Formula provided for in this Section. The monies in the fund shall be
16 invested in the same manner as monies in the state general fund, and all interest
17 earned on the investment of the fund shall be deposited in and credited to the fund.
18 Appropriations from the fund shall be restricted to funding the reimbursement
19 enhancements established in the Hospital Stabilization Formula adopted by the
20 legislature for the fiscal year in which the assessment is collected.
21 §10.14. §22. Louisiana Medical Assistance Trust Fund
22 (A) There is hereby established as a special fund in the state treasury the
23 Louisiana Medical Assistance Trust Fund, hereinafter referred to as "the fund",
24 which shall consist of monies generated by fees as provided for in law. Subject to
25 the exceptions contained in Article VII, Section 9(A) 13(A) of this constitution, and
26 after compliance with the requirements of Article VII, Section 9(B) 13(B) of this
27 constitution relative to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund, the treasurer shall
28 deposit all proceeds from the fees collected as provided for in laws relative to the
29 Louisiana Medical Assistance Trust Fund into the fund. The monies in the fund shall
30 be invested by the state treasurer in the same manner as monies in the state general
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1 fund. All interest earned from the investment of monies in the fund shall be
2 deposited in and remain to the credit of the fund. All unexpended and unencumbered
3 monies remaining in the fund at the close of each fiscal year shall remain in the fund.
4 (B) The treasurer is hereby authorized to establish a separate account within
5 the fund for each health care provider group in which fees are collected according
6 to law. Monies collected from each provider group, and the interest earned on those
7 monies, shall be deposited into the account created for that provider group. Any
8 monies deposited into the fund from sources not required by law, and the interest
9 earned on those monies, shall be deposited into a separate account within the fund,
10 hereafter referred to as "the general account".
11 (C) The legislature is authorized to appropriate monies from the fund only
12 if the appropriation is eligible for federal financial participation under Title XIX of
13 the Social Security Act, or its successor. The balance of each account shall be
14 appropriated for reimbursement of services to the provider group which paid the fee
15 into the account in any fiscal year, except monies deposited into the general account
16 may be appropriated for any Medicaid Program expenditure.
17 (D) The monies appropriated from the provider accounts in the fund shall not
18 be used to displace, replace, or supplant appropriations from the state general fund
19 for the Medicaid Program below the amount of state general fund appropriations to
20 the Medicaid Program for Fiscal Year 2013-2014.
21 (E)(1) The legislature shall annually appropriate the funds necessary to
22 provide for Medicaid Program rates for each provider group which pays fees into the
23 fund that is no less than the average Medicaid Program rates established for Fiscal
24 Year 2013-2014 and which may be adjusted annually by establishing the rates of
25 inflation, or rebasing if applicable, which rates shall not be negative, to be applied
26 to the base rates to establish the new base rates for the next fiscal year as authorized
27 by law. For the purpose of this Section, "Medicaid Program" shall refer to the
28 Louisiana medical assistance program provided for in Title XIX of the Social
29 Security Act, or its successor.
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1 (2) Notwithstanding Article VII, Section 10(F) 14(F) of this constitution,
2 neither the governor nor the legislature may reduce the base rate as provided for in
3 this Paragraph to satisfy a budget deficit, except the governor may reduce the
4 appropriation for the base rate if the following occur:
5 (a) Such reduction does not exceed the average reduction of those made to
6 the appropriations and reimbursement for other providers under the Medicaid
7 Program, or its successor; and
8 (b)(i) If the legislature is in session, the reduction is consented to in writing
9 by two-thirds of the elected members of each house in a manner provided by law; or
10 (ii) If the legislature is not in session, the reduction is approved by two-thirds
11 of the members of the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget, or its successor.
12 §10.15. Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund
13 Section 10.15. Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund. (A) The Revenue
14 Stabilization Trust Fund is hereby established in the state treasury as a special trust
15 fund, hereinafter referred to as the "fund".
16 (B) After allocation of money to the Bond Redemption and Security Fund
17 as provided in Article VII, Section 9(B) of the Constitution of Louisiana, the
18 treasurer shall deposit in and credit to the fund the revenues as provided for in
19 Paragraphs (C) and (D) of this Section.
20 (C) The treasurer shall deposit into the fund the amount of mineral revenues
21 as provided in Section 10.16 of this constitution.
22 (D) The treasurer shall deposit into the fund the amount of revenues in
23 excess of six hundred million dollars received each fiscal year from corporate
24 franchise and income taxes as recognized by the Revenue Estimating Conference.
25 (E)(1) Except as provided for in Paragraph (F) of this Section, monies
26 deposited into the Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund shall be permanently credited
27 to the trust fund and shall be invested by the treasurer in a manner provided for by
28 law.
29 (2) The treasurer shall deposit all interest or other income from investment
30 generated from the fund into the state general fund.
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1 (F)(1) Except as provided in Subparagraphs (2) and (3) of this Paragraph, no
2 appropriations shall be made from the Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund.
3 (2)(a) In any fiscal year in which the balance of the fund at the beginning of
4 the year is in excess of five billion dollars, hereinafter referred to as the minimum
5 fund balance, the legislature may appropriate an amount not to exceed ten percent
6 of the fund balance, hereinafter referred to as the allowable percentage, for the
7 following:
8 (i) Capital outlay projects in the comprehensive state capital budget.
9 (ii) Transportation infrastructure.
10 (b) The minimum fund balance or the allowable percentage may be changed
11 by a law enacted by two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the
12 legislature.
13 (3) In order to ensure the money in the fund is available for appropriation in
14 an emergency, the legislature may authorize an appropriation from the fund at any
15 time for any purpose only after the consent of two-thirds of the elected members of
16 each house of the legislature. If the legislature is not in session, the two-thirds
17 requirement may be satisfied upon obtaining the written consent of two-thirds of the
18 elected members of each house of the legislature in a manner provided by law.
19 §10.16. Dedications of Mineral Revenues
20 Section 10.16.(A) All mineral revenues as defined in Paragraph (D) of this
21 Section received in each fiscal year by the state as a result of the production of or
22 exploration for minerals, hereinafter referred to as "mineral revenues", shall be
23 allocated as provided in this Section after the following allocations and deposits of
24 mineral revenues have been made:
25 (1) To the Bond Security and Redemption Fund as provided in Article VII,
26 Section 9 (B) of this constitution.
27 (2) To the political subdivisions of the state as provided in Article VII,
28 Sections 4 (D) and (E) of this constitution.
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1 (3) To the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Conservation Fund as provided
2 by the requirements of Article VII, Section 10-A of this constitution and as provided
3 by law.
4 (4) To the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Conservation Fund and the Oil
5 and Gas Regulatory Fund as provided by law.
6 (5) To the Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge and Game Preserve Fund as provided
7 by law.
8 (6) To the Marsh Island Operating Fund and the Russell Sage or Marsh
9 Island Refuge Fund as provided by law.
10 (7) To the MC Davis Conservation Fund as provided by law.
11 (8) To the White Lake Property Fund as provided by law.
12 (9) To the Louisiana Education Quality Trust Fund and Louisiana Quality
13 Education Support Fund as provided in Article VII, Section 10.1 of this constitution.
14 (10) To the Coastal Protection and Restoration Fund as provided in Article
15 VII, Section 10.2 of this constitution and as provided by law.
16 (11) To the Mineral Revenue and Audit Settlement Fund as provided in
17 Article VII, Section 10.5 of this constitution and as provided by law.
18 (12) To the Budget Stabilization Fund as provided in Article VII, Section
19 10.3 of this constitution and as provided by law.
20 (13) An amount equal to the state general fund deposited into the
21 Transportation Trust Fund and the Louisiana State Transportation Infrastructure
22 Fund as provided by law.
23 (B) Allocation of Mineral Revenues. After the allocations and deposits
24 provided in Paragraph (A) of this Section, the mineral revenues received in each year
25 in excess of six hundred sixty million dollars and less than nine hundred fifty million
26 dollars shall be allocated as follows:
27 (1) Thirty percent shall be appropriated to the Louisiana State Employees'
28 Retirement System and the Teachers' Retirement System of Louisiana for application
29 to the balance of the unfunded accrued liability of such systems existing as of June
30 30, 1988, in proportion to the balance of such unfunded accrued liability of each such
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1 system, until such unfunded accrued liability has been eliminated. Any such
2 payments to the public retirement systems shall not be used, directly or indirectly,
3 to fund cost-of-living increases for such systems.
4 (2) The remainder shall be deposited into the Revenue Stabilization Trust
5 Fund.
6 (C) Mineral revenues in excess of the base which would otherwise be
7 deposited into the Budget Stabilization Fund under Subparagraph (A)(2) of Section
8 10.3 of this constitution, but are prohibited from being deposited into the fund under
9 Subparagraph (C)(4) of Section 10.3 of this constitution, shall be distributed as
10 follows:
11 (1) Thirty percent shall be appropriated to the Louisiana State Employees'
12 Retirement System and the Teachers' Retirement System of Louisiana for application
13 to the balance of the unfunded accrued liability of such systems existing as of June
14 30, 1988, in proportion to the balance of such unfunded accrued liability of each such
15 system, until such unfunded accrued liability has been eliminated. Any such
16 payments to the public retirement systems shall not be used, directly or indirectly,
17 to fund cost-of-living increases for such systems.
18 (2) The remainder shall be deposited into the Revenue Stabilization Trust
19 Fund.
20 (D) For purposes of this Section, "mineral revenues" shall include severance
21 taxes, royalty payments, bonus payments, or rentals, with the following exceptions:
22 (1) Revenues designated as nonrecurring, pursuant to Article VII, Section
23 10(B) of this constitution.
24 (2) Revenues received by the state as a result of grants or donations when the
25 terms or conditions thereof require otherwise.
26 (3) Revenues derived from any tax on the transportation of minerals.
27 §10-A. §23. Wildlife and Fisheries; Fisheries Conservation Fund
28 Section 10-A. 23.(A) Conservation Fund. Effective July 1, 1988, there
29 There shall be established in the state treasury, as a special fund, the Louisiana
30 Wildlife and Fisheries Conservation Fund, hereinafter referred to as the Conservation
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1 Fund. Out of the funds remaining in the Bond Security and Redemption Fund after
2 a sufficient amount is allocated from that fund to pay all obligations secured by the
3 full faith and credit of the state which become due and payable within any fiscal year
4 as required by Article VII, Section 9(B) 13(B) of this constitution, the treasurer shall
5 pay into the Conservation Fund all of the following, except as provided in Article
6 VII, Section 9(A) 13(A), and except for the amount provided in R.S. 56:10(B)(1)(a)
7 as that provision existed on the effective date of this Section December 23, 1987:
8 (1)(a) All revenue from the types and classes of fees, licenses, permits,
9 royalties, or other revenue paid into the Conservation Fund as provided by law on
10 the effective date of this Section. December 23, 1987. Such revenue shall be
11 deposited in the Conservation Fund even if the names of such fees, licenses, permits,
12 or other revenues are changed.
13 (b) Any increase in the amount charged for such fees, licenses, permits,
14 royalties, and other revenue, or any new fee, license, permit, royalty, or other
15 revenue, enacted by the legislature after the effective date of this Section, December
16 23, 1987, shall be irrevocably dedicated and deposited in the Conservation Fund
17 unless the legislature enacts a law specifically appropriating or dedicating such
18 revenue to another fund or purpose.
19 (2) The balance remaining on June 30, 1988 in the Conservation Fund
20 established pursuant to R.S. 56:10.
21 (3) All funds or revenues which may be donated expressly to the
22 Conservation Fund.
23 (B) The monies in the Conservation Fund shall be appropriated by the
24 legislature to the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, or its successor, and shall be
25 used solely for the programs and purposes of conservation, protection, preservation,
26 management, and replenishment of the state's natural resources and wildlife,
27 including use for land acquisition or for federal matching fund programs which
28 promote such purposes, and for the operation and administration of the Department
29 and the Wildlife and Fisheries Commission, or their successors.
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1 (C) All unexpended and unencumbered monies in the Conservation Fund at
2 the end of the fiscal year shall remain in the fund. The monies in the fund shall be
3 invested by the treasurer in the manner provided by law. All interest earned on
4 monies invested by the treasurer shall be deposited in the fund. The treasurer shall
5 prepare and submit to the department on a quarterly basis a printed report showing
6 the amount of money contained in the fund from all sources.
7 §11. §24. Budgets
8 Section 11. Section 24.(A) Budget Estimate. The governor shall submit to
9 the legislature, at the time and in the form fixed by law, a budget estimate for the
10 next fiscal year setting forth all proposed state expenditures. This budget shall
11 include a recommendation for appropriations from the state general fund and from
12 dedicated funds, except funds allocated by Article VII, Section 4, Paragraphs (D) and
13 (E), Section 8, Paragraphs (B) and (C), which shall not exceed the official forecast
14 of the Revenue Estimating Conference. and the expenditure limit for the fiscal year.
15 The recommendation shall also comply with the provisions of Article VII, Section
16 10(D). Section 14, Paragraphs (C) and (D). This budget shall include a
17 recommendation for funding of state salary supplements for full-time law
18 enforcement and fire protection officers of the state, as provided in Article VII,
19 Section 10(D)(3) Section 14(D)(3) of this constitution.
20 (B) Operating Budget. The governor shall cause to be submitted a general
21 appropriation bill for proposed ordinary operating expenditures which shall be in
22 conformity with the recommendations for appropriations contained in the budget
23 estimate. The governor may cause to be submitted a bill or bills to raise additional
24 revenues with proposals for the use of these revenues.
25 (C) Capital Budget. The governor shall submit to the legislature, at each
26 regular session, a proposed five-year capital outlay program and request
27 implementation of the first year of the program. Prior to inclusion in the
28 comprehensive capital budget which the legislature adopts, each capital improvement
29 project shall be evaluated through a feasibility study, as defined by the legislature,
30 which shall include an analysis of need and estimates of construction and operating
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1 costs. The legislature shall provide by law for procedures, standards, and criteria for
2 the evaluation of such feasibility studies and shall set the schedule of submission of
3 such feasibility studies which shall take effect not later than December thirty-first
4 following the first regular session convening after this Paragraph takes effect.
5 studies. These procedures, standards, and criteria for evaluation of such feasibility
6 studies cannot be changed or altered except by a separate legislative instrument
7 approved by a favorable vote of two-thirds of the elected members of each house of
8 the legislature. For those projects not eligible for funding under the provisions of
9 Article VII, Section 27 Section 16 of this constitution, the request for
10 implementation of the first year of the program shall include a list of the proposed
11 projects in priority order based on the evaluation of the feasibility studies submitted.
12 Capital outlay projects approved by the legislature shall be made a part of the
13 comprehensive state capital budget, which shall be adopted by the legislature.
14 §12. §25. Reports and Records
15 Section 12. Section 25. Reports and records of the collection, expenditure,
16 investment, and use of state money and those relating to state obligations shall be
17 matters of public record, except returns of taxpayers and matters pertaining to those
18 returns.
19 §13. §26. Investment of State Funds
20 Section 13. Section 26. All money in the custody of the state treasurer which
21 is available for investment shall be invested as provided by law.
22 §14. §27. Donation, Loan, or Pledge of Public Credit
23 Section 14. Section 27.(A) Prohibited Uses. Except as otherwise provided
24 by this constitution, the funds, credit, property, or things of value of the state or of
25 any political subdivision shall not be loaned, pledged, or donated to or for any
26 person, association, or corporation, public or private. Except as otherwise provided
27 in this Section, neither the state nor a political subdivision shall subscribe to or
28 purchase the stock of a corporation or association or for any private enterprise.
29 (B) Authorized Uses. Nothing in this Section shall prevent (1) the use of
30 public funds for programs of social welfare for the aid and support of the needy; (2)
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1 contributions of public funds to pension and insurance programs for the benefit of
2 public employees; (3) the pledge of public funds, credit, property, or things of value
3 for public purposes with respect to the issuance of bonds or other evidences of
4 indebtedness to meet public obligations as provided by law; (4) the return of
5 property, including mineral rights, to a former owner from whom the property had
6 previously been expropriated, or purchased under threat of expropriation, when the
7 legislature by law declares that the public and necessary purpose which originally
8 supported the expropriation has ceased to exist and orders the return of the property
9 to the former owner under such terms and conditions as specified by the legislature;
10 (5) acquisition of stock by any institution of higher education in exchange for any
11 intellectual property; (6) the donation of abandoned or blighted housing property by
12 the governing authority of a municipality or a parish to a nonprofit organization
13 which is recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as a 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4)
14 nonprofit organization and which agrees to renovate and maintain such property until
15 conveyance of the property by such organization; (7) the deduction of any tax,
16 interest, penalty, or other charges forming the basis of tax liens on blighted property
17 so that they may be subordinated and waived in favor of any purchaser who is not
18 a member of the immediate family of the blighted property owner or which is not
19 any entity in which the owner has a substantial economic interest, but only in
20 connection with a property renovation plan approved by an administrative hearing
21 officer appointed by the parish or municipal government where the property is
22 located; (8) the deduction of past due taxes, interest, and penalties in favor of an
23 owner of a blighted property, but only when the owner sells the property at less than
24 the appraised value to facilitate the blighted property renovation plan approved by
25 the parish or municipal government and only after the renovation is completed such
26 deduction being canceled, null and void, and to no effect in the event ownership of
27 the property in the future reverts back to the owner or any member of his immediate
28 family; (9) the donation by the state of asphalt which has been removed from state
29 roads and highways to the governing authority of the parish or municipality where
30 the asphalt was removed, or if not needed by such governing authority, then to any
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1 other parish or municipal governing authority, but only pursuant to a cooperative
2 endeavor agreement between the state and the governing authority receiving the
3 donated property; (10) the investment in stocks of a portion of the Rockefeller
4 Wildlife Refuge Trust and Protection Fund, created under the provisions of R.S.
5 56:797, Fund and the Russell Sage or Marsh Island Refuge Fund, created under the
6 provisions of R.S. 56:798, such portion not to exceed thirty-five percent of each
7 fund; (11) the investment in stocks of a portion of the state-funded permanently
8 endowed funds of a public or private college or university, not to exceed thirty-five
9 percent of the public funds endowed; (12) the investment in equities of a portion of
10 the Medicaid Trust Fund for the Elderly created under the provisions of R.S. 46:2691
11 et seq., Elderly, such portion not to exceed thirty-five percent of the fund; (13) the
12 investment of public funds to capitalize a state infrastructure bank and the loan,
13 pledge, or guarantee of public funds by a state infrastructure bank solely for
14 transportation projects; (14) pursuant to a written agreement, the donation of the use
15 of public equipment and personnel by a political subdivision upon request to another
16 political subdivision for an activity or function the requesting political subdivision
17 is authorized to exercise; or (15) a political subdivision from waiving charges for
18 water if the charges are the result of water lost due to damage to the water delivery
19 infrastructure and that damage is not the result of any act or failure to act by the
20 customer being charged for the water.
21 (C) Cooperative Endeavors. For a public purpose, the state and its political
22 subdivisions or political corporations may engage in cooperative endeavors with
23 each other, with the United States or its agencies, or with any public or private
24 association, corporation, or individual.
25 (D) Prior Obligations. Funds, credit, property, or things of value of the state
26 or of a political subdivision heretofore loaned, pledged, dedicated, or granted by
27 prior state law or authorized to be loaned, pledged, dedicated, or granted by the prior
28 laws and constitution of this state shall so remain for the full term as provided by the
29 such prior laws and constitution and for the full term as provided by any contract,
30 unless the authorization is revoked by law enacted by two-thirds of the elected
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1 members of each house of the legislature prior to the vesting of any contractual
2 rights pursuant to this Section.
3 (E) Surplus Property. Nothing in this Section shall prevent the donation or
4 exchange of movable surplus property between or among political subdivisions
5 whose functions include public safety.
6 §15. §28. Release of Obligations to State, Parish, or Municipality
7 Section 15. Section 28. The legislature shall have no power to release,
8 extinguish, or authorize the releasing or extinguishing of any indebtedness, liability,
9 or obligation of a corporation or individual to the state, a parish, or a municipality.
10 However, the legislature, by law, may establish a system under which claims by the
11 state or a political subdivision may be compromised, and may provide for the release
12 of heirs to confiscated property from taxes due thereon on such property at the date
13 of its reversion to them.
14 §16. §29. Taxes; Prescription
15 Section 16. Section 29. Taxes, except real property taxes, and licenses shall
16 prescribe in three years after the thirty-first day of December in the year in which
17 they are due, but due; however, prescription may be interrupted or suspended as
18 provided by law.
19 §17. §30. Legislation to Obtain Federal Aid
20 Section 17. Section 30. The legislature may enact laws to enable the state,
21 its agencies, boards, commissions, and political subdivisions and their agencies to
22 comply with federal laws and regulations in order to secure federal participation in
23 funding capital improvement projects.
24 §31. Funding; Teacher Salaries
25 Section 31.(A)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this constitution
26 to the contrary, no later than May 1, 2025, the state treasurer shall transfer to the
27 Teachers' Retirement System of Louisiana the liquidated fair market value of each
28 of the following:
29 (a) The Education Excellence Fund.
30 (b) The Louisiana Education Quality Trust Fund.
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1 (c) The Louisiana Quality Education Support Fund.
2 (2) The Teachers' Retirement System of Louisiana shall apply monies
3 received pursuant to Subparagraph (1) of this Paragraph to its oldest outstanding
4 positive amortization base. After liquidation of such base, any remaining monies
5 shall be applied to the next-oldest outstanding positive amortization base, until all
6 such monies have been applied. If application of monies pursuant to the provisions
7 of this Subparagraph are insufficient to fully liquidate an amortization base, after
8 application of such monies the net remaining liability of such amortization base shall
9 be reamortized with annual level-dollar payments calculated in the same manner as
10 other system amortization payments and over the remainder of the amortization
11 period originally established for that base.
12 (B) As provided by law, participating employers in the Teachers' Retirement
13 System of Louisiana shall provide a permanent salary increase to eligible personnel.
14 Such increase shall be funded using the employer's net savings attributable to the
15 payments made pursuant to Paragraph (A) of this Section.
16 PART II. PROPERTY TAXATION
17 §18. §32. Ad Valorem Taxes
18 Section 18. Section 32.(A) Assessments. Property subject to ad valorem
19 taxation shall be listed on the assessment rolls at its assessed valuation, which,
20 except as provided in Paragraphs (C), (F), and (G), this Section or in exceptions
21 provided in Section 35 of this Article for special assessment levels, shall be a
22 percentage of its fair market value. The percentage of fair market value shall be
23 uniform throughout the state upon the same class of property.
24 (B) Classification. (1) The classifications of property subject to ad valorem
25 taxation and the percentage of fair market value applicable to each classification for
26 the purpose of determining assessed valuation are as follows:
27 ClassificationsPercentages
28 1. (a)Land 10%
29 2. (b)Improvements for residential purposes 10%
30 3. (c) Electric cooperative properties, excluding land 15%
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1 4. (d)Public service properties, excluding land 25%
2 5. (e) Public service property, excluding land, owned
3 by a railroad company 15%
4 (f) Business inventory 15%
5 (g)Other property 15%
6 (2) For purposes of ad valorem taxation, a parish may elect to reduce the
7 percentage of fair market value applicable to property considered business inventory,
8 as defined in law. The legislature may provide by law enacted by two-thirds of the
9 elected members of each house for the implementation of the provision of this
10 Subparagraph. Once enacted, any change to these laws shall also be enacted by
11 two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the legislature.
12 (3) The legislature may enact laws defining electric cooperative properties
13 and public service properties.
14 (C) Use Value. Bona fide agricultural, horticultural, marsh, and timber
15 lands, as defined by general law, shall be assessed for tax purposes at ten percent of
16 use value rather than fair market value. The legislature may provide by law similarly
17 for buildings of historic architectural importance.
18 (D)(1) Valuation. Each assessor shall determine the fair market value of all
19 property subject to taxation within his respective parish or district except public
20 service properties, which shall be valued at fair market value by the Louisiana Tax
21 Commission or its successor. Each assessor shall determine the use value of
22 property which is to be so assessed under the provisions of Paragraph (C). Fair
23 market value and use value of property shall be determined in accordance with
24 criteria which shall be established by law and which shall apply uniformly
25 throughout the state.
26 (2) No additional value shall be added to the assessment of land by reason
27 of the presence of oil, gas, or sulphur therein or their production therefrom.
28 However, sulphur in place shall be assessed for ad valorem taxation to the person,
29 firm, or corporation having the right to mine or produce the same in the parish where
30 located, at no more than twice the total assessed value of the physical property
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1 subject to taxation, excluding the assessed value of sulphur above ground, as is used
2 in sulphur operations in such parish. Likewise, the severance tax shall be the only tax
3 on timber; however, standing timber shall be liable equally with the land on which
4 it stands for ad valorem taxes levied on the land.
5 (3) Notwithstanding the provisions of Subparagraph (2) of this Paragraph, the
6 presence of oil or gas, or the production thereof, may be included in the methodology
7 to determine the fair market value of an oil or gas well for ad valorem taxes.
8 (E) Review. The correctness of assessments by the assessor shall be subject
9 to review first by the parish governing authority, then by the Louisiana Tax
10 Commission or its successor, and finally by the courts, all in accordance with
11 procedures established by law.
12 (F) Reappraisal. (1) All property subject to taxation shall be reappraised
13 and valued in accordance with this Section, at intervals of not more than four years.
14 (2)(a) In the year of implementation of a reappraisal as required in
15 Subparagraph (1) of this Paragraph, solely for purposes of determining the ad
16 valorem tax imposed on residential property subject to the homestead exemption as
17 provided in Section 20 34 of this Article, if the assessed value of immovable
18 property increases by an amount which is greater than fifty percent of the property's
19 assessed value in the previous year, the collector shall phase-in the additional tax
20 liability resulting from the increase in the property's assessed value over a four-year
21 period as follows:
22 (i) For purposes of calculating the ad valorem taxes on the property in the
23 first levy following reappraisal, the collector shall use the property's assessed value
24 from the previous year, which shall be called the base amount as used in this
25 Subparagraph, and shall increase the portion of the assessed value of the property
26 used to calculate ad valorem taxes by adding an amount which is equal to one-fourth
27 of the amount of the increase in the property's assessed value as a result of the
28 reappraisal to the base amount. This resulting amount shall constitute the property's
29 taxable value and shall be used solely for purposes of calculating ad valorem taxes
30 for that taxable year.
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1 (ii) For purposes of calculating the ad valorem taxes on the property in the
2 second levy following reappraisal, the collector shall increase the portion of the
3 assessed value of the property used to calculate ad valorem taxes by adding an
4 amount which is equal to one-half of the amount of the increase in the property's
5 assessed value as a result of the reappraisal to the base amount. This resulting
6 amount shall constitute the property's taxable value and shall be used solely for
7 purposes of calculating ad valorem taxes for that taxable year.
8 (iii) For purposes of calculating the ad valorem taxes on the property in the
9 third levy following reappraisal, the collector shall increase the portion of the
10 assessed value of the property used to calculate ad valorem taxes by adding an
11 amount which is equal to three-quarters of the amount of the increase in the
12 property's assessed value as a result of the reappraisal to the base amount. This
13 resulting amount shall constitute the property's taxable value and shall be used solely
14 for purposes of calculating ad valorem taxes for that taxable year.
15 (iv) In the fourth levy following reappraisal, the collector shall calculate ad
16 valorem taxes based on the property's full assessed value.
17 (b) The provisions of this Subparagraph providing for a phase-in of
18 additional ad valorem tax liability following reappraisal shall cease to apply upon the
19 transfer or conveyance of ownership of the property. Following a transfer or
20 conveyance, the collector shall calculate ad valorem taxes based on the property's
21 full assessed value.
22 (c) Property subject to the provisions of this Subparagraph shall not be
23 subject to reappraisal by an assessor until after the four-year phase-in of the amount
24 of the increase in the property's assessed value is complete.
25 (d) Notwithstanding any provision of this constitution to the contrary, the
26 increase in assessed valuation of property phased-in under this Subparagraph shall
27 be included as taxable property for purposes of any subsequent reappraisals and
28 valuation for millage adjustment purposes under Article VII, Section 23(B) of this
29 constitution. as provided by law. The decrease in the total amount of ad valorem tax
30 collected by a taxing authority as a result of this phase-in of assessed valuation shall
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1 be absorbed by the taxing authority and shall not create any additional tax liability
2 for other taxpayers in the taxing district as a result of any subsequent reappraisal and
3 valuation or millage adjustment. Implementation of this phase-in of increase in
4 assessed valuation authorized in this Subparagraph shall neither trigger nor be cause
5 for a reappraisal of property or an adjustment of millages pursuant to the provisions
6 of Article VII, Section 23(B) of this constitution. this Subparagraph.
7 (e) The provisions of this Subparagraph shall not apply to the extent the
8 increase was attributable to construction on or improvements to the property.
9 (G) Special Assessment Level.
10 (1)(a)(i) The assessment of residential property receiving the homestead
11 exemption which is owned and occupied by any of the following and who meet all
12 of the other requirements of this Section shall not be increased above the total
13 assessment of that property for the first year that the owner qualifies for and receives
14 the special assessment level, provided that such person or persons remain qualified
15 for and receive the special assessment level:
16 (aa) People who are sixty-five years of age or older.
17 (bb) People who have a service-connected disability rating of fifty percent
18 or more by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.
19 (cc) Members of the armed forces of the United States or the Louisiana
20 National Guard who owned and last occupied such property who are killed in action,
21 or who are missing in action or are a prisoner of war for a period exceeding ninety
22 days.
23 (dd) Any person or persons permanently totally disabled as determined by
24 a final non-appealable judgment of a court or as certified by a state or federal
25 administrative agency charged with the responsibility for making determinations
26 regarding disability.
27 (ii) Any person or persons shall be prohibited from receiving the special
28 assessment as provided in this Section if such person's or persons' adjusted gross
29 income, as reported in the federal tax return for the year prior to the application for
30 the special assessment, exceeds one hundred thousand dollars. For persons applying
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1 for the special assessment whose filing status is married filing separately, the
2 adjusted gross income for purposes of this Section shall be determined by combining
3 the adjusted gross income on both federal tax returns. Beginning for the tax year
4 2026, and for each tax year thereafter, the one hundred thousand dollar limit shall be
5 adjusted annually by the Consumer Price Index as reported by the United States
6 Government.
7 (iii) An eligible owner or the owner's spouse or other legally qualified
8 representative shall apply for the special assessment level by filing a signed
9 application establishing that the owner qualifies for the special assessment level with
10 the assessor of the parish or, in the parish of Orleans, the assessor of the district
11 where the property is located.
12 (iv) An owner who is below the age of sixty-five and who has applied for
13 and received the special assessment level may qualify for and receive the special
14 assessment level in the subsequent year by certifying to the assessor of the parish
15 that such person or persons' adjusted gross income in the prior tax year satisfied the
16 income requirement of this Section. The provisions of this Item shall not apply to
17 an owner who has qualified for and received the special assessment level for persons
18 sixty-five years of age or older or to such owner's surviving spouse as described in
19 Item (2)(a)(i) of this Paragraph or for an owner who is permanently totally disabled
20 as provided for in Subitem (i)(dd) of this Subsubparagraph.
21 (b) Any millage rate applied to the special assessment level shall not be
22 subject to a limitation.
23 (2) Provided such owner is qualified for and receives the special assessment
24 level, the special assessment level shall remain on the property as long as:
25 (a)(i) The owner who is sixty-five years of age or older, or that owner's
26 surviving spouse who is fifty-five years of age or older or who has minor children,
27 remains the owner of the property.
28 (ii) The owner who has a service-connected disability of fifty percent or
29 more, or that owner's surviving spouse who is forty-five years of age or older or who
30 has minor children, remains the owner of the property.
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1 (iii) The spouse of the owner who is killed in action remains the owner of the
2 property.
3 (iv) The first day of the tax year following the tax year in which an owner
4 who was missing in action or was a prisoner of war for a period exceeding ninety
5 days is no longer missing in action or a prisoner of war.
6 (v) Even if the ownership interest of any surviving spouse or spouse of an
7 owner who is missing in action as provided for in this Subparagraph is an interest in
8 usufruct.
9 (b) The value of the property does not increase more than twenty-five
10 percent because of construction or reconstruction.
11 (3) A new or subsequent owner of the property may claim a special
12 assessment level when eligible under this Section. The new owner is not necessarily
13 entitled to the same special assessment level on the property as when that property
14 was owned by the previous owner.
15 (4)(a) The special assessment level on property that is sold shall
16 automatically expire on the last day of December in the year prior to the year that the
17 property is sold. The property shall be immediately revalued at fair market value by
18 the assessor and shall be assessed by the assessor on the assessment rolls in the year
19 it was sold at the assessment level provided for in Article VII, Section 18 of the
20 Constitution of Louisiana.
21 (b) This new assessment level shall remain in effect until changed as
22 provided by this Section or this Constitution.
23 (5)(a) Any owner entitled to the special assessment level set forth in this
24 Paragraph who is unable to occupy the homestead on or before December thirty-first
25 of a future calendar year due to damage or destruction of the homestead caused by
26 a disaster or emergency declared by the governor shall be entitled to keep the special
27 assessment level of the homestead prior to its damage or destruction on the repaired
28 or rebuilt homestead provided the repaired or rebuilt homestead is reoccupied by the
29 owner within five years from December thirty-first of the year following the disaster.
30 The assessed value of the land and buildings on which the homestead was located
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1 prior to its damage shall not be increased above its assessed value immediately prior
2 to the damage or destruction described in this Subsubparagraph. If the property
3 owner receives a homestead exemption on another homestead during the same five-
4 year period, the damaged or destroyed property shall not be entitled to keep the
5 special assessment level, and the land and buildings shall be assessed in that year at
6 the percentage of fair market value set forth in this constitution. In addition, the
7 owner shall also maintain the homestead exemption set forth in Article VII, Section
8 20(A)(10) to qualify for the special assessment level in this Subsubparagraph.
9 (b) Any owner entitled to the special assessment level set forth in
10 Subsubparagraph (a) of this Subparagraph who is unable to reoccupy his homestead
11 within five years from December thirty-first of the year following the disaster shall
12 be eligible for an extension of the special assessment level on the homestead for a
13 period not to exceed two years. A homeowner shall be eligible for this extension
14 only if the homeowner's damage claim is filed and pending in a formal appeal
15 process with any federal, state, or local government agency or program offering
16 grants or assistance for repairing or rebuilding damaged or destroyed homes as a
17 result of the disaster, or if a homeowner has a damage claim filed and pending
18 against the insurer of the property. The homeowner shall apply for this extension of
19 the special assessment level with the assessor of the parish in which the homestead
20 is located. The assessor shall require the homeowner to provide official
21 documentation from the government agency or program evidencing the homeowner's
22 participation in the formal appeal process or official documentation evidencing the
23 homeowner has a damage claim filed and pending against the insurer of the damaged
24 property, as provided by law.
25 (c) After expiration of the extension authorized in Subsubparagraph (b) of
26 this Subparagraph, an assessor shall have the authority to grant on a case-by-case
27 basis up to three additional one-year extensions of the special assessment level as
28 prescribed by law.
29 (6)(a) A trust shall be eligible for the special assessment level as provided
30 by law.
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1 (b) If a trust would have been eligible for the special assessment level
2 pursuant to this Subparagraph prior to the most recent reappraisal, the total
3 assessment of the property held in trust shall be the assessed value on the last
4 appraisal before the reappraisal.
5 §19. §33. State Property Taxation; Rate Limitation
6 Section 19. Section 33. State taxation on property for all purposes shall not
7 exceed an annual rate of five and three-quarter mills on the dollar of assessed
8 valuation.
9 §20. §34. Homestead Exemption
10 Section 20. Section 34.(A) Homeowners.
11 (1) The bona fide homestead, consisting of a tract of land or two or more
12 tracts of land even if the land is classified and assessed at use value pursuant to
13 Article VII, Section 18(C) 32(C) of this constitution, with a residence on one tract
14 and a field with or without timber on it, pasture, or garden on the other tract or tracts,
15 not exceeding one hundred sixty acres, buildings and appurtenances, whether rural
16 or urban, owned and occupied by any person or persons owning the property in
17 indivision, shall be exempt from state, parish, and special ad valorem taxes to the
18 extent of seven thousand five hundred dollars of the assessed valuation. The same
19 homestead exemption shall also fully apply to the primary residence, including a
20 mobile home, which serves as a bona fide home and which is owned and occupied
21 by any person or persons owning the property in indivision, regardless of whether
22 the homeowner owns the land upon which the home or mobile home is sited;
23 however, this homestead exemption shall not apply to the land upon which such
24 primary residence is sited if the homeowner does not own the land.
25 (2) The homestead exemption shall extend and apply fully to the surviving
26 spouse or a former spouse when the homestead is occupied by the surviving spouse
27 or a former spouse and title to it is in the name of (a) the surviving spouse as owner
28 of any interest or either or both of the former spouses, (b) the surviving spouse as
29 usufructuary, or (c) a testamentary trust established for the benefit of the surviving
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1 spouse and the descendants of the deceased spouse or surviving spouse, but not to
2 more than one homestead owned by either the husband or wife, spouse, or both.
3 (3) The homestead exemption shall extend to property owned by a trust
4 when the principal beneficiary or beneficiaries of the trust are the settlor or settlors
5 of the trust and were the immediate prior owners of the homestead, and the
6 homestead is occupied as such by a principal beneficiary. The provisions of this
7 Subparagraph shall apply only to property which qualified for the homestead
8 exemption immediately prior to transfer, conveyance, or donation in trust or which
9 would have qualified for the homestead exemption if such property were not owned
10 in trust.
11 (4) The homestead exemption shall extend to property where the usufruct of
12 the property has been granted to no more than two usufructuaries who were the
13 immediate prior owners of the homestead and the homestead is occupied as such by
14 a usufructuary. The provisions of this Subparagraph shall apply only to property
15 which qualified for the homestead exemption immediately prior to the granting of
16 such usufruct, or which would have qualified for the homestead exemption if such
17 usufruct had not been granted.
18 (5) The homestead exemption shall extend only to a natural person or
19 persons and to a trust created by a natural person or persons, in which the
20 beneficiaries of the trust are a natural person or persons provided that the provisions
21 of this Paragraph are otherwise satisfied.
22 (6) Except as otherwise provided for in this Paragraph, the homestead
23 exemption shall apply to property owned in indivision, but shall be limited to the pro
24 rata ownership interest of that each person or persons occupying the homestead.
25 (7) No homestead exemption shall be granted on bond for deed property.
26 However, any homestead exemption granted prior to June 20, 2003 on any property
27 occupied upon the effective date of this Paragraph on November 2, 2004, by a buyer
28 under a bond for deed contract shall remain valid as long as the circumstances giving
29 rise to the exemption at the time the exemption was granted remain applicable.
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1 (8) Notwithstanding any provision of this Paragraph to the contrary, in no
2 event shall more than one homestead exemption extend or apply to any person in this
3 state.
4 (9) This exemption shall not extend to municipal taxes. However, the
5 exemptions authorized pursuant to the provisions of this Section shall apply (a) in
6 Orleans Parish, to state, general city, school, levee, and levee district taxes and (b)
7 to any municipal taxes levied for school purposes.
8 (10)(a) Any homestead receiving the homestead exemption that is damaged
9 or destroyed during a disaster or emergency declared by the governor whose owner
10 is unable to occupy the homestead on or before December thirty-first of a calendar
11 year due to such damage or destruction shall be entitled to claim and keep the
12 exemption by filing an annual affidavit of intent to return and reoccupy the
13 homestead within five years from December thirty-first of the year following the
14 disaster with the assessor within the parish or district where such homestead is
15 situated prior to December thirty-first of the year in which the exemption is claimed.
16 In no event shall more than one homestead exemption extend or apply to any person
17 in this state.
18 (b) For homesteads qualifying for the homestead exemption under the
19 provisions of Subsubparagraph (a) of this Subparagraph, after expiration of the five-
20 year period, the owner of a homestead shall be entitled to claim and keep the
21 exemption for a period not to exceed two additional years by filing an annual
22 affidavit of intent to return and reoccupy the homestead with the assessor within the
23 parish where the homestead is located prior to December thirty-first of the year in
24 which the exemption is claimed. A homeowner shall be eligible for this extension
25 only if the homeowner's damage claim to repair or rebuild the damaged or destroyed
26 homestead is filed and pending in a formal appeal process with any federal, state, or
27 local government agency or program offering grants or assistance for repairing or
28 rebuilding damaged or destroyed homes as a result of the disaster, or if a homeowner
29 has a damage claim filed and pending against the insurer of the property. The
30 assessor shall require the homeowner to provide official documentation from the
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1 government agency or program evidencing the homeowner's participation in the
2 formal appeal process or official documentation evidencing the homeowners
3 homeowner has a damage claim filed and pending against the insurer of the property
4 as provided by law.
5 (c) After expiration of the extension authorized in Subsubparagraph (b) of
6 this Subparagraph, an assessor shall have the authority to grant on a case-by-case
7 basis up to three additional one-year extensions of the homestead exemption as
8 prescribed by law.
9 (B) Residential Lessees. Notwithstanding any contrary provision in this
10 constitution, the legislature may provide for tax relief to residential lessees in the
11 form of credits or rebates in order to provide equitable tax relief similar to that
12 granted to homeowners through homestead exemptions.
13 §21. §35. Other Property Exemptions
14 Section 21. Section 35.(A) In addition to the homestead exemption provided
15 for in Section 20 Section 34 of this Article, the following property and no other shall
16 be exempt from ad valorem taxation: the legislature may provide by law enacted by
17 three-fourths of the elected members of each house for property exempt from ad
18 valorem taxation. Once enacted, any change to an ad valorem tax exemption shall
19 also by law be enacted by two-thirds of the elected members of each house of the
20 legislature. However, no measure legislating with regard to ad valorem tax
21 exemptions, exclusions, deductions, or credits shall be introduced or enacted during
22 a regular session held in an even-numbered year.
23 (B) Property owned by a nonprofit operated exclusively for religious
24 purposes as a house of worship, residential housing for clergy, priests, or nuns, or a
25 seminary or other educational institution training individuals for religious ministry
26 shall be exempt from ad valorem tax pursuant to this Section.
27 (C)(1)(a) In addition to the homestead exemption authorized pursuant to the
28 provisions of Section 34 of this Article, which applies to the first seven thousand five
29 hundred dollars of the assessed valuation of property, the next two thousand five
30 hundred dollars of the assessed valuation of property receiving the homestead
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1 exemption that is owned and occupied by a veteran with a service-connected
2 disability rating of fifty percent or more but less than seventy percent by the United
3 States Department of Veterans Affairs shall be exempt from ad valorem taxation.
4 The surviving spouse of a deceased veteran with a service-connected disability rating
5 of fifty percent or more but less than seventy percent by the United States
6 Department of Veterans Affairs shall be eligible for this exemption if the surviving
7 spouse occupies and remains the owner of the property, whether or not the
8 exemption was in effect on the property prior to the death of the veteran. If property
9 eligible for the exemption provided for in this Subsubparagraph has an assessed
10 value in excess of ten thousand dollars, ad valorem property taxes shall apply to the
11 assessment in excess of ten thousand dollars.
12 (b) In addition to the homestead exemption authorized pursuant to the
13 provisions of Section 34 of this Article, which applies to the first seven thousand five
14 hundred dollars of the assessed valuation of property, the next four thousand five
15 hundred dollars of the assessed valuation of property owned and occupied by a
16 veteran with a service-connected disability rating of seventy percent or more but less
17 than one hundred percent by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs shall
18 be exempt from ad valorem taxation. The surviving spouse of a deceased veteran
19 with a service-connected disability rating of seventy percent or more but less than
20 one hundred percent by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs shall be
21 eligible for this exemption if the surviving spouse occupies and remains the owner
22 of the property, whether or not the exemption was in effect on the property prior to
23 the death of the veteran. If property eligible for the exemption provided for in this
24 Subsubparagraph has an assessed value in excess of twelve thousand dollars, ad
25 valorem property taxes shall apply to the assessment in excess of twelve thousand
26 dollars.
27 (c) In addition to the homestead exemption authorized pursuant to the
28 provisions of Section 34 of this Article, which applies to the first seven thousand five
29 hundred dollars of the assessed valuation of property, the remaining assessed
30 valuation of property receiving the homestead exemption that is owned and occupied
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1 by a veteran with a service-connected disability rating of one hundred percent
2 unemployability or totally disabled by the United States Department of Veterans
3 Affairs shall be exempt from ad valorem taxation. The surviving spouse of a
4 deceased veteran with a service-connected disability rating of one hundred percent
5 unemployability or totally disabled by the United States Department of Veterans
6 Affairs shall be eligible for this exemption if the surviving spouse occupies and
7 remains the owner of the property, whether or not the exemption was in effect on the
8 property prior to the death of the veteran.
9 (2) Notwithstanding any provision of this Constitution to the contrary, the
10 property assessment of a property for which an exemption established pursuant to
11 this Paragraph has been claimed, to the extent of the applicable exemption, shall not
12 be treated as taxable property for purposes of any subsequent reappraisals and
13 valuation for millage adjustment purposes. The decrease in the total amount of ad
14 valorem tax collected by a taxing authority as a result of the exemption shall be
15 absorbed by the taxing authority and shall not create any additional tax liability for
16 other taxpayers in the taxing district as a result of any subsequent reappraisal and
17 valuation or millage adjustment. Implementation of the exemption authorized in this
18 Paragraph shall neither trigger nor be cause for a reappraisal of property or an
19 adjustment of millages.
20 (3) A trust shall be eligible for the exemption provided for in this Paragraph
21 as provided by law.
22 (D) Special Assessment Level.
23 (1)(a)(i) The assessment of residential property receiving the homestead
24 exemption which is owned and occupied by any of the following and who meet all
25 of the other requirements of this Section shall not be increased above the total
26 assessment of that property for the first year that the owner qualifies for and receives
27 the special assessment level, provided that such person or persons remain qualified
28 for and receive the special assessment level:
29 (aa) People who are sixty-five years of age or older.
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1 (bb) People who have a service-connected disability rating of fifty percent
2 or more by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.
3 (cc) Members of the armed forces of the United States or the Louisiana
4 National Guard who owned and last occupied such property who are killed in action,
5 or who are missing in action or are a prisoner of war for a period exceeding ninety
6 days.
7 (dd) Any person or persons permanently totally disabled as determined by
8 a final non-appealable judgment of a court or as certified by a state or federal
9 administrative agency charged with the responsibility for making determinations
10 regarding disability.
11 (ii) Any person or persons shall be prohibited from receiving the special
12 assessment as provided in this Section if such person's or persons' adjusted gross
13 income, as reported in the federal tax return for the year prior to the application for
14 the special assessment, exceeds one hundred thousand dollars. For persons applying
15 for the special assessment whose filing status is married filing separately, the
16 adjusted gross income for purposes of this Section shall be determined by combining
17 the adjusted gross income on both federal tax returns. Beginning for the tax year
18 2026, and for each tax year thereafter, the one hundred thousand dollar limit shall be
19 adjusted annually by the Consumer Price Index as reported by the United States
20 Government.
21 (iii) An eligible owner or the owner's spouse or other legally qualified
22 representative shall apply for the special assessment level by filing a signed
23 application establishing that the owner qualifies for the special assessment level with
24 the assessor of the parish or, in the parish of Orleans, the assessor of the district
25 where the property is located.
26 (iv) An owner who is below the age of sixty-five and who has applied for
27 and received the special assessment level may qualify for and receive the special
28 assessment level in the subsequent year by certifying to the assessor of the parish
29 that such person or persons' adjusted gross income in the prior tax year satisfied the
30 income requirement of this Section. The provisions of this Item shall not apply to an
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1 owner who has qualified for and received the special assessment level for persons
2 sixty-five years of age or older or to such owner's surviving spouse as described in
3 Item (2)(a)(i) of this Paragraph or for an owner who is permanently totally disabled
4 as provided for in Subitem (i)(dd) of this Subsubparagraph.
5 (b) Any millage rate applied to the special assessment level shall not be
6 subject to a limitation.
7 (2) Provided such owner is qualified for and receives the special assessment
8 level, the special assessment level shall remain on the property as long as:
9 (a)(i) The owner who is sixty-five years of age or older, or that owner's
10 surviving spouse who is fifty-five years of age or older or who has minor children,
11 remains the owner of the property.
12 \ (ii) The owner who has a service-connected disability of fifty percent or
13 more, or that owner's surviving spouse who is forty-five years of age or older or who
14 has minor children, remains the owner of the property.
15 (iii) The spouse of the owner who is killed in action remains the owner of the
16 property.
17 (iv) The first day of the tax year following the tax year in which an owner
18 who was missing in action or was a prisoner of war for a period exceeding ninety
19 days is no longer missing in action or a prisoner of war.
20 (v) Even if the ownership interest of any surviving spouse or spouse of an
21 owner who is missing in action as provided for in this Subparagraph is an interest in
22 usufruct.
23 (b) The value of the property does not increase more than twenty-five
24 percent because of construction or reconstruction.
25 (3) A new or subsequent owner of the property may claim a special
26 assessment level when eligible under this Section. The new owner is not necessarily
27 entitled to the same special assessment level on the property as when that property
28 was owned by the previous owner.
29 (4)(a) The special assessment level on property that is sold shall
30 automatically expire on the last day of December in the year prior to the year that the
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1 property is sold. The property shall be immediately revalued at fair market value by
2 the assessor and shall be assessed by the assessor on the assessment rolls in the year
3 it was sold at the assessment level provided for in Article VII, Section 32 of the
4 Constitution of Louisiana.
5 (b) This new assessment level shall remain in effect until changed as
6 provided by this Section or this Constitution.
7 (5)(a) Any owner entitled to the special assessment level set forth in this
8 Paragraph who is unable to occupy the homestead on or before December thirty-first
9 of a future calendar year due to damage or destruction of the homestead caused by
10 a disaster or emergency declared by the governor shall be entitled to keep the special
11 assessment level of the homestead prior to its damage or destruction on the repaired
12 or rebuilt homestead provided the repaired or rebuilt homestead is reoccupied by the
13 owner within five years from December thirty-first of the year following the disaster.
14 The assessed value of the land and buildings on which the homestead was located
15 prior to its damage shall not be increased above its assessed value immediately prior
16 to the damage or destruction described in this Subsubparagraph. If the property
17 owner receives a homestead exemption on another homestead during the same
18 five-year period, the damaged or destroyed property shall not be entitled to keep the
19 special assessment level, and the land and buildings shall be assessed in that year at
20 the percentage of fair market value set forth in this constitution. In addition, the
21 owner shall also maintain the homestead exemption set forth in Article VII, Section
22 34(A)(10) to qualify for the special assessment level in this Subsubparagraph.
23 (b) Any owner entitled to the special assessment level set forth in
24 Subsubparagraph (a) of this Subparagraph who is unable to reoccupy his homestead
25 within five years from December thirty-first of the year following the disaster shall
26 be eligible for an extension of the special assessment level on the homestead for a
27 period not to exceed two years. A homeowner shall be eligible for this extension
28 only if the homeowner's damage claim is filed and pending in a formal appeal
29 process with any federal, state, or local government agency or program offering
30 grants or assistance for repairing or rebuilding damaged or destroyed homes as a
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1 result of the disaster, or if a homeowner has a damage claim filed and pending
2 against the insurer of the property. The homeowner shall apply for this extension of
3 the special assessment level with the assessor of the parish in which the homestead
4 is located. The assessor shall require the homeowner to provide official
5 documentation from the government agency or program evidencing the homeowner's
6 participation in the formal appeal process or official documentation evidencing the
7 homeowner has a damage claim filed and pending against the insurer of the damaged
8 property, as provided by law.
9 (c) After expiration of the extension authorized in Subsubparagraph (b) of
10 this Subparagraph, an assessor shall have the authority to grant on a case-by-case
11 basis up to three additional one-year extensions of the special assessment level as
12 prescribed by law.
13 (6)(a) A trust shall be eligible for the special assessment level as provided
14 by law.
15 (b) If a trust would have been eligible for the special assessment level
16 pursuant to this Subparagraph prior to the most recent reappraisal, the total
17 assessment of the property held in trust shall be the assessed value on the last
18 appraisal before the reappraisal.
19 (A) Public lands and other public property used for public purposes. Land
20 or property owned by another state or owned by a political subdivision of another
21 state shall not be exempt under this Paragraph.
22 (B)(1)(a)(i) Property owned by a nonprofit corporation or association
23 organized and operated exclusively for religious, dedicated places of burial,
24 charitable, health, welfare, fraternal, or educational purposes, no part of the net
25 earnings of which inure to the benefit of any private shareholder or member thereof
26 and that is declared to be exempt from federal or state income tax; and
27 (ii) Medical equipment leased for a term exceeding five years to such a
28 nonprofit corporation or association that owns or operates a small, rural hospital and
29 that uses the equipment solely for health care purposes at the hospital, provided that
30 the property shall be exempt only during the term of the lease to such corporation or
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1 association, and further provided that "small, rural hospital" shall mean a hospital
2 that meets all of the following criteria:
3 (aa) It has less than fifty Medicare-licensed acute care beds.
4 (bb) It is located in a municipality with a population of less than ten
5 thousand that has been classified as an area with a shortage of health manpower by
6 the United States Health Service; and
7 (b) Property leased to such a nonprofit corporation or association for use
8 solely as housing for homeless persons, as defined by regulation adopted by the tax
9 commission or its successor provided that the term of such lease shall be for at least
10 five years, that as a condition of entering into the lease the property be in compliance
11 with all applicable health and sanitation codes for use as housing for homeless
12 persons, that the lease shall provide that compensation to be paid the lessor shall not
13 exceed one dollar per year, and that such contract of lease shall recite that the
14 property shall be used exclusively for the purpose of housing the homeless, and
15 further provided that at such time as the property is no longer used solely as housing
16 for homeless persons, the property shall no longer be exempt from taxation;
17 (2) Property of a bona fide labor organization representing its members or
18 affiliates in collective bargaining efforts; and
19 (3) Property of an organization such as a lodge or club organized for
20 charitable and fraternal purposes and practicing the same, and property of a nonprofit
21 corporation devoted to promoting trade, travel, and commerce, and also property of
22 a trade, business, industry or professional society or association, if that property is
23 owned by a nonprofit corporation or association organized under the laws of this
24 state for such purposes.
25 (4)(a) None of the property listed in this Paragraph shall be exempt if owned,
26 operated, leased, or used for commercial purposes unrelated to the exempt purposes
27 of the corporation or association.
28 (b)(i) None of the property listed in this Paragraph shall be exempt if the
29 property is owned by a nonprofit corporation or association and the governing
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1 authority of the municipality or parish in which the property is located determines
2 all of the following:
3 (aa) The property is leased as housing, is in a state of disrepair, and
4 manifests conditions which endanger the health or safety of the public.
5 (bb) The owner of the property habitually neglects maintenance of the
6 property as evidenced by three or more sustained code enforcement violations issued
7 for the property in the prior twelve months for matters that endanger the health or
8 safety of residents of the property or of persons in the area surrounding the property.
9 For purposes of this Item, matters deemed to endanger health or safety include
10 structural instability due to deterioration; injurious or toxic ventilation; contaminated
11 or inoperable water supply; holes, breaks, rotting materials, or mold in walls; roof
12 defects that admit rain; unsecured overhang extensions in danger of collapse; a
13 hazardous electrical system; improper connection of fuel-burning appliances or
14 equipment; an inactive or inoperable fire detection system; an unsecured or
15 contaminated swimming pool; or any combination of these.
16 (ii) An ad valorem tax exemption denied or revoked pursuant to the
17 provisions of Item (i) of this Subsubparagraph may be issued or reinstated if the
18 governing authority of the municipality or parish in which the property is located
19 determines that the conditions enumerated in Item (i) of this Subsubparagraph no
20 longer exist.
21 (C)(1) Cash on hand or deposit;
22 (2) stocks and bonds, except bank stocks, the tax on which shall be paid by
23 the banking institution;
24 (3) obligations secured by mortgage on property located in Louisiana and the
25 notes or other evidence thereof;
26 (4) loans by life insurance companies to policyholders, if secured solely by
27 their policies;
28 (5) the legal reserve of domestic life insurance companies;
29 (6) loans by a homestead or building and loan association to its members, if
30 secured solely by stock of the association;
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1 (7) debts due for merchandise or other articles of commerce or for services
2 rendered;
3 (8) obligations of the state or its political subdivisions;
4 (9) personal property used in the home or on loan in a public place;
5 (10) irrevocably dedicated places of burial held by individuals for purposes
6 of burial of themselves or members of their families;
7 (11) agricultural products while owned by the producer, agricultural
8 machinery and other implements used exclusively for agricultural purposes, animals
9 on the farm, and property belonging to an agricultural fair association;
10 (12) property used for cultural, Mardi Gras carnival, or civic activities and
11 not operated for profit to the owners;
12 (13) rights-of-way granted to the State Department of Highways;
13 (14) boats using gasoline as motor fuel;
14 (15) commercial vessels used for gathering seafood for human consumption;
15 and
16 (16) ships and oceangoing tugs, towboats, and barges engaged in
17 international trade and domiciled in Louisiana ports. However, this exemption shall
18 not apply to harbor, wharf, shed, and other port dues or to any vessel operated in the
19 coastal trade of the states of the United States.
20 (17) Materials, boiler fuels, and energy sources used by public utilities to
21 fuel the generation of electricity.
22 (18) All incorporeal movables of any kind or nature whatsoever, except
23 public service properties, bank stocks, and credit assessments on premiums written
24 in Louisiana by insurance companies and loan and finance companies. For purposes
25 of this Section, incorporeal movables shall have the meaning set forth in the
26 Louisiana Civil Code of 1870, as amended.
27 (19) All artwork including sculptures, glass works, paintings, drawings,
28 signed and numbered posters, photographs, mixed media, collages, or any other item
29 which would be considered as the material result of a creative endeavor which is
30 listed as a consignment article by an art dealer.
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1 (D)(1) Raw materials, goods, commodities, and articles imported into this
2 state from outside the states of the United States:
3 (a) so long as the imports remain on the public property of the port authority
4 or docks of the common carrier where they first entered this state;
5 (b) so long as the imports (other than minerals and ores of the same kind as
6 any mined or produced in this state and manufactured articles) are held in this state
7 in the original form in bales, sacks, barrels, boxes, cartons, containers, or other
8 original packages, and raw materials held in bulk as all or a part of the new material
9 inventory of manufacturers or processors, solely for manufacturing or processing;
10 or
11 (c) so long as the imports are held by an importer in any public or private
12 storage in the original form in bales, sacks, barrels, boxes, cartons, containers, or
13 other original packages and agricultural products in bulk. This exemption shall not
14 apply to these imports when held by a retail merchant as part of his stock-in-trade for
15 sale at retail.
16 (2) Raw materials, goods, commodities, and other articles being held on the
17 public property of a port authority, on docks of any common carrier, or in a
18 warehouse, grain elevator, dock, wharf, or public storage facility in this state for
19 export to a point outside the states of the United States.
20 (3) Goods, commodities, and personal property in public or private storage
21 while in transit through this state which are moving in interstate commerce through
22 or over the territory of the state or which are in public or private storage within
23 Louisiana, having been shipped from outside Louisiana for storage in transit to a
24 final destination outside Louisiana, whether such destination was specified when
25 transportation began or afterward.
26 Property described in Paragraph (D), whether or not entitled to exemption,
27 shall be reported to the proper taxing authority on the forms required by law.
28 (E) Motor vehicles used on the public highways of this state, from state,
29 parish, municipal, and special ad valorem taxes.
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1 (F) Notwithstanding any contrary provision of this Section, the State Board
2 of Commerce and Industry or its successor, with the approval of the governor, may
3 enter into contracts for the exemption from ad valorem taxes of a new manufacturing
4 establishment or an addition to an existing manufacturing establishment, on such
5 terms and conditions as the board, with the approval of the governor, deems in the
6 best interest of the state.
7 The exemption shall be for an initial term of no more than five calendar
8 years, and may be renewed for an additional five years. All property exempted shall
9 be listed on the assessment rolls and submitted to the Louisiana Tax Commission or
10 its successor, but no taxes shall be collected thereon during the period of exemption.
11 The terms "manufacturing establishment" and "addition" as used herein mean
12 a new plant or establishment or an addition or additions to any existing plant or
13 establishment which engages in the business of working raw materials into wares
14 suitable for use or which gives new shapes, qualities or combinations to matter which
15 already has gone through some artificial process.
16 (G) Coal or lignite stockpiled in Louisiana for use in Louisiana for industrial
17 or manufacturing purposes or for boiler fuel, gasification, feedstock, or process
18 purposes.
19 (H) Notwithstanding any contrary provision of this constitution, the State
20 Board of Commerce and Industry or its successor, with the approval of the governor
21 and the local governing authority and in accordance with procedures and conditions
22 provided by law, may enter into contracts granting to a property owner, who
23 proposes the expansion, restoration, improvement, or development of an existing
24 structure or structures in a downtown, historic, or economic development district
25 established by a local governing authority or in accordance with law, the right for an
26 initial term of five years after completion of the work to pay ad valorem taxes based
27 upon the assessed valuation of the property for the year prior to the commencement
28 of the expansion, restoration, improvement, or development. Contracts may be
29 renewed, subject to the same conditions, for an additional five years extending such
30 right for a total of ten years from completion of the work.
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1 (I)(1) Notwithstanding any contrary provision of this Section, the authority
2 or district charged with economic development of each parish is hereby authorized
3 to enter into contracts for the exemption from parish, municipal, and special ad
4 valorem taxes of goods held in inventory by distribution centers. In the absence of
5 the existence of an economic development authority or district, the parish governing
6 authority is authorized to grant contracts of exemption as are provided for in this
7 Paragraph.
8 (2) The contract for exemption shall be on such terms and to the extent, up
9 to and including the full assessed valuation of the goods held in inventory, as the
10 economic development authority or district deems in the best interest of the parish.
11 However, prior to entering into each individual contract, the economic development
12 authority or district must request and receive written approval of the contract,
13 including its terms and an estimated fiscal impact, from each affected tax recipient
14 body in the parish, as evidenced by a favorable vote of a majority of the members of
15 the governing authority of the tax recipient body. Failure to receive all required
16 approvals from the tax recipient bodies before entering into a contract shall render
17 the contract null and void and of no effect.
18 (3) The term "distribution center" as used herein means an establishment
19 engaged in the sale of products for resale or further processing for resale. The term
20 "goods held in inventory" as used herein means goods or products which have been
21 given new shapes, qualities, or combinations through some artificial process and
22 does not include raw materials such as natural gas, crude oil, sulphur, or timber or
23 goods or products held for sale to consumers.
24 (J)(1) Drilling rigs used exclusively for the exploration and development of
25 minerals outside the territorial limits of the state in Outer Continental Shelf waters
26 which are within the state for the purpose of being stored or stacked for use outside
27 the territorial limits of the state, or for the purpose of being converted, renovated, or
28 repaired, and any property in the state for the purpose of being incorporated in, or to
29 be used in the operation of said drilling rigs.
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1 (2) The exemption provided in this Paragraph shall be applicable in any
2 parish in which the exemption has been approved by a majority of the electors of the
3 parish voting thereon at an election called for that purpose.
4 (K)(1)(a) In addition to the homestead exemption authorized pursuant to the
5 provisions of Section 20 of this Article, which applies to the first seven thousand five
6 hundred dollars of the assessed valuation of property, the next two thousand five
7 hundred dollars of the assessed valuation of property receiving the homestead
8 exemption that is owned and occupied by a veteran with a service-connected
9 disability rating of fifty percent or more but less than seventy percent by the United
10 States Department of Veterans Affairs shall be exempt from ad valorem taxation.
11 The surviving spouse of a deceased veteran with a service-connected disability rating
12 of fifty percent or more but less than seventy percent by the United States
13 Department of Veterans Affairs shall be eligible for this exemption if the surviving
14 spouse occupies and remains the owner of the property, whether or not the
15 exemption was in effect on the property prior to the death of the veteran. If property
16 eligible for the exemption provided for in this Subsubparagraph has an assessed
17 value in excess of ten thousand dollars, ad valorem property taxes shall apply to the
18 assessment in excess of ten thousand dollars.
19 (b) In addition to the homestead exemption authorized pursuant to the
20 provisions of Section 20 of this Article, which applies to the first seven thousand five
21 hundred dollars of the assessed valuation of property, the next four thousand five
22 hundred dollars of the assessed valuation of property owned and occupied by a
23 veteran with a service-connected disability rating of seventy percent or more but less
24 than one hundred percent by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs shall
25 be exempt from ad valorem taxation. The surviving spouse of a deceased veteran
26 with a service-connected disability rating of seventy percent or more but less than
27 one hundred percent by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs shall be
28 eligible for this exemption if the surviving spouse occupies and remains the owner
29 of the property, whether or not the exemption was in effect on the property prior to
30 the death of the veteran. If property eligible for the exemption provided for in this
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1 Subsubparagraph has an assessed value in excess of twelve thousand dollars, ad
2 valorem property taxes shall apply to the assessment in excess of twelve thousand
3 dollars.
4 (c) In addition to the homestead exemption authorized pursuant to the
5 provisions of Section 20 of this Article, which applies to the first seven thousand five
6 hundred dollars of the assessed valuation of property, the remaining assessed
7 valuation of property receiving the homestead exemption that is owned and occupied
8 by a veteran with a service-connected disability rating of one hundred percent
9 unemployability or totally disabled by the United States Department of Veterans
10 Affairs shall be exempt from ad valorem taxation. The surviving spouse of a
11 deceased veteran with a service-connected disability rating of one hundred percent
12 unemployability or totally disabled by the United States Department of Veterans
13 Affairs shall be eligible for this exemption if the surviving spouse occupies and
14 remains the owner of the property, whether or not the exemption was in effect on the
15 property prior to the death of the veteran.
16 (2) Notwithstanding any provision of this Constitution to the contrary, the
17 property assessment of a property for which an exemption established pursuant to
18 this Paragraph has been claimed, to the extent of the applicable exemption, shall not
19 be treated as taxable property for purposes of any subsequent reappraisals and
20 valuation for millage adjustment purposes pursuant to Section 23(B) of this Article.
21 The decrease in the total amount of ad valorem tax collected by a taxing authority
22 as a result of the exemption shall be absorbed by the taxing authority and shall not
23 create any additional tax liability for other taxpayers in the taxing district as a result
24 of any subsequent reappraisal and valuation or millage adjustment. Implementation
25 of the exemption authorized in this Paragraph shall neither trigger nor be cause for
26 a reappraisal of property or an adjustment of millages pursuant to the provisions of
27 Section 23(B) of this Article.
28 (3) A trust shall be eligible for the exemption provided for in this Paragraph
29 as provided by law.
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1 (L)(1) Except as otherwise provided herein, property owned or leased by,
2 and used by, a targeted non-manufacturing business in the operation of its facility,
3 including buildings, improvements, equipment, and other property necessary or
4 beneficial to such operation, according to a program and pursuant to contracts of
5 exemption which contain such terms and conditions which shall be provided by law.
6 Land underlying the facility and other property pertaining to the facility on which ad
7 valorem taxes have previously been paid, inventories, consumables, and property
8 eligible for the manufacturing exemption provided by Paragraph (F) of this Section,
9 shall not be exempt under this Paragraph.
10 (2) Ad valorem taxes shall apply to the assessed valuation of the first ten
11 million dollars or ten percent of fair market value, whichever is greater, and this
12 amount of property shall not be exempt under this Paragraph.
13 (3) A targeted non-manufacturing business means at least fifty percent of
14 such business' total annual sales from a site or sites in the state is to out-of-state
15 customers or buyers, or to in-state customers or buyers but the product or service is
16 resold by the purchaser to an out-of-state customer or buyer for ultimate use, or to
17 the federal government, or any combination thereof. The legislature may provide by
18 law for the inclusion of sales by affiliates when appropriate in making this fifty
19 percent determination.
20 (4) A contract for the exemption shall be available only in parishes which
21 have agreed to participate, in the manner provided by the legislature by law.
22 (M) There is hereby established an exemption from ad valorem tax for the
23 total assessed value of the homestead of the unmarried surviving spouse of a person
24 who died under the conditions enumerated in Subsubparagraph (1)(a) or (b) of this
25 Paragraph, and if the conditions established in Subsubparagraph (1)(c) of this
26 Paragraph are met.
27 (1)(a) For ad valorem taxes due in 2017 and thereafter, the exemption shall
28 apply beginning in the tax year in which any of the following persons died or 2017,
29 whichever is later:
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1 (i) A member of the armed forces of the United States or the Louisiana
2 National Guard who died while on active duty.
3 (ii) A state police officer who died while on duty.
4 (iii) A law enforcement or fire protection officer who qualified for the salary
5 supplement authorized in Section 10(D)(3) of this Article who died while on duty.
6 (b) For ad valorem taxes due in 2018 and thereafter, the exemption shall
7 apply beginning in the tax year in which any of the following persons died or 2018,
8 whichever is later:
9 (i) An emergency medical responder, technician, or paramedic, as such terms
10 may be defined by law, who died while performing the duties of their employment.
11 (ii) A volunteer firefighter, verified by the Office of the State Fire Marshal
12 to have died while performing firefighting duties.
13 (iii) A law enforcement or fire protection officer who died while on duty and
14 who would have qualified for the salary supplement authorized in Section 10(D)(3)
15 of this Article if he had completed the first year of his employment before his death.
16 (c)(i) The property is eligible for the homestead exemption and the property
17 was the residence of a person listed within Subsubparagraph (a) or (b) of this
18 Subparagraph at the time of that person's death.
19 (ii) The surviving spouse has not remarried.
20 (iii) The surviving spouse annually provides evidence of their eligibility for
21 the exemption in accordance with the requirements of Subparagraph (2) of this
22 Paragraph.
23 (2) Each assessor shall establish a procedure whereby a person may annually
24 apply for the exemption. Eligibility for the exemption shall be established by the
25 production of documents and certification of information by the surviving spouse to
26 the assessor as follows:
27 (a) In an initial application for the exemption, the surviving spouse shall
28 produce documentation issued by their deceased spouse's employer evidencing the
29 death.
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1 (b) For purposes of the continuation of an existing exemption, the surviving
2 spouse shall annually provide a sworn statement to the assessor attesting to the fact
3 that the surviving spouse has not remarried.
4 (3) Once an unmarried surviving spouse has qualified for and taken the
5 exemption, if the surviving spouse then acquires a different property which qualifies
6 for the homestead exemption, the surviving spouse shall be entitled to an exemption
7 on that subsequent homestead, the exemption being limited in value to the amount
8 of the exemption claimed on the prior homestead in the last year for which the
9 exemption was claimed. The assessor may require the submission of certain
10 information concerning the amount of the exemption on the prior homestead for
11 purposes of determining the extent of the exemption available for the subsequent
12 homestead.
13 (4) A trust shall be eligible for the exemption provided for in this Paragraph
14 as provided by law.
15 (N)(1) All property delivered to a construction project site for the purpose of
16 incorporating the property into any tract of land, building, or other construction as
17 a component part, including the type of property that may be deemed to be a
18 component part once placed on an immovable for its service and improvement
19 pursuant to the provisions of the Louisiana Civil Code of 1870, as amended. The
20 exemption provided for in this Paragraph shall be applicable until the construction
21 project for which the property has been delivered is complete. A construction project
22 shall be deemed complete when construction is finished to the extent that the project
23 can be used or occupied for its intended purpose. A construction project shall not be
24 deemed complete during its inspection, testing, or commissioning stages, as defined
25 by reasonable industry standards.
26 (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of Subparagraph (1) of this Paragraph,
27 this exemption shall not apply to any of the following:
28 (a) Any portion of a construction project that is complete, available for its
29 intended use, or operational on the date that property is assessed.
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1 (b) For projects constructed in two or more distinct phases, any phase of the
2 construction project that is complete, available for its intended use, or operational on
3 the date the property is assessed.
4 (c) Any public service property, unless the public service property is
5 otherwise eligible for an exemption provided by any other provision of this
6 constitution.
7 (O)(1) In addition to the homestead exemption authorized pursuant to the
8 provisions of Section 20 of this Article, which applies to the first seven thousand five
9 hundred dollars of the assessed valuation of property, a parish governing authority
10 may approve an ad valorem tax exemption of up to two thousand five hundred
11 dollars of the assessed valuation of property receiving the homestead exemption that
12 is owned and occupied by a qualified first responder.
13 (2) For the purposes of this Paragraph, "first responder" shall mean a
14 volunteer firefighter who has completed within the tax year no fewer than twenty-
15 four hours of firefighter continuing education and is an active member of the
16 Louisiana State Firemen's Association or is on the departmental personnel roster of
17 the Volunteer Firefighter Insurance Program of the office of state fire marshal. For
18 the purposes of this Paragraph, "first responder" shall also mean a full-time public
19 employee whose duties include responding rapidly to an emergency and who resides
20 in the same parish in which their employer is located. The term includes the
21 following:
22 (a) Peace officer, which means any sheriff, police officer, or other person
23 deputized by proper authority to serve as a peace officer.
24 (b) Fire protection personnel.
25 (c) An individual certified as emergency medical services personnel.
26 (d) An emergency response operator or emergency services dispatcher who
27 provides communication support services for an agency by responding to requests
28 for assistance in emergencies.
29 (3) The exemption provided for in this Paragraph shall only apply in a parish
30 if it is approved by the parish governing authority.
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1 (4) Each tax assessor shall establish a procedure whereby a person may
2 annually apply for the exemption which shall include the production of documents
3 by the first responder. In the application for the exemption, the first responder shall
4 produce documentation issued by his employer evidencing employment for the
5 taxable period for which the exemption is being requested.
6 (5) Notwithstanding any provision of this Constitution to the contrary, any
7 decrease in the total amount of ad valorem tax collected by the taxing authority as
8 a result of an ad valorem tax exemption granted pursuant to this Paragraph shall be
9 absorbed by the taxing authority and shall not create any additional tax liability for
10 other taxpayers in the taxing district as a result of any subsequent reappraisal and
11 valuation or millage adjustment. Implementation of the exemption authorized in this
12 Paragraph shall neither trigger nor be cause for a reappraisal of property or an
13 adjustment of millages.
14 §36. Ad valorem tax; Business inventory tax exemption prohibition
15 Section 36. Notwithstanding any provision of this constitution to the
16 contrary, the legislature shall not enact any law mandating any taxing authority to
17 exempt business inventory from ad valorem tax. For purposes of this Section,
18 "business inventory" means the aggregate of those items of tangible personal
19 property that are held for sale in the ordinary course of business, are currently in the
20 process of production for subsequent sale, or are to physically become a part of the
21 production of such goods.
22 §37. Ad Valorem Tax Exemption Funding
23 Section 37. There shall be a one-time payment from the Revenue
24 Stabilization Trust Fund to each parish that elects to irrevocably exempt, in
25 accordance with law, business inventory from ad valorem tax. Any payment made
26 pursuant to this Section shall be disbursed by the treasurer to the tax collector of the
27 parish. The tax collector shall distribute the monies pro rata to each taxing authority
28 that levies an ad valorem tax within the parish. The amount of the payment shall be
29 calculated as provided by law and certified by the Department of Revenue.
30 Notwithstanding any provision of this constitution to the contrary, monies shall be
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1 disbursed by the treasurer to the collector within thirty days of receipt of a
2 certification from the secretary of the Department of Revenue that the parish has
3 irrevocably elected to exempt business inventory from ad valorem tax.
4 §22. §38. No Impairment of Existing Taxes or Obligations
5 Section 22. Section 38. This Part Nothing in this constitution or in law shall
6 not be applied in a manner which will (a) invalidate taxes authorized and imposed
7 prior to the effective date of this constitution or (b) impair the obligations, validity,
8 or security of any bonds or other debt obligations authorized prior to the effective
9 date of this constitution or any amendment to this Article.
10 §23. Adjustment of Ad Valorem Tax Millages
11 Section 23.(A) First Adjustment. Prior to the end of the third year after the
12 effective date of this constitution, the assessors and the Louisiana Tax Commission
13 or its successor shall complete determination of the fair market value or the use value
14 of all property subject to taxation within each parish for use in implementing this
15 Article. Except as provided in this Section, the total amount of ad valorem taxes
16 collected by any taxing authority in the year in which Sections 18 and 20 of this
17 Article are implemented shall not be increased or decreased, because of their
18 provisions, above or below ad valorem taxes collected by that taxing authority in the
19 year preceding implementation. To accomplish this result, it shall be mandatory for
20 each affected taxing authority, in the year in which Sections 18 and 20 of this Article
21 are implemented, to adjust millages upwards or downwards without regard to millage
22 limitations contained in this constitution, and the maximum authorized millages shall
23 be increased or decreased, without further voter approval, in proportion to the
24 amount of the adjustment upward or downward. Thereafter, such millages shall
25 remain in effect unless changed as permitted by this constitution.
26 (B) Subsequent Adjustments. Except as otherwise permitted in this Section,
27 the total amount of ad valorem taxes collected by any taxing authority in the year in
28 which the reappraisal and valuation provisions of Section 18, Paragraph (F) of this
29 Article are implemented shall not be increased or decreased because of a reappraisal
30 or valuation or increases or decreases in the homestead exemption above or below
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1 the total amount of ad valorem taxes collected by that taxing authority in the year
2 preceding implementation of the reappraisal and valuation. To accomplish this
3 result, the provisions of millage adjustments relative to implementation of Section
4 18 and Section 20 of this Article, as set forth in Paragraph (A) of this Section shall
5 be mandatory. Thereafter, following implementation of each subsequent reappraisal
6 and valuation required by Paragraph (F) of Section 18 of this Article, the millages
7 as fixed in each such implementation shall remain in effect unless changed as
8 permitted by Paragraph (C) of this Section.
9 (C) Increases Permitted. Nothing herein shall prohibit a taxing authority
10 from collecting, in the year in which Sections 18 and 20 of this Article are
11 implemented or in any subsequent year, a larger dollar amount of ad valorem taxes
12 by (1) levying additional or increased millages as provided by law or (2) placing
13 additional property on the tax rolls. Increases in the millage rate in excess of the
14 rates established as provided by Paragraph (B) above but not in excess of the prior
15 year's maximum authorized millage rate may be levied by two-thirds vote of the total
16 membership of a taxing authority without further voter approval but only after a
17 public hearing held in accordance with the open meetings law; however, in addition
18 to any other requirements of the open meetings law, public notice of the time, place,
19 and subject matter of such hearing shall be published on two separate days no less
20 than thirty days before the public hearing. Such public notice shall be published in
21 the official journal of the taxing authority, and another newspaper with a larger
22 circulation within the taxing authority than the official journal of the taxing
23 authority, if there is one.
24 (D) Application. This Section shall not apply to millages required to be
25 levied for the payment of general obligation bonds.
26 §24. §39. Tax Assessors
27 Section 24. Section 39.(A) Election; Term. A tax assessor shall be elected
28 by the electors of each parish. His The term of office shall be four years. His A tax
29 assessor's election, duties, and compensation shall be as provided by law.
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1 (B) Orleans Parish. The assessor shall be elected at the same time as the
2 municipal officers of New Orleans.
3 (C) Vacancy. When a vacancy occurs in the office of tax assessor, the duties
4 of the office, until filled by election as provided by law, shall be assumed by the
5 chief deputy assessor.
6 §25. §40. Tax Sales Administration
7 Section 25. Section 40.(A) Tax Sales Immovables. (1) There shall be no
8 forfeiture of property for nonpayment of taxes. However, the assessment of ad
9 valorem taxes and other impositions on immovable property shall constitute a lien
10 and privilege on the property assessed in favor of the political subdivision to which
11 taxes and other impositions are owed. The legislature shall provide, by law, for the
12 efficient administration of tax sales, which shall include at a minimum:
13 (a) Imposition of interest on the delinquent taxes and other impositions not
14 to exceed one percent per month on a noncompounding basis.
15 (b) Imposition of penalty not to exceed five percent of the delinquent taxes
16 and other impositions.
17 (c) A period of time during which the lien cannot be enforced.
18 (d) A procedure for claiming the excess proceeds from the sale of the
19 property, as a result of the enforcement of the lien.
20 (2) The legislature may, by law, provide authority to the tax collector to
21 waive penalties for good cause.
22 at the expiration of the year in which the taxes are due, the collector, without suit,
23 and after giving notice to the delinquent in the manner provided by law, shall
24 advertise for sale the property on which the taxes are due. The advertisement shall
25 be published in the official journal of the parish or municipality, or, if there is no
26 official journal, as provided by law for sheriffs' sales, in the manner provided for
27 judicial sales. On the day of sale, the collector shall sell the portion of the property
28 which the debtor points out. If the debtor does not point out sufficient property, the
29 collector shall sell immediately the least quantity of property which any bidder will
30 buy for the amount of the taxes, interest, and costs. The sale shall be without
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1 appraisement. A tax deed by a tax collector shall be prima facie evidence that a valid
2 sale was made.
3 (2) If property located in a municipality with a population of more than four
4 hundred fifty thousand persons as of the most recent federal decennial census fails
5 to sell for the minimum required bid in the tax sale, the collector may offer the
6 property for sale at a subsequent sale with no minimum required bid. The proceeds
7 of the sale shall be applied to the taxes, interest, and costs due on the property, and
8 any remaining deficiency shall be eliminated from the tax rolls.
9 (B) Redemption. (1) The property sold shall be redeemable for three years
10 after the date of recordation of the tax sale, by paying the price given, including
11 costs, five percent penalty thereon, and interest at the rate of one percent per month
12 until redemption.
13 (2) In the city of New Orleans, when such property sold is residential or
14 commercial property which is abandoned property as defined by R.S. 33:4720.12(1)
15 or blighted property as defined by Act 155 of the 1984 Regular Session, it shall be
16 redeemable for eighteen months after the date of recordation of the tax sale by
17 payment in accordance with Subparagraph (1) of this Paragraph.
18 (3) In any parish other than Orleans, when such property sold is vacant
19 residential or commercial property which has been declared blighted, as defined by
20 R.S. 33:1374(B)(1) on January 1, 2013, or abandoned, as defined by R.S.
21 33:4720.59(D)(2) on January 1, 2013, it shall be redeemable for eighteen months
22 after the date of recordation of the tax sale by payment in accordance with
23 Subparagraph (1) of this Paragraph.
24 (C) Annulment. No sale of property for taxes shall be set aside for any cause,
25 except on proof of payment of the taxes prior to the date of the sale, unless the
26 proceeding to annul is instituted within six months after service of notice of sale. A
27 notice of sale shall not be served until the final day for redemption has ended. It must
28 be served within five years after the date of the recordation of the tax deed if no
29 notice is given. The fact that taxes were paid on a part of the property sold prior to
30 the sale thereof, or that a part of the property was not subject to taxation, shall not
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1 be cause for annulling the sale of any part thereof on which the taxes for which it
2 was sold were due and unpaid. No judgment annulling a tax sale shall have effect
3 until the price and all taxes and costs are paid, and until ten percent per annum
4 interest on the amount of the price and taxes paid from date of respective payments
5 are paid to the purchaser; however, this shall not apply to sales annulled because the
6 taxes were paid prior to the date of sale.
7 (D) Quieting Tax Title. The manner of notice and form of proceeding to quiet
8 tax titles shall be provided by law.
9 (E) (B)(1) Movables; Tax Sales. When taxes on movables are delinquent,
10 the tax collector shall seize and sell sufficient movable property of the delinquent
11 taxpayer to pay the tax, whether or not the property seized is the property which was
12 assessed. Sale of the property shall be at public auction, without appraisement, after
13 ten days advertisement, published within ten days after date of seizure. It shall be
14 absolute and without redemption.
15 (2) If the tax collector can find no corporeal movables of the delinquent to
16 seize, he may levy on incorporeal rights, by notifying the debtor thereof, or he may
17 proceed by summary rule in the courts to compel the delinquent to deliver for sale
18 property in his possession or under his control.
19 (F) (C) Postponement of Taxes. The legislature may postpone the payment
20 of taxes, but only in cases of an emergency declared by the governor or a parish
21 president pursuant to the Louisiana Homeland Security and Emergency Assistance
22 and Disaster Act, overflow, general conflagration, general crop destruction, or other
23 public calamity, and may provide for the levying, assessing, and collecting of such
24 postponed taxes. In such case, the legislature may authorize the borrowing of money
25 by the state on its faith and credit, by bond issue or otherwise, and may levy taxes,
26 or apply taxes already levied and not appropriated, to secure payment thereof, in
27 order to create a fund from which loans may be made through the Interim Emergency
28 Board to the governing authority of the parish where the calamity occurs taxes are
29 postponed. The money loaned shall be applied to and shall not exceed the deficiency
30 in revenue of the parish or a political subdivision therein or of which the parish is a
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1 part, caused by postponement of taxes. No loan shall be made to a parish governing
2 authority without the approval of the Interim Emergency Board.
3 PART III. REVENUE SHARING
4 §26. §41. Revenue Sharing Fund
5 Section 26. Section 41.(A) Creation of Fund. The Revenue Sharing Fund is
6 created as a special fund in the state treasury.
7 (B) Annual Allocation. The sum of ninety million dollars is shall be
8 allocated annually from the state general fund to the revenue sharing fund. The
9 legislature may appropriate additional sums to the fund.
10 (C) Distribution Formula. The revenue sharing fund shall be distributed
11 annually as provided by law solely on the basis of population and number of
12 homesteads in each parish in proportion to population and the number of homesteads
13 throughout the state. Unless otherwise provided by law, population statistics of the
14 last federal decennial census shall be utilized for this purpose. After deductions in
15 each parish for retirement systems and commissions as authorized by law, the
16 remaining funds, to the extent available, shall be distributed by first priority to the
17 tax recipient bodies within the parish, as defined by law, to offset current losses
18 because of the homestead exemptions granted exemption permitted in this Article.
19 Any balance remaining in a parish distribution shall be allocated to the
20 municipalities and tax recipient bodies within each parish as provided by law.
21 (D) Distributing Officer. The funds distributed to each parish as provided
22 in Paragraph (C) shall be distributed in Orleans Parish by the city treasurer of New
23 Orleans and in all other parishes by the parish tax collector. The funds allocated to
24 the Monroe City School Board or its successor shall be distributed to and by the city
25 treasurer of Monroe.
26 (E) Bonded Debt. A political subdivision, as defined by Article VI of this
27 constitution, may incur debt by issuing negotiable bonds and may pledge for the
28 payment of all or part of the principal and interest of such bonds the proceeds
29 derived or to be derived from that portion of the funds received by it from the
30 revenue sharing fund, to offset current losses caused by the homestead exemptions
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1 granted exemption permitted by this Article. Unless otherwise provided by law, no
2 moneys monies allocated within any parish from the balance remaining in its
3 distribution may be pledged to the payment of the principal or interest of any bonds.
4 Bonds issued under this Paragraph shall be issued and sold as provided by law, and
5 shall require approval of the State Bond Commission or its successor prior to
6 issuance and sale.
7 PART IV. TRANSPORTATION
8 §27. Transportation Trust Fund
9 Section 27.(A) Creation of fund. Effective January 1, 1990, there shall be
10 established in the state treasury as a special permanent trust fund the Transportation
11 Trust Fund ("the trust fund") in which shall be deposited the "excess revenues" as
12 defined herein which are a portion of the avails received in each year from all taxes
13 levied on gasoline and motor fuels and on special fuels (said avails being referred to
14 as the "revenues") as provided herein. After satisfying pledges respecting that
15 portion of the revenues attributable to the tax rates in effect at the time of such
16 pledges for the payment of obligations for bonds or other evidences of indebtedness
17 on the effective date of this Section, the treasurer shall allocate such portion of the
18 revenues received in each year as necessary to pay all principal, interest, premium,
19 if any, and other obligations incident to the issuance, security, and payment in
20 respect of bonds as authorized in Paragraph (C) hereof. Thereafter, the portion of the
21 revenues remaining shall be deposited in the Bond Security and Redemption Fund
22 in the state treasury. After (1) the payment of any obligations for bonds or other
23 evidences of indebtedness in existence on the effective date of this Section which are
24 secured by revenues; (2) payments in respect of bonds authorized in Paragraph (C)
25 hereof; and (3) credit to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund, the treasurer shall
26 deposit in and credit to the trust fund all of the revenues remaining (the "excess
27 revenues") from the avails of all taxes levied on gasoline and motor fuels and on
28 special fuels, as follows: for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1989, the avails of
29 twelve cents per gallon of said taxes received on and after January 1, 1990; for the
30 fiscal year beginning on July 1, 1990, the avails of fourteen cents per gallon of said
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1 taxes; for the fiscal year beginning on July 1, 1991, and thereafter, the avails of all
2 taxes levied on gasoline and motor fuels and on special fuels. Purchases of gasoline,
3 diesel fuel, or special fuels which are subject to excise tax under Chapter 7 of
4 Subtitle II of Title 47 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950 shall be exempt from
5 the state sales tax and any sales tax levied by a political subdivision as defined by
6 Article VI, Section 44(2). All monies appropriated by the Federal Highway
7 Administration and the Federal Aviation Administration, or their successors, either
8 reimbursed or paid directly, shall be paid directly or deposited in and credited to the
9 trust fund.
10 (B)(1) Except as provided for in Subparagraph (2) of this Paragraph, the
11 monies in the trust fund shall be appropriated or dedicated solely and exclusively for
12 the costs for and associated with construction and maintenance of the roads and
13 bridges of the state and federal highway systems, the Statewide Flood-Control
14 Program or its successor, ports, airports, transit, and the Parish Transportation Fund
15 or its successor and for the payment of all principal, interest, premium, if any, and
16 other obligations incident to the issuance, security, and payment in respect of bonds
17 or other obligations payable from the trust fund as authorized in Paragraph (D) of
18 this Section. Unless pledged to the repayment of bonds authorized in Paragraphs (C)
19 or (D) of this Section, the monies in the trust fund allocated to ports, airports, flood
20 control, parish transportation, and state highway construction shall be appropriated
21 annually by the legislature only pursuant to programs established by law which
22 establish a system of priorities for the expenditure of such monies, except that the
23 Transportation Infrastructure Model for Economic Development, which shall include
24 only those projects enumerated in House Bill 17 of the 1989 First Extraordinary
25 Session of the Legislature and US Highway 61 from Thompson Creek to the
26 Mississippi Line, in lieu of "US 61-Bains to Mississippi Line", and US Highway 165
27 from I-10 to Alexandria to Monroe to Bastrop and thence on US Highway 425 from
28 Bastrop to the Arkansas Line, in lieu of "US 165-I-10 Alexandria-Monroe-Bastrop-
29 Arkansas Line" and LA 15-Natchez, Mississippi to Chase in lieu of "LA 15-Natchez,
30 Mississippi to Monroe", shall be funded as provided by law. The state-generated tax
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1 monies appropriated for ports, Parish Transportation Fund, or its successor, and the
2 Statewide Flood-Control Program, or its successor shall not exceed twenty percent
3 annually of the state-generated tax revenues in the trust fund; provided, however, that
4 no less than the avails of one cent of the tax on gasoline and special fuels shall be
5 appropriated each year to the Parish Transportation Fund, or its successor. The
6 annual appropriation for airports shall be a sum equal to, but not greater than, the
7 annual estimated revenue to be derived from the state taxes to be collected and
8 received on aviation fuel. Unencumbered and unexpended balances at the end of
9 each fiscal year shall remain in the trust fund. The earnings realized in each fiscal
10 year on the investment of monies in the trust fund shall be deposited in and credited
11 to the trust fund.
12 (2) There is hereby established in the Transportation Trust Fund a special
13 subfund to be known as the "Construction Subfund", hereinafter referred to as "the
14 subfund", in which shall be deposited the avails of any new taxes that become
15 effective and are levied on gasoline, motor fuels, or special fuels on or after July 1,
16 2017. The monies in the subfund shall be appropriated and dedicated solely for the
17 direct costs associated with actual project delivery, construction, and maintenance
18 of transportation and capital transit infrastructure projects of the state and local
19 government. The monies in the subfund that are appropriated by the legislature to
20 the Department of Transportation and Development, or its successor, shall not be
21 utilized by the department for the payment of employee wages and related benefits
22 or employee retirement benefits.
23 (C) The State Bond Commission or its successor, may issue and sell bonds,
24 notes, or other obligations ("Bonds") secured by a pledge of a portion of the revenues
25 not to exceed the avails of four cents per gallon of the taxes on gasoline and motor
26 fuels and on special fuels received by the state treasurer. Bonds so issued may also
27 be secured by a pledge of all or a portion of excess revenues as additional security
28 therefor, and if so pledged any portion thereof needed to pay principal, interest, or
29 premium, if any, and other obligations incident to the issuance, security, and
30 payment in respect to Bonds may be expended by the treasurer without the need for
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1 legislative appropriation. The Bonds may be issued in the manner set forth in this
2 Section to provide for the costs for and associated with construction and maintenance
3 of the roads and bridges of the state and federal highway systems, Statewide
4 Flood-Control Program, ports, airports, and for any other purpose for which monies
5 in the trust fund may be expended as provided by law. Such Bonds shall not be
6 considered to be debt under Article VII, Section 6, unless the provisions of Article
7 VII, Section 6, relative to incurring debt by the state are met, in which case the full
8 faith and credit of the state may also be pledged in addition to the revenues received
9 by the treasurer.
10 (D) The State Bond Commission or its successor may also issue and sell
11 bonds, notes, or other obligations secured by a pledge of the excess revenues
12 deposited in the trust fund, which shall otherwise be issued in the manner and for the
13 purposes provided for in this Section, and if so pledged any portion thereof needed
14 to pay principal, interest, or premium, if any, and other obligations incident to the
15 issuance, security, and payment in respect thereof may be expended by the treasurer
16 without the need for legislative appropriation.
17 (E) Bonds, notes, or other obligations issued pursuant to the provisions of
18 Paragraphs (C) or (D) above may be issued in the manner provided by resolution of
19 the State Bond Commission or its successor under the authority of said Paragraphs
20 without compliance with any other requirement of this constitution or law. To that
21 end, said Paragraphs (C) and (D) hereof shall be deemed self-operative.
22 PART V. PART IV. UNCLAIMED PROPERTY
23 §28. §42. Louisiana Unclaimed Property Permanent Trust Fund
24 Section 28. Section 42.(A) Creation of Fund. (1) Effective July 1, 2021, there
25 There shall be established in the state treasury as a special permanent trust fund, the
26 Louisiana Unclaimed Property Permanent Trust Fund, referred to in this Section as
27 the "UCP Permanent Trust Fund". No appropriation shall be made from the UCP
28 Permanent Trust Fund.
29 (2) The purpose of the UCP Permanent Trust Fund is to ensure a source of
30 payment for claims made by owners of unclaimed property. After allocation of
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1 money to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund as provided in Article VII,
2 Section 9(B) 13(B) of this Constitution, after the payment of all administrative fees,
3 costs, and expenses as provided by law, and after the deposit of monies into the
4 Unclaimed Property Leverage Fund, the treasurer shall annually deposit in and credit
5 to the UCP Permanent Trust Fund the net amount of all monies received as a result
6 of the Uniform Unclaimed Property Act of 1997 or its successor.
7 (3) Realized capital gains, dividend income, and interest income, earned on
8 the investments in the UCP Permanent Trust Fund, net of trust fund investment and
9 administrative expenses, shall be deposited into the state general fund.
10 (4) All monies shall be credited to the fund as provided in Subparagraph (2)
11 of this Paragraph until the balance in the UCP Permanent Trust Fund equals the
12 amount of the state's potential liability to unclaimed property claimants as reported
13 in the previous fiscal year pursuant to Paragraph (C) of this Section. All money
14 received above the state's potential liability to unclaimed property claimants as
15 reported by the state treasurer shall be deposited into the state general fund.
16 (B) Investment and Administration. The money credited to the UCP
17 Permanent Trust Fund pursuant to Paragraph (A) of this Section shall be permanently
18 credited to the UCP Permanent Trust Fund and shall be invested by the treasurer.
19 Notwithstanding any provision of this constitution to the contrary, a portion of
20 money in the UCP Permanent Trust Fund, not to exceed fifty percent of the money
21 in the UCP Permanent Trust Fund, may be invested in equities. The legislature shall
22 establish by law procedures for the investment of such monies. The treasurer may
23 contract, subject to the approval of the State Bond Commission, for the management
24 of such investments. Investment earnings shall be available for appropriation to pay
25 expenses incurred in the investment and management of the UCP Permanent Trust
26 Fund.
27 (C) Reports; Allocation. (1) Not less than sixty days prior to the beginning
28 of each regular session of the legislature, the state treasurer shall submit to the
29 legislature and the governor a report of the following:
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1 (a) The balance of the UCP Permanent Trust Fund as of the close of the prior
2 fiscal year.
3 (b) The state's potential liability to unclaimed property claimants as of the
4 close of the prior fiscal year.
5 (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of Subparagraph (1) of this Paragraph,
6 not less than sixty days prior to the beginning of the 2022 Regular Session of the
7 legislature, the state treasurer shall submit to the legislature and the governor a report
8 of the following:
9 (a) The balance of the UCP Permanent Trust Fund as of January 1, 2022.
10 (b) The state's potential liability to unclaimed property claimants as of the
11 close of the prior fiscal year.
12 (3) (2) If unclaimed property claims exceed receipts, the state treasurer shall
13 certify the amount needed to pay received claims and shall allocate sufficient funds
14 from the UCP Permanent Trust Fund to pay that amount. The state treasurer shall
15 also immediately notify the legislature and governor of the amount transferred from
16 the UCP Permanent Trust Fund and amount remaining in the UCP Permanent Trust
17 Fund.
18 (D) Private Property. Property received by the state pursuant to the Uniform
19 Unclaimed Property Act of 1997 or its successor and deposited into the UCP
20 Permanent Trust Fund is private property held in trust until a claim is made for it by
21 the owner.
22 Section 2. Article VII, Sections 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 4.1, 10.1 through 10.3, 10.5 through
23 10.9, 10.11 through 10.16, and 10-A of the Constitution of Louisiana are hereby repealed
24 in their entirety.
25 Section 3. Notwithstanding any provision of this Act to the contrary, for the
26 remainder of Fiscal Year 2024-2025, in addition to the revenues dedicated by Art. VII,
27 Section 15(A)(1) and (3) through (5) of this constitution as provided in this Act, any
28 revenues received in Fiscal Year 2024-2025 by the state after the effective date of this
29 Section in excess of nine hundred fifty million dollars as a result of the production of or
30 exploration for minerals, hereinafter referred to as mineral revenues, including severance
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1 taxes, royalty payments, bonus payments, or rentals, and excluding such revenues designated
2 as nonrecurring pursuant to Article VII, Section 14(B) of the constitution as provided in this
3 Act, any such revenues received by the state as a result of grants or donations when the terms
4 or conditions thereof require otherwise, and revenues derived from any tax on the
5 transportation of minerals, shall be deposited into the Budget Stabilization Fund after the
6 following allocations of the mineral revenues have been made:
7 (A) To the Bond Security and Redemption Fund as provided by Article VII, Section
8 13(B) of this constitution, as provided in this Act.
9 (B) To the political subdivisions as provided in Article VII, Sections 8 (B) and (C)
10 of this constitution, as provided in this Act.
11 (C) To the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Conservation Fund, as provided by law.
12 Section 4. Notwithstanding any provision of this Act to the contrary, for Fiscal Year
13 2024-2025, the annual appropriation from the Transportation Trust Fund for airports shall
14 be a sum equal to, but not greater than, the annual estimated revenue to be derived from the
15 state taxes to be collected and received on aviation fuel.
16 Section 5. Within two weeks of the effective date of this Act, the Department of
17 Education shall coordinate with the Department of Treasury to certify amounts maintained
18 in the Education Excellence Fund held to the credit of a political subdivision or school.
19 Notwithstanding any provision of this Act or law to the contrary, including Act 4 of the 2024
20 regular session of the legislature, the department shall, within three weeks of the effective
21 date of this Act, withdraw an amount equal to the aggregate balances certified pursuant to
22 the provisions of this Section and prior to the end of fiscal year 2024-2025 remit to each
23 entity its certified amount. Notwithstanding any provision of this constitution or law to the
24 contrary, monies withdrawn from the treasury pursuant to the provisions of this Section may
25 be held in an escrow account at a fiscal agent bank, as defined by law, until expended.
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1 Section 6. Within two weeks of the effective date of this Act, the State Board of
2 Elementary and Secondary Education and the Board of Regents shall each coordinate with
3 the Department of Treasury to certify amounts maintained in the Louisiana Quality
4 Education Support Fund held to the agency's credit within the fund. Notwithstanding any
5 provision of this Act or law to the contrary, including Act 4 of the 2024 regular session of
6 the legislature, each such agency shall, within three weeks of the effective date of this Act,
7 withdraw an amount from the fund equal to its certified balance. Notwithstanding any
8 provision of this constitution or law to the contrary, monies withdrawn from the treasury
9 pursuant to the provisions of this Section may be held in an escrow account at a fiscal agent
10 bank, as defined by law, until expended.
11 Section 7.(A) Notwithstanding any provision of this Act to the contrary, any transfer
12 to the Teachers' Retirement System of Louisiana pursuant to the provisions of this Act shall
13 be net of amounts needed to satisfy the requirements Sections 5 and 6 of this Act and
14 amounts needed to satisfy current year appropriations from the following funds:
15 (1)Louisiana Education Quality Trust Fund.
16 (2)Louisiana Quality Education Support Fund.
17 (3)Education Excellence Fund.
18 (B) Unexpended monies in each of the funds listed in Paragraph (A) of this Section
19 shall be transferred to the state general fund on July 1, 2025. No appropriation from any
20 such fund from the current fiscal year shall be carried forward to next fiscal year.
21 Section 8. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, after the effective
22 date of this Act, unless or until directed otherwise by law the treasurer shall deposit into the
23 state general fund any monies that would have been deposited in or credited to the following
24 funds:
25 (A)Louisiana Education Quality Trust Fund.
26 (B)Louisiana Quality Education Support Fund.
27 (C)Mineral Revenue Audit and Settlement Fund.
28 (D)Education Excellence Fund.
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1 Section 9. Notwithstanding any provision of this Act to the contrary, for the
2 remainder of Fiscal Year 2024-2025, the treasurer shall allocate severance tax to the
3 governing authority of the parish in which severance or production occurs in accordance
4 with the provisions of law in effect on July 1, 2024.
5 Section 10. Be it further resolved that this proposed amendment shall be submitted
6 to the electors of the state of Louisiana at the statewide election to be held on March 29,
7 2025.
8 Section 11. Be it further resolved that on the official ballot to be used at the election,
9 there shall be printed a proposition, upon which the electors of the state shall be permitted
10 to vote YES or NO, to amend the Constitution of Louisiana, which proposition shall read as
11 follows:
12 Do you support an amendment to revise Article VII of the Constitution of
13 Louisiana including revisions to lower the maximum rate of income tax,
14 increase income tax deductions for citizens over sixty-five, provide for a
15 government growth limit, modify operation of certain constitutional funds,
16 provide for property tax exemptions retaining the homestead exemption and
17 exemption for religious organizations, provide a permanent teacher salary
18 increase by requiring a surplus payment to teacher retirement debt, and make
19 other modifications? (Amends Article VII, Sections 1 through 28; Adds
20 Article VII, Sections 29 through 42)
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
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