Four constitutional amendments will be on the March 22 ballot. One of them would majorly overhaul the taxing and spending portion of the Louisiana Constitution.
Amendment 2 would revamp the state's tax code by lowering the maximum income tax rate and remove constitutional protections from certain funds so that money could be used for a variety of state projects. While supporters say the amendment is long overdue, opponents believe it's a disaster waiting to happen.
"(It's) a horrendously long and complicated rewrite of the (Louisiana) Constitution," said Jan Moller, executive director of Invest in Louisiana
According to Moller, state lawmakers rushed to send the amendment to voters, failing to fully consider the amendment's impacts on the state's residents and the budget. Moller called Amendment 2 bad policy, noting that the 115-page amendment has been condensed to less than 100 words for the ballot language. Moller also pointed out a government growth limit included in the amendment, which he says would prohibit the state government from paying for new projects even if money is available.
"In essence, what this does is it puts a lot of new handcuffs on state government in their ability to deal with the state budget (and) the ups and downs of the state economy," Moller said to WWL's Tommy Tucker.
Meanwhile, Pelican Institute executive director Daniel Erspamer says Amendment 2 is long overdue. According to Erspamer, Amendment 2 would provide the state needed funding by undedicating money currently tied up in constitutionally protected accounts. He also says the amendment would streamline the tax and spending portion of the constitution, lower the maximum income tax to 3.75 percentm, and stimulate the state's economy.
"This one is really important for making sure that the tax reform package that (passed) in November fully gets implemented and we can get the economy humming again," Erspamer said. "This frees up dollars. It's smart, thoughtful budgeting."
Several lawsuits are seeking to keep this and two other amendments off the ballot. The plaintiffs claim the ballot language deceives voters.
Early voting begins Saturday. Election Day is Saturday, March 22.
