Louisiana lawmakers are weighing House Bill 620, a proposed constitutional amendment that would let the state legislature create a single, centralized system for collecting all state and local sales and use taxes. The bill was filed for the 2026 regular legislative session, which convened on March 9, 2026.
If the legislature approves HB 620, the amendment would go before voters on the November 3 statewide election. If voters approve it, the changes would take effect on January 1, 2027, according to the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB).
Right now, Louisiana’s sales tax system requires businesses to deal with multiple local tax collectors, each with different rules and filing requirements. That patchwork hits small businesses especially hard because it costs time and money to stay compliant across different parishes and jurisdictions.
Under HB 620, a central collector would gather all sales and use taxes statewide and then distribute the revenue to the appropriate local authorities. The bill would remove the current constitutional authority that allows local governmental subdivisions to collect sales and use taxes independently.
NFIB State Director Leah Long said small business owners are backing the measure. Louisiana has ranked near the bottom of the Tax Foundation’s sales tax competitiveness index for years, sitting at number 48 from 2020 through 2025. The state’s combined sales tax rates, which often land between 9% and 12%, are already among the highest in the country. A simpler collection process would not change those rates, but it would reduce the filing headaches for businesses operating across multiple jurisdictions.
It is worth noting that Louisiana already launched a combined state and parish sales tax return in February 2026, letting businesses report state and local sales activity on a single form. HB 620 would go further by enshrining centralized collection in the state constitution.
A companion bill, HB 658, has also been introduced in the current session. That bill would direct the Department of Revenue to handle the actual centralized collection of local sales taxes.
Small business owners in Louisiana should watch for committee hearings on HB 620 as the session progresses. The legislature is scheduled to adjourn no later than June 1, 2026, so any vote to place the amendment on the November ballot would need to happen before then.
