Analysts: LA residents pay some of the lowest taxes in the nation

As lawmakers battle over raising more revenue, tax and budget analysts say it is worth keeping in mind that Louisiana residents pay some of the lowest state taxes in the country.

The Tax Foundation, an independent tax policy research organization, estimated this year that Louisiana and Alaska had the earliest “Tax Freedom Day” of any states–April 4th.

That’s the date, the group says, by which the residents of a state have collectively earned enough money to cover all their federal, state and local taxes for the year, and it provides a rough measure for comparing the tax burdens among the states. New York residents did not hit their tax freedom day until May 14th.

The foundation earlier did a more comprehensive study using 2012 data and found that Louisiana’s state and local tax burden was the sixth lowest in the nation as a share of total state income. Louisiana had relatively low property, individual income, and corporate taxes.