Louisiana Economist: Trump Tax Changes Driving $500M Surplus

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The Legislature's chief economist says Louisiana's $500 million budget surplus stems mainly from federal tax changes, not a booming economy.

Greg Albrecht told Louisiana's income forecasting panel Wednesday the better-than-expected tax collections come from personal income and corporate tax collections.

Albrecht says he's attributing that excess cash "almost entirely" to the federal tax code rewrite enacted by Congress and championed by President Donald Trump.

Louisiana has tied some of its tax deductions to federal income taxes. A drop in federal tax liabilities under the congressional tax changes means Louisiana taxpayers and businesses owe more to the state.

Albrecht says tweaking of business tax laws since 2015 also drove a portion of the increased tax collections.

Gov. John Bel Edwards has described the surplus as a sign of a strengthening economy.