Louisiana

Poor Families in Louisiana Are Subject to the Income Tax

 

Louisiana’s 1999 income tax threshold — the income level at which families begin paying income tax:	Ranking among 42 states with income taxes
For two-parent families of four: $12,700.	12th lowest (tie)
For single-parent families of three: $11,800.	13th lowest
Louisiana’s 1999 income tax on working-poor and near-poor families:
For families of four with incomes at the poverty line ($17,028): $98.	15th highest
For families of three with incomes at the poverty line ($13,290): $70.	12th highest
For families of four with incomes at 125% of the poverty line ($21,285): $208.	23rd highest
For families of three with incomes at 125% of the poverty line ($16,613): $200.	14th highest
Louisiana has consistently taxed families with incomes below the poverty line. Because Louisiana’s tax threshold for families of four has increased less than the poverty line during the 1990s, the gap between the threshold and the poverty line has increased. In 1991, a family of four owed tax when its income exceeded 79 percent of the poverty line. For 1999, Louisiana’s tax threshold is 75 percent of the poverty line.