By nearly 2-to-1 margins, Louisiana voters on Saturday rejected four proposed constitutional amendments, including a fiscal-reform measure championed by Gov. Jeff Landry, apparently wary of expanding the state Legislature’s powers.
Amendment 2, which was supported by Landry, the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry (LABI) and other reform-minded groups, was rejected by a margin of 65% to 35%. Voters turned down the measure even though it provided for a lower maximum income tax rate, more income tax deductions for seniors 65 and older, and a permanent salary increase for teachers.
Landry blamed the loss on out-of-state liberal groups and funds from billionaire political activist George Soros.
“The primary goal of Amendment 2 was to create a better opportunity for our citizens,” Landry said Saturday in a prepared statement. “To work towards inviting people into our state rather than have them leave. Unfortunately, Soros and far-left liberals poured millions into Louisiana with propaganda and outright lies about Amendment 2.”
Though the governor expressed disappointment with the election outcome, he said it did not represent a failure.
“We realize how hard positive change can be to implement in a state that is conditioned for failure,” Landry said. “We will continue working to give our citizens more opportunities to keep more of their hard-earned money and provide a better future for Louisianians.”
Robert Collins, a professor of urban studies and public policy at Dillard University, said it was silly for Landry to blame the loss on funds from Soros.
“Soros money cannot move the needle 30 points,” Collins told the Louisiana Record, “nothing can other than public opinion. … Even in the most conservative Republican areas, these amendments lost. They lost across the board.”
Amendment 2 was poorly written and could have led to two years of civil litigation by parties filing legal arguments about what it is supposed to mean, he said.
“... The problem with Amendment 2 is that it was written so abstractly that basically you can interpret it to mean whatever you want it to mean," Collins said. “... When voters don’t understand something, they just vote against it.”
LABI’s president and CEO, Will Green, said Amendment 2 was designed to revamp the state’s tax code to create more fairness, consistency and transparency.
“Saturday’s result on … Amendment 2 makes clear the need to return to the drawing board in order to build consensus on such a critical issue that impacts every Louisianan,” Green said in a prepared statement. “While this outcome isn’t what we had hoped for, we remain deeply motivated to build on the achievements of the past year. Our commitment to ensuring that Louisiana’s citizens and job creators receive the fair, straightforward tax code they rightfully deserve remains stronger than ever.”
Collins, however, said the electorate simply did not have the appetite for anything overly complex and had concerns that if the measure passed, state lawmakers would have more power over constitutionally protected funds dealing with concerns such as public education, infrastructure, coastal protection and road maintenance.
Voters also took a dim view of Amendment 1, which would have given the state Supreme Court jurisdiction to discipline out-of-state lawyers when they engage in unethical practices in Louisiana and given the Legislature authorization to create more courts of specialized jurisdiction, according to Collins.
People wondered why the state would need additional specialized courts, which would cost more money and potentially usurp the authority of locally elected judges, critics of the measure said.
“This was a repudiation of the Legislature’s power grab,” Collins said.
Daniel Erspamer, the CEO of the Pelican Institute for Public Policy in New Orleans, said the fight to fix “a broken state constitution” would continue despite the loss.
“It’s never been more clear how hard the deeply entrenched status quo will fight against transformational reforms,” Erspamer said in a prepared statement. “It’s disappointing that confusion and obfuscation won the day over a hopeful future for Louisiana. Rest assured, however, the fight is not over; in fact, it’s just the beginning.”