The Louisiana Cultural Districts Program was created by Act 298 of the 2007 Regular Session of the legislature. The primary goal of this initiative is to spark community revitalization based on cultural activity through tax incentives, technical assistance, and resources.
For more information, questions or comments please email Kelsea McCrary at kmccrary@crt.la.gov
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Oct. 1, 2020: The Office of the Lt. Governor and the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism are pleased to announce certification of 9 new Cultural Districts. This brings the total number of Cultural District to 115, in 71 towns and 41 parishes in all corners of Louisiana, evidence that this is a successful initiative embraced by local governments and cultural stakeholders throughout the state.
The new districts certified in 2020 are:
- A.P. Tureaud (Orleans Parish)
- Bogalusa (Washington Parish)
- Houma Heights (Terrebonne Parish)
- Lake Providence (East Carroll Parish)
- Marksville (Avoyelles Parish)
- Renoir (East Baton Rouge Parish)
- Scotlandville (East Baton Rouge)
- St. Joseph (Tensas Parish)
- Touro-Bouligny (Orleans Parish)
New Application Dates! Applications will open May 15th, 2021 and close August 1st, 2021 for all new applications to the Cultural Districts program. Boundary Expansion applications will open May 15th, 2021 and close August 1st, 2021. Both will only be available through the new Cultural Districts portal, louisianaculturaldistricts.org. These dates are subject to change.
Recent legislative action to address the fiscal crisis during the most recent special session eliminated the state tax exemption for original art sold in a Cultural District. The state sales tax was set at 4.45% until 2025. The result for our art sellers is that they must now charge the full Louisiana state sales tax, 4.45% on all works of original art.
Note: They may still exempt the local tax, but they must report those tax exempt sales to the parish sales tax office.
- Local sales tax exemption along with the state historic tax credit are still important incentives that encourage creation of art, art events and rehabilitation of properties. Parish Sales Tax Report Forms are available for download through the LATA website. Click on the parish, scroll down and click on Forms, select the most recent Sales and Use Tax Report and Instructions.
For more information, head over to the Resources tab underneath the Cultural Districts drop down on the navigation menu.
Click here for Cultural Districts Guidelines and Applications.
QUICK LINKS
Check out how our Districts are performing by viewing our Annual Reports.
2018 ANNUAL REPORT: The Executive Summary of the 2019 Annual Report features the highlights of the full report which is a compilation of the individual reports submitted from cultural districts in existence in 2018.
Previous Annual Reports
