§1304. Establishment of the program by the commission

A.(1) There is hereby established in the Department of Revenue the Louisiana Tax Free Shopping Commission. The commission shall be composed of the following members, who shall serve without additional compensation or reimbursement from the state:

(a) The secretary of the Department of Revenue, or his designee.

(b) The governor or his designee.

(c) The lieutenant governor or his designee.

(d) The treasurer or his designee.

(e) A person nominated by the World Trade Center, approved and appointed by the governor, and confirmed by the Senate.

(2) The commission shall be domiciled in Baton Rouge and is hereby authorized to take any legal action necessary to implement the sales tax refund procedure provided for in this Chapter.

(3) A majority of the members of the commission shall constitute a quorum and any action taken shall be by majority vote of the total membership. The secretary shall provide staff for the commission until a refund agency has been selected, at which time the refund agency shall provide such staff, with assistance from the secretary at the secretary's discretion.

B. Repealed by Acts 1992, No. 285, §3, eff. July 1, 1992.

C. The commission shall have all powers, duties, and authority necessary to implement or take any action under this Chapter, including the following:

(1) Repealed by Acts 1992, No. 285, §3, eff. July 1, 1992.

(2)(a) Shall select any public or private, profit or nonprofit entity as a refund agency to operate the tax free shopping program within the state after a written determination is made by the commission that the selected refund agency shall provide the best service at a price which is not excessive when compared to that which would be necessary to reimburse other private or public, profit or nonprofit entities capable and willing to provide such service.

(b) No private entity shall be selected as refund agency without the use of a bid procedure substantially in accord with the requirements of the Louisiana Procurement Code.1

(c) The Department of Revenue, the office of tourism, a chamber of commerce, or any office or agency of a local tax authority may be selected as the refund agency.

(3) Shall select the refund center or centers for the state.

(4) Shall set handling fees to be charged to an international traveler for processing each refund, which fee may be deducted from the amount of the refund. The fee may be reviewed periodically by the commission and may then be reasonably adjusted.

(5)(a) Shall select the style of the logos on, or the contents of, LTFS signs or decals, refund forms, refund agents' seals and other forms or supplies to be used by the tax free shopping program, provided that their style or contents shall be substantially in accord with the provisions of this Chapter.

(b) The refund form (voucher) shall be numbered and multi-copy and contain the following:

(i) A place for recording the date of issuance.

(ii) The issuing retailer's name.

(iii) The international traveler's country of origin and his passport or visa number.

(iv) The total amount of the purchase including sales tax paid; the amount of sales tax to be refunded; a description of the purchased property; and any other information required by the commission.

(6) May undertake and direct an advertising program and the publication of a shopping guide of the LTFS Program, if any.

(7) May exclude retailers from a refund program for just cause after a public hearing by the commission.

(8) May provide for supplementing the refund procedures set forth in this Chapter including, but not limited to:

(a) The establishment of a method of issuing tax refunds on credit cards as provided for in R.S. 47:1307(D), and the designation of the particular types of credit cards for which credit card refunds may be issued.

(b) The designation of the circumstances under which a refund to an international traveler may be made in a currency other than that of the United States.

(9) Repealed by Acts 1992, No. 285, §3, eff. July 1, 1992.

(10) Shall promulgate regulations for the operation of a tax free shopping program in order to supplement and make more efficient and economical the procedures set forth in this Chapter, and may include those regulations necessary to establish sound internal control and record-keeping procedures by the refund agency and retailers, and to provide general guidelines as to the preferred location of refund desks at retailers' businesses. Such regulations shall provide that the value of any refund made in foreign currency shall not exceed the amount in U.S. currency of tax due.

D. Repealed by Acts 1992, No. 285, §3, eff. July 1, 1992.

Acts 1988, No. 535, §1, eff. July 8, 1988; Acts 1989, No. 536, §1, eff. July 5, 1989; Acts 1992, No. 285, §§1, 2, and 3, eff. July 1, 1992; Acts 1997, No. 1291, §2; Acts 1998, No. 50, §1; Acts 2001 1st Ex. Sess., No. 7, §1; Acts 2004 1st Ex. Sess., No. 14, §1; Acts 2006, No. 76, §1; Acts 2008, No. 232, §1; Acts 2014, No. 106, §1, eff. May 16, 2014.

NOTE: Acts 1988, No. 535, §3 provided for termination on July 1, 1992; Acts 1992, No. 285, §3, extended the date to July 1, 1997; Acts 1997, No. 1291, §2, extended the date to July 1, 1999; Acts 1998, No. 50, §1, extended the date to July 1, 2001; Acts 2001, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 7, §1, extended the date to July 1, 2004; Acts 2004, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 14, §1, extended the date to July 1, 2007; Acts 2006, No. 76, §1, extended the date to July 1, 2009; Acts 2008, No. 232, §1, extended the date to July 1, 2013; Acts 2012, No. 435, §1, extended the date to July 1, 2017; Acts 2017, No. 318, §2, removed the termination date from Act No. 535 of the 1988 R.S. and placed it in R.S. 51:1301(D).

1In Subpar. (C)(2)(b), R.S. 39:1551 et seq.