Early voting for the December 10th election will continue through December 3rd from 8:30am – 6pm. Visit GeauxVote.com or use the Geaux Vote app to find important election information.

The Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana created a nonpartisan, educational review of the constitutional amendments on the December 10th ballot to help voters understand the issues and the proposed changes. View PAR’s 2022 Guide here.

The Baton Rouge Area Foundation will be launching the 2023 Baton Rouge Development Fellows Program this week.

Each year, the Development Fellows Program offers a series of workshops to increase proficiency in the field of Development. Each workshop will include a formal presentation by a local funder or development professional, followed by in-depth group discussion. The Program will give development professionals access to high-caliber experts and will enable them to develop contacts with their local counterparts.

This program is not intended for seasoned development professionals however, staff at area non-profits that want to increase their learning would benefit. Selection is based on current and future potential as a development professional, the candidate’s transferable skills, and demonstrated interest in working in the not-for-profit sector in Baton Rouge.

Applications are now accepted at www.braf.org/fellows. Application deadline is Friday, December 2.

We were delighted to partner with LSUS Institute for Nonprofit Administration & Research (INAR) to present The 2022 Conference for Louisiana’s Nonprofits on November 8th! The Conference was the first in-person statewide conference focused on bringing nonprofit leaders back together for idea sharing, collaborative opportunities and educational topics addressing our current industry challenges.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW PHOTOS FROM THE CONFERENCE

Early voting for the November 8th Open Congressional Primary Election is scheduled for Tuesday, October 25th through Tuesday, November 1st (excluding Sunday, October 30th), from 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Citizens who want to vote early may do so in person at their parish Registrar of Voters Office or at other designated locations. For more information about the Secretary of State's Elections Division, visit www.GeauxVote.com or call the Elections Hotline at 800.883.2805.

Eleven constitutional amendments¾five passed by lawmakers in the 2021 regular legislative session and six passed in the regular legislative session earlier this year ¾ are on the ballot this election cycle. Each proposal had to receive a two-thirds favorable vote in the House and Senate to reach the ballot. Now, each amendment needs a majority vote at the polls to get enacted.

PAR’s Guide to the 2022 Constitutional Amendments reviews each proposal for the November and December ballots in the order they will appear before voters. The guide does not make recommendations about how to vote, but offers analysis and provides arguments of supporters and opponents of each proposal for voters to make their own decisions.

*Source: Public Affairs Research Council (PAR)

To view the 2022 Guide, please visit the links below.

• Click here to download the PAR Guide to the 2022 Constitutional Amendments. 
• Click here to download the one-page PAR Guide to the November 2022 Constitutional Amendments. 
• Click here to download the one-page PAR Guide to the December 2022 Constitutional Amendments. 

National survey data (December 2021) shows that a major reason job applicants turn down work at charitable nonprofits is a lack of available and affordable child care (see the nonprofit workforce shortages report).

“Nearly a quarter of survey respondents (23%) stated that the inability to find child care affected recruitment and retention.”

In advance of the 2023 legislative session, Louisiana Policy Institute for Children and the Louisiana Department of Education are leading a Child Care Parent poll. The intent of this survey is to learn about the child care arrangements of Louisiana families with children under the age of 5. "Child care arrangements" can include care and education that parents, families, and family friends provide, as well as care and education provided by early learning programs and providers like preschool, Head Start, and child care centers.

If you would like to assist nonprofit organizations, state agencies and policymakers better understand the impacts accessible child care has on Louisiana families with children under 5 years old, click here to take the Louisiana Child Care Parent Poll.

On Oct. 6, 2021, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) announced a change to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program rules for a limited time as a result of the COVID-19 national emergency. Millions of non-profit and government employees have federal student loans and may now be eligible for loan forgiveness or additional credit through the Limited PSLF Waiver. Under normal PSLF rules, borrowers must make 120 payments on a Direct Loan while on a qualifying repayment plan and be employed by a qualifying public service employer. Now, for a limited period of time, federal student loan borrowers may receive credit for past periods of repayment that would otherwise not qualify for PSLF. You can learn more about the waiver here.

The waiver will allow borrowers to gain additional PSLF credit, even if they had been told previously that they had the wrong loan type or the wrong repayment plan. The waiver ends October 31, 2022. After that, normal PSLF rules will apply. This means that many borrowers need to submit a PSLF form and/or consolidate their non-Direct federal student loans by October 31, 2022, to get the benefit.

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced a new proposed rule  for determining whether workers are employees or independent contractors under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Under FLSA, nonprofits and other employers are required to pay a minimum wage and offer overtime pay for certain workers who are classified as employees. Independent contractors aren’t entitled to these or other benefits of employees.

The new rule would replace a rule from early 2021 that made it easier for employers to classify workers as independent contractors. The current rule focuses on two criteria – opportunity for profit or loss and control over work – in determining whether workers are employees or independent contractors. The proposed new rule would return to a more traditional six-factor “economic realities” test that would consider:

1. Opportunity for profit or loss depending on managerial skill;
2. Investments by the worker and the employer;
3. Degree of permanence of the work relationship;
4. Nature and degree of control by the employer;
5. Extent to which the work performed is an integral part of the employer’s business; and 
6. The worker’s skill and initiative.
7. Opportunity for profit or loss depending on managerial skill;
8. Investments by the worker and the employer;
9. Degree of permanence of the work relationship;
10. Nature and degree of control by the employer;
11. Extent to which the work performed is an integral part of the employer’s business; and
12. The worker’s skill and initiative.

The new rule may mean that more nonprofit workers need to be classified as employees rather than independent contractors and receive employee benefits. The proposed rule is open for public comments through November 28.

Separately, DOL is planning to release new proposed regulations on the salary threshold under the FLSA later this month. Currently, FLSA requires employers, including nonprofits, to pay their employees at least $7.25 per hour and to pay employees one-and-one-half times their regular rate of pay when they work more than 40 hours in a workweek. Employees are exempt from the FLSA overtime pay requirement if they:

Are paid on a salary basis (meaning they are paid the same amount each week regardless of how many hours they actually work);

Are paid at least $684 per week ($35,568 per year); and

Exercise job duties that are classified as  administrative,  executive, or  professional.

Emergency Legal Responders (ELR) was founded in 2017.

Mission: To help people faced with natural, social, and economic disasters to solve emergency legal challenges.

Top Goal: Louisiana is not out of the woods yet-Hurricane season is until November 30th. We are still responding to those impacted by Hurricane Ida and encourage everyone to know that disaster preparedness is not seasonal but year-round.

American Millennium Project (AMP) was founded in 2000.  

Located in 7 parishes (and growing).

Mission: Teaching "local" history and culture to the "locals" and their guests. 

Primary Current Focus: Starting AMP Clubs in middle schools, high schools and colleges/universities in the 7 parishes. 

The Louisiana Department of Revenue recently put out a bulletin clarifying the Louisiana tax implications (individual income tax) of federal student loan forgiveness announcement.

On August 24, 2022, President Biden announced a plan that, in part, provides up to $20,000 in student loan forgiveness to Pell Grant recipients with loans held by the U.S. Department of Education and up to $10,000 in student loan forgiveness to non-Pell Grant recipients. Taxpayers who have either a federal filing status of single and earn less than $125,000 or a federal filing status of married filing jointly and earn less than $250,000 are eligible for the federal student loan forgiveness.

For individual taxpayers in Louisiana, the starting point for determining Louisiana’s tax table income is the taxpayer’s “adjusted gross income” (“AGI”), which is defined as the adjusted gross income of the individual for the taxable year that is reportable on the individual’s federal income tax return. Because Louisiana largely conforms to federal tax law for purposes of individual income tax, amounts that are exempt from federal tax, and therefore not includable in the taxpayer’s adjusted gross income, will automatically be exempt from Louisiana tax without further action. As such, for taxpayers qualifying for federal student loan forgiveness pursuant to President Biden’s plan, any amounts so forgiven will likely be automatically excluded from a taxpayer’s AGI and exempt from Louisiana tax.

*Source: Louisiana Department of Revenue