Proposed Constitutional Amendment Would Expand Homestead Exemption For Senior Property Owners

Louisiana voters will have the opportunity to expand property tax relief for senior homeowners when a proposed constitutional amendment appears on the statewide ballot on November 3, 2026. The amendment, authorized by Act 274 of the 2026 legislative session, would allow individual parishes and municipalities to offer an additional property tax exemption on top of the existing homestead exemption for qualifying property owners aged 65 and older who also qualify for the special assessment level freeze. The proposed amendment would layer an age-graduated additional exemption on top of the baseline exemption. The additional exemption would apply to seniors as follows:

1. For a person aged 65 years of age but not yet 69 years of age, the next $6,000 of the assessed valuation of the property.

2. For a person 69 years of age but not yet 73 years of age, the next $12,000 of the assessed valuation of the property.

3. For a person 73 years of age but not yet 77 years of age, the next $18,000 of the assessed valuation of the property.

4. For a person 77 years of age but not yet 81 years of age, the next $24,000 of the assessed valuation of the property.

5. For a person 81 years of age and older, the next $30,000 of the assessed valuation of the property.

The exemption would take effect in any individual parish or municipality only after a majority of voters in that jurisdiction approve it at a separate local election called for that purpose, and it would apply to tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2028, if the constitutional amendment is adopted. Eligibility for the exemption would extend to the surviving spouse of a qualifying property owner, provided the surviving spouse continues to occupy and own the property, or retains a usufruct on it, and is not more than five years younger than the deceased owner. Trusts would also be eligible for the exemption as provided by law. 

The amendment expressly prohibits the exemption from shifting the tax burden onto other property owners: any taxing authority in a jurisdiction that adopts the exemption would be required to absorb the resulting decrease in property tax collections, and the amendment expressly clarifies that neither subsequent reappraisal and valuation nor millage adjustment may be used to create additional tax liability for other taxpayers as a consequence of the senior exemption. Implementation of the exemption also may not serve as a basis for triggering a reappraisal of property or an adjustment of millages.

Clients who are approaching 65 and qualify for the special assessment level freeze should be aware that the availability and amount of the exemption will ultimately depend on whether their parish or municipality elects to adopt it following voter approval of the constitutional amendment itself.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.