Louisiana opens state tax office in Shreveport for first time since 2012 budget cuts

Greg Hilburn, Shreveport Times
·1 min read

Residents living in Louisiana's third largest city finally have local in-person access to state Department of Revenue services after the agency opened a regional office in Shreveport for the first time since 2012 when the previous office was closed because of budget cuts.

The regional office located in Suite 12 at 910 Pierremont Road will serve all of northwestern Louisiana.

“The closure of our Shreveport office due to state budget cuts in 2012 deprived taxpayers in northwest Louisiana of a convenient option for in-person customer service,” Secretary of Revenue Kevin Richard said in a statement. “The reopening of the office provides the area with a vital resource for the resolution of a wide range of state tax matters.”

Full walk-in customer service for individual and business taxpayers has resumed from 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday with no appointment necessary.

"It's always great when the state realizes that Shreveport-Bossier is a vital part of our state that deserves to have convenient access to critical services," state Republican Shreveport state Rep. Thomas Pressly, who won a state Senate seat in the Oct. 14 election, said in an interview with The Times.

The Louisiana Department of Revenue has opened a regional office in Shreveport.
The Louisiana Department of Revenue has opened a regional office in Shreveport.

"While I'm certainly appreciative that this office has opened, it's unacceptable that people in the state's third and sixth largest cities have been without a regional office for so long," Pressly said.

Among the services available at the Shreveport office:

∎ Filing and paying business taxes;

∎Submitting completed state individual income tax returns and making payments (staff cannot assist with the completion of tax returns)

∎Boat registrations

∎ATC/Video Poker/Lottery/Driver’s License/Wildlife & Fisheries tax clearances

∎Payment plans

∎Special event registrations

∎Resolving bank levies and wage garnishments

Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1. 

This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Louisiana opens state tax office in Shreveport for first time in 11 years