“There is absolutely no way we can ever spend this money,” city analyst Eric Smith told The Lens. “And it’s unfortunate that it was collected by businesses and remitted to the city.”
The tax, sometimes known as “quarter for the quarter,” was a 0.25 percent sales tax applied to French Quarter businesses from 2016 until it expired at the end of 2020. The tax was formally levied by the French Quarter Economic Development District — a state-created agency governed by the New Orleans City Council — and collected by the city on its behalf. The tax was used exclusively to fund Louisiana State Police patrols in the French Quarter and surrounding area.