As New Orleans weighs fees for Carnival float riders, Mayor Helena Moreno’s team is touting a study that shows how the city hosts Carnival at a loss each year, even though the event brings in big tax revenues.

The study, which includes analysis by two Tulane University professors, points out that not all Carnival tax income flows to City Hall. Instead, Moreno’s administration splits that revenue with agencies such as the Regional Transit Authority, the Orleans Parish School Board, and others.

Carnival 2024 generated roughly $18 million in taxes, for example, with a surplus of $7.5 million overall. But municipal government, which covered the $11 million cost of presenting the Carnival celebration, lost approximately $3.7 million, according to the study Moreno’s administration provided Thursday.
City leaders are highlighting the study as they have recently floated the idea of an individual float rider fee to offset their losses. On Nov. 30, before officially taking office, Mayor-elect Moreno discussed the possibility of an impact fee on parade organizations to help cover the cost of Carnival. Moreno mentioned a "$20 per rider fee for Mardi Gras krewes, which we believe could generate roughly half a million dollars during the Mardi Gras season, which could offset the cost of overtime for our sanitation workers and public safety."

Though there's been no official proposal yet, the possible rider fee under discussion is now $25. Jack Rizzuto, who is captain of both the Krewe of Pygmalion and Krewe of Mid-City parades, said that it is already too late to fairly impose any new charges on parading groups for next year. "I've already signed up members at the 2027 rate," he said.

The study, which was delivered to krewe captains via email, refers to analysis from Mara Baumgarten Force, a Tulane professor of business administration, and from Toni Weiss, a senior professor of practice in Tulane’s economics department.

New Orleans sees big increases in tax revenue each Carnival, thanks to the cash that thousands of visitors spend on dining, hotels and other things. But while the city’s sales tax rate is 5%, “the city itself only gets 2.5%,” wrote Force. Likewise, the city’s hotel tax may be 5%, but City Hall only receives 1.5% of that amount.

Other agencies or initiatives, such as the city’s Infrastructure Maintenance Fund or RTA, split the rest. In the end, the study showed the despite a wave of tax income, municipal government can find itself under water.

City leaders are highlighting the study as they have recently floated the idea of an individual float rider fee to offset their losses. On Nov. 30, before officially taking office, Mayor-elect Moreno discussed the possibility of an impact fee on parade organizations to help cover the cost of Carnival. Moreno mentioned a "$20 per rider fee for Mardi Gras krewes, which we believe could generate roughly half a million dollars during the Mardi Gras season, which could offset the cost of overtime for our sanitation workers and public safety."

Though there's been no official proposal yet, the possible rider fee under discussion is now $25. Jack Rizzuto, who is captain of both the Krewe of Pygmalion and Krewe of Mid-City parades, said that it is already too late to fairly impose any new charges on parading groups for next year. "I've already signed up members at the 2027 rate," he said.

The study, which was delivered to krewe captains via email, refers to analysis from Mara Baumgarten Force, a Tulane professor of business administration, and from Toni Weiss, a senior professor of practice in Tulane’s economics department.

New Orleans sees big increases in tax revenue each Carnival, thanks to the cash that thousands of visitors spend on dining, hotels and other things. But while the city’s sales tax rate is 5%, “the city itself only gets 2.5%,” wrote Force. Likewise, the city’s hotel tax may be 5%, but City Hall only receives 1.5% of that amount.

Other agencies or initiatives, such as the city’s Infrastructure Maintenance Fund or RTA, split the rest. In the end, the study showed the despite a wave of tax income, municipal government can find itself under water.