A federal tax lien filed in Baton Rouge says University of Louisiana System President Rick Gallot owes $351,312 in unpaid federal income taxes covering tax years 2018 and 2020 through 2024. Gallot says a former accountant's failure to file one of his returns is to blame, and that he has been working to resolve the debt with the IRS for roughly two years.
According to The Advocate, the IRS prepared the lien on Sept. 11 and filed it in Baton Rouge on Oct. 12. The lien itself states the total owed comes to $351,312, the outlet reported. Gallot has led the University of Louisiana System, which oversees eight schools, since Jan. 1, 2024, and his annual compensation package is valued at $600,000, including a $522,000 salary, a $54,000 housing allowance and a vehicle or $24,000 automobile allowance, according to the same report.
Gallot Points to a Former Accountant's Mistake
Gallot told the Baton Rouge newspaper that a former accountant failed to file his federal income tax return for tax year 2019. He said his current CPA has since filed that return and is in the process of negotiating the final amount owed, and he is disputing the full total the IRS has claimed. The report notes Gallot said he did not see IRS notices concerning the tax years in question until 2024.
Per the same account, Gallot said he received notice from the IRS in April 2024 and has been trying to resolve the matter with the agency ever since, working with a new accountant. As of this reporting, WBRZ said Gallot had not responded to its requests for comment.
University System Says It's Reviewing the Matter
University of Louisiana System Board of Supervisors chair Mark Romero said the board is looking into the matter but declined to speculate about any personnel implications. “At this point it would be premature to speculate on any implications prior to receiving more details,” Romero said, according to the Advocate's reporting.
The Internal Revenue Service describes a Notice of Federal Tax Lien as a public document filed to alert creditors that the government has a legal right to a person's property, per the Internal Revenue Service. That general description does not indicate what, if any, further action the agency may take in Gallot's case. It remains unclear whether any portion of the debt has been paid or whether the IRS has accepted a negotiated figure, as first reported by WBRZ.
