Louisiana has a registration law

RS 40:1783

Registration with department of public safety
Every person possessing any firearm shall register with the department the number or other mark identifying the firearm, together with his name, address, and place of business or employment, the place where the firearm is usually kept, and, if the person is other than a natural person, the name and home address of the executive officer thereof having control of the firearm and the name and home address of the person having actual possession thereof.

http://www.legis.state.la.us/tsrs/tsrs.asp?lawbody=RS&title=40&section=1783

What the heck is this?
I interpret this to mean that it is up to the owner (or purchaser) to "register" the firearm.

Any lawyers or people from Louisiana want to help out?

I own several guns, most purchased from retail buisness, and this is the first I've ever heard of registration.

No, all firearms in Louisiana don't need to be registered. However, they do, as you found, have a statute that requires the registration of NFA weapons. If you read the definition provided in the R.S. you will see that it pretty well describes those weapons covered by the NFA, short barreled rifles, machine guns, explosives, etc.

When you get any NFA hardware in Louisiana there is a registration process that the State Police handle. I've never known anyone to be turned down by them, so apparently they do just register the weapon (or silencer) and that's all. It does hold up NFA transfers for an additional delay though.

I seem to recall that there is also still a statute on the books (my copy of the R.S. is packed up or I'd look it up) that forbids any state registration of regular firearms, including any local government registration. I'll have to check on that.

Futuristic (in Baton Rouge, home of the National Champion LSU Tigers!)

Futuristic's right - that law applies only to full-auto weapons, silencers, and others falling under the NFA.

This post freaked me out, but then I realized what it was. Louisiana is one of THE most gun friendly states in the U.S. You should be glad you live here!

What tone said :D

Here is the definition of "firearm" from the same publication.

***
(3) "Firearm" means a shotgun having a barrel of less than eighteen inches in length; a rifle having a barrel of less than sixteen inches in length; any weapon made from either a rifle or a shotgun if said weapon has been modified to have an overall length of less than twenty-six inches; any other firearm, pistol, revolver, or shotgun from which the serial number or mark of identification has been obliterated, from which a shot is discharged by an explosive, if that weapon is capable of being concealed on the person; or a machine gun, grenade launcher, flame thrower, bazooka, rocket launcher, excluding black powder weapons, or gas grenade; and includes a muffler or silencer for any firearm, whether or not the firearm is included within this definition. Pistols and revolvers and those rifles and shotguns which have not previously been defined in this Paragraph as firearms from which serial numbers or marks of identification have not been obliterated are specifically exempt from this definition

Whoa! You can *have* weapons w/ S/N's filed off in LA? Just being in *possession* of one here in CA is 'presumptive evidence' of a felony. I humbly submit CPC 12091:

"Possession of any pistol or revolver upon which the name of
the maker, model, manufacturer's number or other mark of
identification has been changed, altered, removed, or obliterated,
shall be presumptive evidence that the possessor has changed,
altered, removed, or obliterated the same."

OT I also noticed, for the first time, the section covering "anti-reproductive rights crimes." Used to be you could handle such things with old fashioned laws against "assault" and "battery," but I guess legislators need something to keep themselves busy between campaigning.