At the Indiana General Assembly, this will likely be a day, even more than usual, where property taxes will dominate the discussion. The House of Representatives is supposed to take up HB 1001, the budget bill, on Second Reading. This is the stage at which all members of the House get to offer amendments to the bill. I suspect it will be a very long day for the House.
Mary Beth Schneider and Bill Ruthart have an article in the Indy Star entitled “Lawmakers push tweaks to tax plan.”
It all begins at 9 a.m., when the House convenes to consider amendments to Gov. Mitch Daniels’ property tax reform plan. Daniels’ proposal, included in House Bill 1001, would cap homeowners’ bills and increase the state sales tax to 7 percent. His proposal also would eliminate township assessors and institute new spending caps for local governments.
As of Friday, 58 amendments to HB 1001 had been filed. (Update – over 100 as of today.) Lawmakers have until 8 a.m. today to file additional changes. The contents of those amendments won’t be made public until after that deadline.
Meanwhile the Senate Tax and Fiscal Policy Committee will discuss some significant changes to The Daniels Plan which would apparently reduce revenue to local government by $600 billion in its current form. Sen. Kenley is proposing a phase in so that the reduction in revenue to local government would come more gradually.
Kenley proposes to phase that in so that local governments instead lose about $298 million. Under his amendment, homeowners’ bills would be capped at 2 percent this year, 1.5 percent in 2009 and 1 percent in 2010.
Rental property and second homes would be capped at 3 percent in 2008, 2.5 percent in 2009 and 2 percent in 2010. Business property, at 3 percent, would not be capped until 2010.
He is also proposing that local government construction approved by referendum be exempt from the proposed property tax caps under the rationale that “A referendum is kind of a statement of the people as to what they’re willing to spend money (on), and I think that probably needs to override a decision of elected people or political people.”
I agree with the referendum items being outside the caps. Once you have hit the cap what do you care what gets approved because your property tax bill can’t go up.
On the other hand, I am completely opposed to referendums on educational facilities. I will support referendums on sports and admin facilities, but not educational.
I’m afraid we are about to get a lot of crap shoved down our throats because Marion County residents has a bad year – and most of what we get will hurt for decades to come.
Seems like someone proposed that referendums for education be limited to major non-academic additions and improvements (the intent being the over-the-top sports facilities – sure, go for it if you can get the public to agree to pay for it). But what about things like kitchen and major HVAC improvements? I’m not sure I have faith in our voting public that they will see the need to support our public schools, regardless of whether or not they have kids in them. Lots of people don’t see the big picture.
Brenda, my thoughts exactly. People will stop caring if the facilities are worth a darn. As long as it doesn’t cost anything…
I get tired of narrow minded idiots who think the property tax mess is only about them. There’s thousands of kids at stake – our future, my kids – and all people care about is property taxes. And Mitch’s plan is a tax shift – how do people not see that.
I agree with Reuben, this issue is about more than just you and me, it’s about our future as a state. I stand with The Hoosier Property Tax Reform Alliance in demanding immediate and lasting change in Indiana’s property tax system. What does this mean?
I. I believe the state of Indiana needs meaningful reform to our property tax system.
II. I believe we need equitable, county-level assessments by trained, highly qualified property assessors.
III. I believe homeowners’ should have a reasonable expectation of their property tax bill and the assessment should be capped at 1% (one percent) of the property’s true value.
IV. I believe I have the right to hold my local government accountable for their spending.
V. I believe government should be transparent and taxpayers have a right be informed and have input into how their taxes are spent.
http://www.hoosierpropertytaxreform.com
Do you have a belief as to a preferred alternate tax source? Or a belief as to which services should be cut or reduced?
I believe citizens have a right to be informed. But, I also think they have a duty to keep themselves informed. I’ve come across quite a few of my fellow Hoosiers who have no idea what their government does and have not made the slightest effort to inform themselves and yet they can be counted upon to bellyache the loudest about taxes.
(That’s not to say a well informed argument can’t be made for capping property taxes, preferring sales or income taxes as a source of revenues, and arguing that government ought not provide services “x, y, and z.”)