By a vote of 34-16, the state Senate voted in favor of setting up a 2010 referendum allowing voters the final decision on whether to place the property tax caps into the Indiana Constitution or not.
The lone Democrat to vote for Senate Joint Resolution 1 was Senator Frank Mrvan of Hammond.
"We had trouble in Lake County (a few years ago) with many people from Whiting and Hammond whose property taxes had doubled or tripled," Mrvan said. "If you looked into their faces, they were afraid of losing their houses."
Thank you, Senator Mrvan, for doing the right thing and standing up for your constituents. And not catering to the special interest groups, lobbyists, or inept elected officials from NW Indiana.
Senator Luke Kenley, R- Noblesville believes the constitutional amendment is the "linchpin" to continuing a 2008 legislative overhaul Indiana sorely is in need of. The overhaul cut property taxes for homeowners by roughly a third, and sales tax was increased from 6 to 7 percent to make up for lost property tax revenue.
However, the caps have hammered the city of Gary hard. The city has lost $30 million in property tax revenue and has appealed to the Distressed Unit Appeals Board.
"We need to give this a little bit more time to see what kind of effect it might have on a city like Gary," argued Senator Earline Rogers, D-Gary. An excuse to do nothing and allow bloated government to continue if we ever heard one.
If Senate Joint Resolution 1 passes this year, the referendum would be placed on the ballet in 2010. Voters would get to decide permanently cap property taxes at 1% of assessed value for homeowners, 2% for landlords, and 3% for businesses.
The tax caps are already a part of House Bill 1001, which passed in March 2008, but they are in conflict with a constitutional provision that calls for equal taxation of residential and business properties.
If voters approve the referendum, the property tax caps would be permanently placed in the Indiana Constitution and would supersede the constitutional provision of equal taxation.
Senate Joint Resolution 1 now heads to the Democratic-controlled House where House Speaker Pat Bauer has made it clear he has no interest in passing the resolution this legislative session. And why is that? Because House Speaker Bauer is a double dipper (works for Ivy Tech) and is cozy with the Indiana State Teachers Association. He knows which side his bread is buttered on! And it's not the taxpayers!
Again, we urge our readers to contact their local state legislators and urge them to vote in favor of SJR1. Is the legislation perfect? No. But it's at least a step in the right direction until we can repeal property taxes for good.