On Tuesday, November 2, 2010, Hoosier voters will decide in a referendum whether or not they want the property tax caps placed in the Indiana Constitution.
The Senate voted 35-15 on Tuesday to approve the tax caps; the House approved the caps on January 12, 2010. With both legislatures approving the measure, the way is now paved for the
voter referendum in November. The referendum requires a majority to make the caps permanent and place them in the Constitution.
Four Senators from Northwest Indiana voted against making the caps permanent: Senator Karen Tallian, Ogden Dunes; Senator Lonnie Randolph, East Chicago; Senator Earline Rogers, Gary; and Senator Jim Arnold, LaPorte.
Senator Tallian voted against making the caps permanent because she feels they aren't a good solution to the property tax mess. Senator Rogers also voted no. She feels it's too premature to make the caps permanent because the full effects of the caps haven't been felt yet.
If voters approve the referendum, property tax rates would be capped at 1% for owner-occupied homes, 2% for rental properties and farmland and 3% for business and industrial properties. To pay off county debt, however, taxpayers in Lake and St. Joseph Counties will be charged at a rate above the cap until 2019.
Property taxes have impacted most Hoosiers throughout the state; some counties have been hit harder than others. It should be up to the voters to decide whether or not the caps should be made permanent and just how much government they can live with and live without.