ELKHART — With Indiana’s next legislative session set to kick off in just a few short months, the Indiana Chamber of Commerce this past Wednesday laid out its legislative priority list during a luncheon at the Lerner Theater in Elkhart.
According to Indiana Chamber President Kevin Brinegar, the upcoming legislative session is shaping up to be a long one, with some of the top tasks including crafting the two-year state budget and taking a look at a possible tax structure overhaul.
Along those lines, Brinegar noted that one of the Chamber’s priorities heading into the legislative session will be changing the way the state handles business personal property taxes as it relates to certain small businesses.
According to Brinegar, there are currently upward of 200,000 small businesses in Indiana that pay less than $500 a year in business personal property taxes, though they still have to go through the time and expense of taking inventory of their equipment and hiring someone to file a return.
In an effort to try and reduce that burden on small businesses, Brinegar said the Chamber will be working to support legislation that will exempt small businesses that owe just a small amount of personal property taxes from having to file a return.
“It’s something that we think is worth some attention,” Brinegar said.
Smoking issue
Also on the Chamber’s radar will be a push to repeal the Indiana Smoker’s Bill of Rights, which Brinegar said essentially places smoking in the same category as race, religion, ethnicity and gender when it comes to areas prospective employers cannot discriminate against.
Doing so, Brinegar said, puts businesses in a tough situation, as being forced to hire a smoker will almost assuredly end up costing a business more in medical costs down the line due to the negative health effects of smoking.
“It prevents employers from being able to make decisions about who they want to hire based on someone’s smoking habits, or charge differentially higher co-pays or deductibles on a person’s health insurance for these employees, who they know, because there’s a wealth of data, are going to cost them more money in terms of health insurance over time,” Brinegar said. “So we feel it’s time to repeal the so-called Smoker’s Bill of Rights.”
Education
Brinegar noted that education will also be a big topic for the Chamber in the coming legislative session, with one of its top initiatives centering on support for the establishment of a statewide program of educationally-oriented preschools for low-income families.
“We see that as important for closing the preparation gap between students that have had a quality education-oriented preschool opportunity and those who don’t,” Brinegar said. “We think it’s important to reducing our dropout rates and having kids who are better prepared to go to college or for a career.”
And in speaking to educational leadership, Brinegar said the Chamber would be in support of changing the superintendent of public Instruction position from an elected position to a governor-appointed position, sighting the current gridlock between sitting Superintendent Glenda Ritz, a Democrat, and the Republican-appointed Indiana State Board of Education, as evidence of the need for a change.
“We’re just not being well served,” Brinegar said of the current situation.
Energy and environment
Sharing the podium with Brinegar Wednesday was Vince Griffin, vice president of energy and environmental affairs for the Indiana Chamber, who spoke briefly on issues such as the state’s water resources and how they can be leveraged to attract business.
According to Griffin, Indiana’s abundance of water reserves puts it in an excellent position for attracting new business to the state, especially given the water troubles being seen in states such as California, which is currently struggling with one of the worst droughts in recent memory.
“Water is a huge economic advantage for attracting businesses,” Griffin said.
Even so, Griffin pointed to a recent Chamber-commissioned report that indicates water shortages could be a reality for Indiana in the future if the state’s current water utilization plan is not updated.
Along those lines, Griffin said the Chamber plans to pursue a comprehensive, multi-pronged state water plan that seeks to educate and communicate the need for water supply planning, create a robust system for monitoring surface and ground water resources, and determine aquifer sustainability and yield, among other initiatives.
Also on the Chamber’s energy agenda for the upcoming legislative session is a continued push for the support of coal usage for energy production within the state. Griffin said such support is necessary in order to keep Indiana’s long history of competitive electricity rates from being eroded more than it already has been by new federal mandates to lower carbon emissions.
As an example, Griffin noted that Indiana is currently ranked 25th in the nation when it comes to cheap industrial electricity rates, whereas 10 years ago it was ranked fifth.
“The direction we’re going right now is not good with the Washington, D.C., administration trying to kill coal,” Griffin said.
On the flip side, Griffin noted there will be legislation introduced in the next session promoting alternative energy options such as wind, solar and nuclear power which he says should be supported, though the Chamber is not supportive of providing long-term subsidies for such energy sources.
“Help them get up and moving, but then get them on their own,” Griffin said.