Democrat House speaker endorses South Shore bill

BY PATRICK GUINANE, Times of Northwest Indiana
pguinane@nwitimes.com

INDIANAPOLIS | House Speaker Pat Bauer, D-South Bend, on Monday endorsed a plan to steer state dollars toward South Shore commuter rail expansion, saying Indiana should commit more resources to public transportation.

Legislation introduced last week by state Rep. Chet Dobis, D-Merrillville, would divert 12.5 percent of the sales tax money Lake and Porter counties send the state, a move that would generate $30 million a year without rasing local taxes. The proposal would close a $350 million shortfall in the $1 billion plan to extend South Shore lines to Lowell and Valparaiso.

"I think that's one that's worthy of discussion and consideration," Bauer said of Dobis' legislation. "I would think that, at least in this legislative body (the House), it has a chance. I think that public transportation is something that the Democrats have advocated, (while) the governor is much more into his Toll Road (proposals)."

Gov. Mitch Daniels last year pitched a pair of privately funded tollways -- the Illiana Expressway in Northwest Indiana and the Indiana Commerce Connector south of Indianapolis -- that stalled after encountering strong public opposition.

The Republican governor expressed reservations last week about the South Shore financing proposal, saying he could have problems supporting a project that isn't backed by local funding.

"Some of that is their own money," Bauer countered. "It's called sales tax. They pay it."

The South Shore legislation, House Bill 1220, is expected to receive a warmer reception in the Democratic-led House than in the Republican-controlled Senate, where fiscal leaders already have raised concerns about the $30 million annual cost to the state.

State government now sends bus and rail providers about $42 million a year, or 5 percent of Indiana's roughly $800 million annual transportation budget. Democrats have sought to boost the mass transit portion of the pie, which now includes about $15 million in funding for South Shore operations and capital.

House Bill 1220, which would divert $30 million a year in state sales tax toward South Shore expansion, has been assigned to the House Ways and Means Committee, though it's not yet scheduled for a hearing. The deadline to move bills out of House committees is Jan. 24.