Truth Staff
Indiana's legislators so far haven't disappointed Hoosiers who predicted meaningful property tax reform will fail this year. Certainly there was some reason for hope. Gov. Mitch Daniels got the process off to a good start late last year by proposing a package of property tax caps, increases in other taxes and some shifts in spending from local to state governments.
There were many smiles in Indianapolis as Republicans and Democrats in the Senate and House pledged to work together, to give ideas and options fair hearings, and to pass tax reform. After all, everyone agreed, there was no more important goal in this election year than solving the property tax mess the legislators created in the last couple of sessions.
Turns out there are more important goals as demonstrated by the Republican walkout Thursday night over procedural issues on an immigration measure. And then there's the rancorous debate over the marriage amendment. It's almost as if our elected representatives are putting politics over progress on property taxes. One might conclude they've given up on tax reform and are trying to create a smokescreen of political blame on other issues in hopes voters will forget their major failure.
Daniels' property tax proposal was not a perfect solution and many details remained to be worked out. The debate took a curious turn a few days ago when House Democrats came up with the idea of turning property taxes into sort of an income tax. Where the previous working proposals had set limits based on assessment, this new proposal instead limited property taxes to percentage of income regardless of valuation.
Associated Press Statehouse reporter Mike Smith wrote that this idea was drawn up on the back of a napkin. Granted, some great ideas have been sketched on napkins. The Laffer Curve that defined supply-side economics for the Reagan administration is one example. Legend has it many Hollywood story ideas have been jotted down on napkins over lunch or dinner. Some great relationships have started with phone numbers written on napkins and then exchanged.
A napkin, however, isn't the best place to plan a way to reshape Indiana's burdensome property tax structure. We wrote at the beginning of the session that representatives and senators must give property taxes their full attention and they must debate ideas and air concerns in open session so taxpayers and voters understand what's on the table and will know whom to credit and whom to hold accountable.
The expensive, messy uncertainty now facing property owners and local governments was a gift from legislators dealing at the last minute and not understanding what, exactly, they were voting into law. Time would tell, they assumed, and there would be opportunity in the future to set things right.
Now, with only a couple of weeks left in the legislative session, the prospect of another hurried, poorly thought out and poorly explained solution seems ever more likely.
Once again we call on legislators to work hard, to work openly, to put political interests aside and to put taxpayers' interests first.
If they fail in this task, no amount of smoke from other issues should shield them from angry voters.