South Shore expansion bill reduced to summer study committee

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

INDIANAPOLIS | Legislation to finance South Shore extensions to Lowell and Valparaiso was laid to rest Tuesday in a brief ceremony.

The Senate Tax and Fiscal Policy Committee gutted House Bill 1220, which would have diverted $350 million in state sales tax money to the $1 billion commuter rail expansion plan.

All that remains now are provisions steering the South Shore issue to a summer study committee.

"I think it's hard to commit state dollars to this without a better funding plan," said Senate Tax Chairman Luke Kenley, R-Noblesville. "The funding mechanism provided to us falls woefully short of being fair and equitable."

But some region legislators remain hopeful the rail funding effort can be resurrected yet this legislative session, which is scheduled to end March 14.

The South Shore legislation cleared the House last month, making it eligible for one of the House-Senate conference committees that will meet the last two weeks of session. But that would leave a host of differences to sort out in short time.

The rail financing plan has divided region lawmakers along geographic lines. And state fiscal leaders, already wary of an initial price tag of roughly $30 million annually, have watched as lawmakers have proposed adding some $400 million more in rail projects for Gary, Hammond, Michigan City and South Bend.

"I don't think we're hurting this at all by delaying this," Kenley said.

But other lawmakers argue moving the issue to summer study committee could jeopardize the South Shore expansion proposal's place in line for $500 million in federal dollars.

"There will be a delay, and we will be set back," said state Sen. Frank Mrvan, D-Hammond.

Kenley said legislators need the time to work out a funding plan that more closely resembles the 2005 deal to finance a new Indianapolis Colt stadium and a convention center expansion. Several counties around the state capital adopted a 1 percent food and beverage sales tax to help finance those projects, and Indianapolis raised its hotel and car rental taxes.