By BRYAN CORBIN, Evansville Courier & Press Statehouse bureau
corbinb@courierpress.com
INDIANAPOLIS - Taking some of the sting out of the bite of property taxes will be a priority for the Indiana General Assembly, the new Republican leader of the state Senate predicted Monday.
A prominent Democratic lawmaker in the new session of the Legislature also talked favorably of raising Indiana's cigarette tax above the current 55.5 cents per pack. Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels has proposed increasing the cigarette tax to cover the costs of extending health insurance to hundreds of thousands of uninsured Hoosiers.
Today, members of the House and Senate return to the Capitol for their largely ceremonial Organization Day in advance of the 2007 session. On Monday, three of those lawmakers previewed issues the Legislature will face during a meeting with business leaders at the Indiana Chamber of Commerce.
State Sen. David Long officially will become the new president pro tem of the Senate today, succeeding longtime Republican leader Bob Garton.
Long, R-Fort Wayne, cited proposals to give local governments more freedom in spending money raised through alternative taxes, thereby reducing dependence on property taxes paid by homeowners.
The Indiana Association of Cities and Towns is backing a plan called "Hometown Matters" that would give counties, cities and towns the option of imposing sales taxes, income taxes and motel or restaurant taxes to reduce their reliance on property taxes.
Long said that issue is closely tied to local government reform.
"In our urban areas, we see a pancaking of services, where a number of different entities provide the same service. Being able to trim down the number of entities providing these services, I think, will have a dramatic effect on the actual costs of government," he said.
One place government could be trimmed, he suggested, is at the township level. In smaller townships with populations below 5,000, the elected township trustee (who handles poor relief) also doubles as township assessor (who determines the tax value of real estate), he said. "I think we're going to see a trend toward the small townships having their (assessing) job taken over by the county assessor," Long said.
Long also alluded to efforts by Evansville-area lawmakers to give local officials the power to merge city and county governments. Last session, the Legislature passed a bill creating a legal framework for Evansville and Vanderburgh County to consolidate, if voters approve it in a referendum. "Evansville is driving this issue ahead of everyone else," Long told the state Chamber of Commerce.
As Long is sworn in today, Democratic Rep. B. Patrick Bauer will become the new speaker of the Indiana House.
One major issue this session will be Daniels' proposal to fund health insurance coverage for uninsured Hoosiers. Raising the cigarette tax by 25 cents per pack would create coverage for 120,000 adults, and raising it by 50 cents would cover 200,000 adults, Daniels has said. The additional revenue also would boost child vaccinations and fund smoking-cessation efforts. The plan would need the Legislature's approval to take effect.
Speaking for House Democrats on Monday was state Rep. David Orentlicher, D-Indianapolis, both a physician and an attorney. "The cigarette tax (increase) is a great idea, regardless of the revenue," he said, saying teenagers would be discouraged from taking up smoking if the 55.5-cent tax per pack is increased.
"The governor is talking about (an increase of) 25 cents. I think we should be thinking about at least 50 cents there," Orentlicher said. However, he expressed concern about another part of the proposal - health savings accounts
Rep. Brian Bosma, who had been House speaker but now will become Republican minority leader, said Daniels' plan is a good start. House Republicans will offer a proposal to extend tax credits to small businesses that offer health-care benefits to their employees, he said.
"We are one of the least healthy, smokingest, fattest states in the nation, for whatever reason," said Bosma, R-Indianapolis. "We have to do whatever we can to help our citizens make smart choices, and employers play a role in this as well."