Much has changed in the world of federal grants. New regulations make it very important to be a part of regional groups when applying for federal funding.
When seeking grant funds for a new project, a common question is, “What kind of regional impact will the project have?” And those that can show that impact are given priority. The bigger the region impacted, the better.
That’s the reasoning Miami County commissioners gave in December 2012 when they voted to join the Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy. (Just call it CEDS.)
It’s the same reason Cass County officials gave when they did the same thing a year ago this month. They voted in favor of joining the CEDS group with Fulton, Miami, Howard, Tipton and Clinton counties.
The strategy has lofty goals. It will work to develop workforces for modern and future jobs, improve downtown space in cities and towns, and advance infrastructure for business and transportation.
But if Gov. Mike Pence’s plan to eliminate the state’s tax on business equipment is passed, and the House bill that gives counties the option of eliminating that tax is the winning proposal, the CEDS initiative will die. Partners will become competitors.
That’s not all. A report by the non-partisan Indiana Fiscal Policy Institute, released last week, says eliminating the business equipment tax will cut $687 million from local governments and schools — on top of the $800 million those entities collectively lost after property tax caps were enacted in 2008.
What’s more, the report said, $376 million in increased taxes would be transferred to homeowners, farmers and other property owners.
Ball State economist Michael Hicks said in a column we published in June of last year that highly skilled workers “will take lower wages and pay higher home prices to live, work and shop in a higher quality community.” Indiana’s nicer cities and towns — ones that make large investments in amenities and schools, as Kokomo has done the past six years — will attract the best and brightest talent pool, Hicks said.
Such investments could be a thing of the past if the business equipment tax is eliminated. Local governments could be challenged just to deliver basic services, like collecting trash, plowing streets of snow and maintaining adequate staffing of police and fire departments.
The Fiscal Policy Institute report says eliminating the business equipment tax would have little effect in luring new jobs to the state.
Why then are we considering this, governor?