Property-Tax Reform Remains Intact Despite Disagreements

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(INDIANAPOLIS) - Most of Governor Daniels’ property-tax reform plan is still intact at the legislature’s halfway point, but it’s becoming clear where the sticking points will be.

The House approved capping property taxes at one-percent of your home's value, but never voted on locking that into the constitution as the governor wants. Democrats yanked the bill when Republicans tried to force votes on repealing residential property taxes entirely, capping state spending, and banning same-sex marriage.

Speaker Patrick Bauer says he'd prefer a constitutional amendment, but the bill the House did pass would provide relief immediately. A constitutional amendment couldn't take effect until 2010 at the earliest, and failure to approve it this year would delay that to 2012.

Bauer says he won't let a stalemate over a constitutional amendment get in the way of short-term relief. And he says there should be more debate on how the caps will affect local budgets.

Republicans say they'll lobby their Senate counterparts to add the spending cap. The Senate has already rejected a tax repeal bill in favor of a study committee to review the issue further.

The House and Senate also differ on whether to require referenda for school construction projects. The GOP-controlled Senate has supported Daniels' call for voter approval of those projects. The Democratic House approved referenda only for sports stadiums and other projects not directly related to education.

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