Farm Bureau Pushing for Property Tax Reform

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - As this year's Indiana General Assembly enters its closing days, Indiana Farm Bureau is pushing for legislators to approve language that will result in meaningful property tax reform.

Among the provisions now under consideration by a House-Senate conference committee are:

• Removing the school general fund from the property tax rolls.
• Giving local units of government the option to increase income taxes.
• Creating a local review board to evaluate large public building projects.

These provisions are all in accordance with IFB policy, which has been reaffirmed repeatedly over the years by IFB delegates.

"The plan now under consideration may not be perfect, but it's not just tax relief - it's the beginning of tax reform," said Katrina Hall, IFB tax and local government specialist.

"There's an urgency to take some action, not only because of farmers but because of what could happen to homeowners,"she added.

The urgency comes partly because this is exactly the kind of reform that IFB has sought for years, but it is also because the current property tax system, which has been troubled for years, according to IFB, is now broken.

Most property owners still haven't gotten their tax bills for this year because almost every county is running behind on this process. Farmers are also worried - with good reason, Hall said - about what will happen in 2008 when the base farmland value goes up from $880 to $1,140 per acre.

"Most people don't have any idea what their tax bill (payable in 2007) will be," Hall said. "It's not fair for property taxpayers to be left in the dark."

Farm Bureau is urging farmers and other property owners to call their legislators and tell them how property taxes are affecting them now and about their concerns for the future. Call your senator or representative at 317-232-9600 or 1-800-382-9842 (Indiana House) or 317-232-9400 or 1-800-382-9467 (Indiana Senate); or you can find out who your legislator is or send an e-mail by visiting the Indiana Farm Bureau website at www.infarmbureau.org and click on "Contact your Legislator" or visiting the General Assembly homepage, www.in.gov/legislative, under "Contact Us."

Source: Indiana Farm Bureau  

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