From the Northwest Indiana Times:
An official with the state agency responsible for auditing all government units in Indiana could not say last week whether the Porter County Council has the legal right to break with tradition and spend local income tax revenue without the support of the county commissioners.
The recent change in state law that at least some council members are interpreting as giving them exclusive power to transfer the revenue, does not identify which local board has that authority, said Tammy White, county office supervisor at the Indiana State Board of Accounts.
"We can't interpret it for them," she said. "That's the job of the county attorney."
White said the rest of the state law on this subject supports the county's current approach of the commissioners proposing a use for the income tax revenue and then the council voting it up or down.
Porter County Commissioner John Evans, R-North, has threatened to take the county council to court if it attempts to spend the income tax revenue without his office first making a proposal.
Porter County Councilman Jim Biggs, R-1st, said the issue boils down to a belief by himself and others that the council, as the county's fiscal body, should manage all tax dollars.
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Some council members argued last week the commissioners are sitting on millions in unspent income tax revenue. But Evans told them the money, which was approved by the council, is designated for various uses.
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