If Gov.-elect Mike Pence doesn’t get the individual income tax cut he wants, state Sen. Jim Buck, R-Kokomo, believes he’s found a “good fallback option.”
Pence campaigned on the pledge to step Indiana’s income tax down from 3.4 percent to 3.06 percent over a two-year period. However, legislative leaders have bristled, saying they are not sure the state can afford it as Affordable Care Act costs come online and education funding increases are considered.
Buck, meanwhile, wants to chop the individual income tax from 3.4 percent to 3 percent over four years – a time frame he said might be more palatable because it leaves extra room for adjustments along the way.
“It’s not meant to reject what the governor-elect is wanting to do. It’s just to provide a viable alternative should that become necessary,” Buck said.
His proposal is Senate Bill 192. ...
According to a Legislative Services Agency analysis, Buck’s proposal would cost the state about $644 million per year in income tax revenue once it’s fully implemented in 2018.
