Prioritizing practicality over principle, the anti-tax Indiana General Assembly on Wednesday overrode a veto by Gov. Mike Pence and enacted into law a retroactive income tax increase for residents of two counties.
House Enrolled Act 1546 legalizes extra tax revenue collected by Pulaski County since 2006 and Jackson County since 2011, even though authorization had expired for the higher tax rates used by both counties to pay for their jails.
Pence said he rejected the measure because he believes people who pay taxes they don't owe deserve a refund.
But state Sen. Brandt Hershman, R-Buck Creek, the sponsor of the proposal, said the governor's plan to withhold future county income tax collections to pay refunds is impractical, costly and pointless.
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The Indiana Constitution requires only a simple majority in both chambers to override a governor's veto.
The override passed the House 68-23 with just one Republican supporting the veto. It cleared the Senate 34-12 with seven Republicans backing the governor.
Pence spokeswoman Christy Denault said following the vote that the first-year governor "regrets" his veto was not upheld and declared the Pence administration "will continue to put taxpayers first."
The nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency estimated the state's cost for the one-day meeting of the 150-member General Assembly was $29,434.
The House vote tally is available here:
