From the New Castle Courier-Times:
There were more than 270 bills passed in the 2013 Indiana General Assembly, but New Castle graduate and State Sen. Doug Eckerty had a front row seat for arguably the most important one.
Elected in 2010, Eckerty had a seat and a voice on the powerful Senate Committee on Appropriations, which played a large role in crafting Indiana's $30 billion biennial budget for 2014 and 2015. It's the first time a legislator still in his initial term has served on that committee in 25 or 30 years.
And that budget bill has been widely regarded as a success, providing a 5 percent tax cut over four years, cutting income, corporate and financial institution taxes while eliminating the inheritance taxand maintaining Indiana's balanced budget status.
"I enjoyed serving on that committee a great deal," Eckerty said in a recent interview with The Courier-Times. "When you look at the whole tax package, it actually exceeds what the governor was asking for to begin with."
Highlights of the bill included:
-- Cuts in individual income tax rate 5 percent (3 percent cut beginning in 2015 and another 2 percent cut beginning in 2017)
-- Elimination of state inheritance tax, retroactively effective to Jan. 1, 2013
-- Inclusion of funding for vocational education and workforce development initiatives
...
Roads:
-- Increases road and infrastructure funding by $200 million per year and sets aside another $400 million over the biennium for future transportation needs
Eckerty said one aspect of the cuts that hasn't received a lot of attention is the corporate income taxon financial institutions.
"We took that rate down from 8.5 to 6.5 percent," he said. "That was a much more critical issue than most people realize. We've lost some local and regional banks in this state in recent years."
Meanwhile, the budget is balanced again, just as it was during much of the Mitch Daniels administration, a streak Eckerty is pleased to help continue.
"I think folks in Indiana take a tremendous amount of pride in the good financial condition our state is in," Eckerty said. "People told me before the session started 'Whatever you guys do, make sure you keep that budget balanced and have plenty in reserve.' I think that kind of pragmatism is what Indiana is known for."
http://www.thecouriertimes.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=281007&SectionID=23&SubSectionID=45&S=1
