Gov. Mike Pence's call to repeal the business personal property tax likely won't have the revenue impact that many local leaders feared once House Republicans get through with it.
House Speaker Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis, said Wednesday rather than eliminating outright a tax that provides $1 billion annually to Indiana schools and local governments, his members support allowing each county to decide whether to drop the tax — and only for new business and manufacturing equipment.
"We think it's the smart route to give local counties the option to do what they know their community needs," Bosma said.
The House GOP plan would not permit existing businesses to move from county to county chasing the tax cut. Instead, it's intended to lure companies from other states to Indiana counties that want to boost their industrial output.
"It has the added benefit of maybe giving a little incentive to these areas where there's not a lot of investment, yet," Bosma said.
House Democratic Leader Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City, praised Bosma for reining in the Republican governor's proposal, which likely would have shifted taxes now paid by businesses onto property owners and wage earners.
The business personal property tax brings in $74.2 million a year for Lake County schools and local governments, $14 million in Porter County and $7.2 million in LaPorte County, according to the nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency.
"If you look at what the speaker actually proposed here, it's basically just tax abatement. It's basically what local communities can already do," Pelath said. "The speaker has basically said, 'Governor, I will hand you another fig leaf, but we're not going to do much more than that.' That's good."
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