7/16/2007
Media Contact:
Christina Cesnik
(317)327-4245 |
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Council President Monroe Gray Offers Solutions to Property Tax Crisis
Indianapolis – President Gray offered a plan to help homeowners facing large property tax increases at the Administration and Finance Committee Meeting. The plan would enact a 2% circuit breaker that would cap property taxes at 2% of their assessed valuation that would show up on the second 2007 installment statement. President Gray stated "if enacted this would require each unit of local government to cut their 2007 budgets by 1%. The limited options the state gave us will not help homeowners until 2008. Although we need long term solutions, we also need to do whatever we can to help people this year. Unfortunately this will require approval from the state legislature. Again, Marion County needs fiscal autonomy."
The committee discussed the three options that the State Legislators gave local governments in House Enrolled Act 1478. The options include a 1% increase in the COIT to allow growth in local levies, a 0.5% COIT increase to fund public safety, and 1% COIT increase to fund property tax replacement credit to increase local homestead credits. The Council must vote on any or all of these options by August 1, 2007 and they will take effect on October 1, 2007.
President Gray stated "the city has cut its budget and its staff in an effort to stay within a reasonable budget. We simply cannot cut enough of the budget to make up for the changes forced on us through the loss of inventory taxes, changes in property tax assessments, and incomplete assessments that were supposed to be finished in 2006. Local and state governments need to do what they can to help homeowners."
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