Local government officials are worried about Indiana's property tax relief plans. The Schererville Town Council passed a resolution Wednesday opposing cuts to local property tax revenues without an "equitable, comprehensive replacement mechanism."
Schererville Firefighters Union Secretary Collin Zackavec said tax cuts may sound great for homeowners, but it would cost them valuable resources. "A cut in funding of any kind would significantly impact our ability to continue providing quality services to residents of this town," Zackavec told council members.
He said call volumes are going up, but the better pay and benefits offered in Illinois can make it hard to keep firefighters in Northwest Indiana.
The reaction was similar at Tuesday's Merrillville Town Council meeting. Police Chief Kosta Nuses said he was alarmed by some of the numbers he'd seen.
"The way that it's looking, it's probably going to affect us in a really bad way," Nuses said. "Merrillville doesn't have a lot of money to begin with, and if they cut what they're proposing to cut, we're going to be in significant trouble."
Others were in favor of the possibility of lower taxes.
Schererville resident Kevin Deane questioned whether the town could cut expenses. He pointed to spending on consultants for the Illiana Speedway redevelopment and Kennedy Avenue improvements.
"As a taxpayer, when my taxes go up or my expenses go up, I have to tighten the belt on some of my expenses, and if Schererville is looking at a $3.5 million loss, perhaps it time for us to start looking at tightening our belts," Deane told the town council Wednesday.
Council member Tom Schmitt argued that cutting property tax revenue would simply force local governments to raise other local taxes and fees. But council member Caleb Johnson said that isn't necessarily a bad thing
"It forces us to really look at our budget and what is actually needed, and then, what is needed, we replace that funding with our own local funding through a public hearing process so that we can raise those funds," Johnson said.
Johnson opposed the resolution opposing the property tax reform proposal. During a visit to Schererville last week, Governor Mike Braun dismissed local governments' concerns about a decrease in revenue as "a big overreaction."
