Senate Bill 535 – Extraterritorial Powers of Cities and Towns
Authored by Sen. Phil Boots (R-Crawfordsville)
Repeals the general authority of a municipality to exercise the following powers outside of its corporate boundaries: (1) Regulating conduct or property use endangering public health, safety and welfare. (2) Capturing and destroying animals and maintaining and operating animal shelters. (3) Operating recreational parks and exercising eminent domain to acquire property for park purposes. Full details.
Chamber Position: Support
The Latest: The Senate Committee on Local Government originally heard the bill last Thursday, taking testimony from a diverse group. An amendment to the bill was introduced at the committee hearing this week. The amendment rolled back some of the reduction in the municipalities reach; they would still have the ability to regulate a two-mile fringe outside of their corporate limits. Additional testimony was taken with respect to the amendment. The bill passed out of committee by a vote of 6-1 and is now eligible for further action on the Senate floor.
Chamber Action/Commentary: The Indiana Chamber testified in support of this bill despite our preference for the original bill language over the amended version.
Local entities should not be authorized to impose restrictions or obligations on property owners and citizens outside their jurisdictional bounds. This essentially gives elected officials the ability to govern those who have no say in their election. Businesses should not be subject to requirements established by a governmental entity within whose jurisdiction they are not situated. The current myriad of overlapping authority creates jurisdictional confusion and regulatory conflicts.
Resources: Greg Ellis at (317) 264-6881 or email: gellis@indianachamber.com; Bill Waltz at (317) 264-6887 or email: bwaltz@indianachamber.com