The Legislative Council, a panel of high-ranking legislators charged with managing the business of the legislative branch, met recently, and assigned topics of study to various interim committees. Interim committees will work over the coming months to review the topics and make recommendations for policy changes or legislative actions in 2025.
Additional topics were assigned to the Funding Indiana’s Roads for a Stronger, Safer Tomorrow Task Force (FIRSST), a panel focused on modernizing road funding mechanisms. The action plan includes (i) a review of state highway and major bridge needs, (ii) road and bridge needs at the local level, (iii) development of a long-term plan for addressing those identified state and local needs, and (iv) review of the long-term impact of electric and hybrid vehicles. It’s expected that State Rep. Jeff Thompson (R-Lizton) will chair the task force this year.
Some new topics, mostly related to property tax and local spending, have been assigned to the State and Local Tax Review Task Force (SALTR) for review. New topics include (i) excess levy appeals by local units, (ii) controlled projects of a local unit, (iii) school operating referenda and the use of debt by school corporations, (iv) the levy growth quotient and (v) the assessed value of agricultural land, among others. Representative Thompson is also leading this task force this year.
A legislative panel that has been very active in past years but did not have topics assigned this year is the Government Reform Task Force. Many of the recommendations made by this panel in the past have been considered or acted on by the General Assembly, and it’s a positive development that this policy area may settle down to allow the new policies to be implemented.
These topics are of great interest to the Chamber and its members as the condition of the state’s tax climate and transportation infrastructure is critical to a competitive business environment.
