Panel gives Pence half of his $400M road-funding request
The reduction, led by Senate Appropriations Chairman Luke Kenley, was a partial blow to one of the governor's key legislative goals.
The reduction, led by Senate Appropriations Chairman Luke Kenley, was a partial blow to one of the governor's key legislative goals.
The Indiana Department of Transportation asked the state Senate Appropriations Committee to approve the release of $400 million saved in a special trust fund created last year.
Under the House Republican plan, families earning less than 185 percent of the federal poverty level in five selected counties would get state aid to send their children to public, private or religious preschools that meet certain education standards.
Indiana House lawmakers took up a Senate proposal to cut business taxes on Monday, as fiscal leaders continued working behind the scenes to craft a compromise package of cuts this legislative session.
Nearly every state revenue category failed to hit its January target, including sales taxes and personal income taxes — Indiana's two largest revenue sources.
Growing ranks of dropout workers have nagged the economy throughout its recovery, and now Indiana’s budget forecasters feel they can’t ignore the trend. They recently revised their outlook on state revenue downward, partly because so many Hoosiers stopped looking for jobs.
A state law intended to make sure cash-strapped public school districts pay their debt could have an unintended consequence: permanently parking the yellow buses that deliver students to class.
The proposal from Republican leaders would make small companies exempt from tax on business equipment, and cleave the state’s corporate income tax to the second-lowest in the nation.
Gov. Mike Pence’s plan to eliminate the tax on business equipment would mean significantly higher taxes for other property owners if the state took no specific action to protect them, according to a new analysis.
Indiana’s fiscal picture is looking good with about $2 billion in cash reserves and a strong credit rating, but the next few years could leave the state in a fiscal pinch.
New projections show Indiana will have nearly $300 million less in tax revenue to spend over the next two years than lawmakers thought when they wrote the current two-year budget.
State agencies will have to cut their budgets an additional 1.5 percent and state universities will see their state aid clipped by 2 percent as the state looks to make up a $141 million drop in tax collections.
The 12-mile Indiana portion of the 47-mile highway, which would link northern Indiana with Chicago's south suburbs, has an estimated $300 million cost.
Tax receipts for the first quarter of the state's fiscal year have missed projections that were used to write the current two-year budget.
Office of Management and Budget Director Chris Atkins said the state’s cash reserves will keep many programs going up to a month before running short.
The report released by the State Budget Agency said Indiana's general fund revenue fell about 5 percent below the latest target.
A lobbying group is hoping it can persuade Indiana lawmakers to approve tax incentives to companies making movies in the state, saying it will create jobs.
Gov. Mike Pence on Thursday praised budget closeout numbers showing the state with $93 million in an ongoing surplus and $86 million more than expected in cash reserves.
The state lottery expects to pull in $945 million for the fiscal year ending June 30. Meanwhile, lottery operator GTECH Indiana plans to start televising Powerball and Mega Millions drawings this summer.
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence announced Monday he will shuffle where state agencies focus most of their efforts. State Budget Director Chris Atkins said the new priorities reflect the goals that Pence laid out in his campaign.