The state should delay unemployment tax increases on businesses from 2010 to 2011 to help companies retain workers and possibly
wait long enough for a federal bailout, Republicans who control the Indiana Senate said Tuesday.
A state-run program aimed at boosting business for local artisans—ranging from painters to syrup makers—and
turning them into a draw for tourists is in jeopardy because of dramatic funding cuts.
The non-partisan Indiana Fiscal Policy Institute this morning released a new study exploring the ramifications of expanding
the state’s sales tax to include services.
Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels warned Thursday morning that more state budget cuts could be forthcoming in light of a prolonged
drop in
tax collections. Indiana collected $3.3 billion in total revenue during the fiscal first quarter, 14 percent less than the
same period last year.
Indiana casinos on average pay the highest effective tax rate in the Midwest, according to a report by the Casino Association
of Indiana.
Indiana’s casinos are facing increasing competition from gambling ventures in Michigan and Ohio that could pose a threat to
the $900 million in tax revenue the industry generates for the state.
A new committee formed to provide oversight of Indiana’s unemployment insurance fund is set to hold its first meeting tomorrow.
Indiana tax collections in August fell $12 million below a May forecast, marking more bad news on the state’s financial front.
Destinations throughout Indiana no longer can count on a state marketing campaign to help drive summer crowds. Lawmakers who
passed a budget during the special session at the end of June sliced the state’s annual contribution
to the Indiana Office of Tourism Management in half—from $4.8 million to $2.4 million.
A state budget was passed June 30, but it’s balanced on the backs of poor children. Legislators
deserve praise for at least slightly increasing overall education funding, but because of a flawed funding
formula, urban districts such as Indianapolis Public Schools actually will lose money in the next two
years.
Indiana’s struggling gambling industry didn’t get the relief it sought during the special session of the Indiana General Assembly. But embedded within the budget bill approved June 30 is a provision creating a gambling summer study committee. Its recommendations, due by Dec. 1, may make or break several of Indiana’s casinos.
As both House Speaker Pat Bauer, D-South Bend, and House Republican Leader Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis, see it, this is definitely a "Republican-flavored" budget. Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels laid the framework, and legislators from both sides of the aisle largely abided by his bottom lines of spending, state agency cuts and surplus.
The legislative session that concluded June 30 with passage of a two-year budget left a bad taste in our mouths. For starters,
legislators lacked the courage to tackle local government reform—even though cash-strapped units of government
desperately need the millions of dollars in savings they would generate. In short, they put political cronyism ahead of the
interests of the state.
If we are lucky, by the time you read these words the Indiana General Assembly will have passed a new budget. Democrats use
tarot cards and Republicans chicken innards to determine how much to spend. There are alternatives.
The sniping over the state budget follows the time-honored script of partisan politics. Fear not: A timely climax and resolution
are all but guaranteed.
With the help of outside economists, Indiana government undergoes an economic forecast every other yearâ??a process that’s taken on increased importance this spring, as Gov. Mitch Daniels and the Legislature attempt to craft a two-year budget amid the deepest recession since the early 1980s.
Put some progressivity into Indiana tax rates when passing the Indiana state budget.
Which group should make the spending decisions? Consumers or elected officials?
Ind. Gov. Mitch Daniels will call the Legislature into special session to pass an acceptable budget, but some legislators think a budget that would satisfy the governor cannot be crafted by the contentious partisans in this developing fiasco.
Sometimes the news is just so good you can’t believe it, and that is just what happened with the state revenue forecast this
month.
