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That’s the word State Rep. Jeff Espich, R-Uniondale, gave to Wells County office holders Monday afternoon during a discussion of the effects of HB 1001 — the Indiana legislature’s property tax reform measure.
“We have made our share of mistakes, but I would not take back for a second the changes we have made,” said Espich, a member of the House Ways and Means Committee. “We have nearly a 40 percent reduction for Wells County property tax payers.”
State Sen. Travis Holdman, R-Zanesville, called the meeting to allow county and municipal officials to discuss their concerns with HB 1001. Espich voted in favor of the bill and apologized for not being in better communication with local officials about it. He said he had spent the past two or three days learning the local budgeting process to better address those concerns.
Espich emphasized, however, that the property tax reform legislation was a good thing.
“We had to minimize the effect on property taxes — on homeowners in particular,” he said.
The problems with HB 1001 have surfaced as the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance — the agency that approves and supervises local governments’ budgets — has struggled with implementation of the bill. That’s part of the reason why Wells County didn’t receive its certified 2008 budgets until late Friday afternoon. It’s also part of the reason why Wells County hasn’t yet been able to send out property tax bills — more than two months after the traditional May 10 first deadline for tax payments.
“There have been problems for a lot of reasons,” Espich said. “The state didn’t get the information from the locals and then they didn’t know what to do with it.”
“This all should have been phased in rather than jumped in,” said Pete Cole, president of the Wells County Council. “It’s sad.”
One of the provisions of HB 1001 is a requirement that County Council review town, township, and school budgets. That drew criticism as well.
“What do they know about running our town?” asked Tamra Boucher, president of the Markle Town Council. “They know as much about running our town as we know about running the county, which is nothing.”
Espich said he understood local office holders’ frustration about the process, even as he encouraged them to do the best they could.
“We are forced as legislators to base on judgments on the best information that we have, and we won’t always be right,” he said. “You, as local officials, have to base your judgments on the best information that you have.”
If officials have a problem with the DLGF or any other facet of state government, Espich said they should call him or Holdman. “The least we can do is nothing, and we might even be able to help,” drawing a laugh from the 14 in attendance at the meeting.
Holdman, selected by a caucus this past spring to succeed the late State Sen. David Ford, R-Hartford City, brought up the Kernan-Shepard report on local government reorganization. That report was completed prior to the 2008 legislative session, but property tax reform took up most of the General Assembly’s attention. The local government reform plan is expected to be discussed in the legislature’s 2009 session.
That report’s centerpiece — reducing the number of elected offices in the name of efficiency — appeared to have some support in the room.
“It’s not about winning the election, it’s about doing the job,” said Karolyna Farling, vice president of the Wells County Council. “There have been times that people have been talked into running for something they have no idea what to do. We need to have a different mindset.”
Espich, saying that he wasn’t going to be in the Indiana House forever, said he was going to take some stands that might not be popular with many people. For instance, he said, it could be possible to streamline law enforcement.
“Why do we have five or six police departments in Wells County?” he asked. “They all ought to be wearing the same uniform and driving the same cars.”
Attending Monday’s meeting, in addition to Holdman, Espich, Farling, Cole, and Boucher, were County Commissioner Kevin Woodward; Danielle Chrysler, legislative director for Gov. Mitch Daniels; Mary Shaffer and Luann Martin, Ossian’s clerk-treasurer and town manager; County Auditor Laura Brubaker; County Treasurer Rinda Vaughn; County Assessor Nyla Aschliman; Survey Jarrod Hahn; county councilman Jim Oswalt; and Sharice Bowen, Uniondale clerk-treasurer.
daves@news-banner.com
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