Northwest Indiana Discussion

The State of Indiana has been trying to move municipalities away from using just property taxes to a system that relies more on income taxes. Porter County gave up this fight recently and enacted a CEDIT tax of .25%.

Property taxes in Lake County can be lower. One reason that this tax situation is just now coming to a head is that big business was paying the lion's share. With reassessment, and the shift of more of the tax burden to residents, it is now becoming obvious that costs of running government in Lake County are too high.

Cutting spending is easy if it's done by outsiders. If the citizens of Lake County and any municipality wanted to, they could establish a committee of non-politicians to look at the books, compare costs with other municipalities, and present a plan.

Two things are important to remember in this:

1. Cities and Towns don't get all or most of your tax dollar. Schools typically are the biggest percentage. If they don't cut, you won't see an appreciable savings if the cities and towns cut.

2. Income taxes sound ok (if there is a corresponding cut in property taxes) but there is one major problem: income taxes are paid by citizens only - property taxes are paid by businesses and citizens.

More tax dollars should be spent on the local level and less on the federal level. The federal govenment wastes too much money.