Senate lawmakers approved a measure Tuesday to revise the formula used to calculate the value of bare farmland for assessment, a process farmers believe is currently unfair, according to State Sen. Jean Leising (R-Oldenburg).
Senate lawmakers voted 50-0 in support of Senate Bill 396 sending the measure to the House of Representatives for further consideration.
Leising, co-author of the bill, said state figures show farmers are experiencing unanticipated increases in farmland assessments based on an experimental formula crafted in 2006.
Leising attributes the increase in farmland assessed values to the increase in grain prices that occurred when ethanol production was increased following the spike in oil prices.
A statewide per-acre value for agricultural land is set each year by the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance (DLGF). Currently, DLGF uses an adjusted six-year average and takes into account net-income and cash-rent models, according to Leising. The base rate used for calculating the assessed value has doubled in a five-year period.
Senate Bill 396, supported by the Indiana Farm Bureau, would use an adjusted rolling average that eliminates the highest and lowest values over a six-year period. This is known by economists as the “Olympic Average.” The model would give farmers and local governments more stable agricultural property assessments.
Officials of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Services Agency routinely use the Olympic Average technique in determining agri-business programs nationwide, including here in Indiana.
Leising stated, “Lawmakers have worked together to reduce the dependence of schools on property taxes.” The state now pays the operating funds for public schools from the state general fund. “This legislation helps give stability to our farmers who have seen their farmland assessments double.”
Leising represents Senate District 42, which is composed of Decatur, Fayette, Rush and Shelby counties and a portion of Franklin County.
News
Leising co-authors farmland assessment formula revisions
- News
-
-
Merger off between Chamber, ECDC
Rush County Economic and Community Development Corporation Executive Director Jim Finan has announced that the Rush County Chamber of Commerce and ECDC will not be merging.
-
RCS adds to Rainy Day Fund
The Rush County Schools Board of Trustees met Wednesday night and, among other things, voted to move $550,000 into the corporation's Rainy Day Fund, which is basically the local school system's savings account.
-
Air Evac leaving Rushville base
Nearly four years to the day that Air Evac Lifeteam began operation from a Rushville base, the medical air transport operation will leave our community.
-
Teams sought for 2012 Relay for Life
Nearly a month after the annual kick off and three weeks before the first scheduled team captain meeting (March 1), local organizers are still hoping to expand the number of participants in this year's local Relay for Life.
-
Boys and girls basketball sign-ups underway
Sign-ups for the Boys & Girls Club of Rush County boys and girls ages five through second grade basketball will run through Feb. 29. These leagues will run the five Saturdays in March.
-
Youth in Philanthropy fund grant application deadline
Garry Cooley, executive eirector of the Rush County Community Foundation, has announced that the grant application deadline for the Youth in Philanthropy Fund is 4 p.m. March 1.
-
Lady Lions eliminate Lady Knights
The goal in the tournament is to advance and that is what the Lady Lions did Tuesday at Batesville with a 53-50 victory over South Dearborn.
-
The wonders of wood
Outside the wood shop door on Wednesday afternoons, kids at the Boys & Girls Club of Rush County line up for their turn inside the room where planks of wood become boxes, benches and shelves between 4 and 6 p.m.
-
Statehouse action resumes after Super Bowl break
After a time-out to accommodate out-of-town Super Bowl visitors, the Indiana General Assembly is back in session to tackle legislation that had been bottlenecked by a contentious labor bill.
-
Rice is Herman Freed Award recipient
Rush County Sheriff's Department deputy Alan Rice recently graduated from the Indiana law Enforcement Academy (ILEA) in Plainfield.
- More News Headlines
-
Merger off between Chamber, ECDC
Obama Scraps Birth Control Mandate
US Airmen's Killer Sentenced to Life in Germany
Navy Names Ship for Gabrielle Giffords
Raw Video: Deadly Blasts in Syria
Romney Slams President Obama at CPAC
Gingrich: Pres. Obama 'waging War on Religion'
5 Killed in Wrong-way Crash on I-10 in La.
Uzbek Man Pleads Guilty in Plot to Kill Obama
Denver's Largest-Ever Drug Bust Nets Dozens
Marines: No Punishment for Nazi-like Flag
Vets Look to Translate Military Skills Into Jobs
Raw Video: School Bus Burst Into Flames
LA School Reopens Amid Sex Abuse Scandal
$25B Settlement Reached Over Foreclosure Abuses
Pentagon: Allow Women Closer to Front Lines
LA School in Sex Abuse Scandal Reopens
Raw Video: Italy's Mount Etna Bursts Into Life
Greeks March; Angry Despite Debt Deal
Air Force Airlines: Leaders Get Polished Service
Ga Girl Fights Off Kidnapper at Walmart
