General Assembly Overrides Veto

STATEHOUSE — The Indiana House of Representatives voted 68 to 23 to override Gov. Pence’s veto of House Enrolled Act (HEA) 1546. Elected Representatives returned to the Statehouse on Wednesday, as provided for in House Concurrent Resolution 60, for the First Regular Technical Session to address the most cost-effective solution for Hoosier taxpayers by overriding the veto of HEA 1546. This is the first time the legislature has convened on technical corrections day since legislation was passed in 1995 allowing for the General Assembly to convene to address technical corrections and to override vetoes.

“This law fixes a mistake that was made at both the state and local level affecting local taxes in Jackson and Pulaski counties,” said State Representative Ron Bacon (R-Chandler). “If we did not override the veto, these counties would have to seek an alternative avenue to collect money in order to pay for their local jails; a solution the residents of the counties didn’t want. While the oversight was unfortunately not realized earlier, this law now provides a prudent solution for the counties, in addition to providing other needed tax reforms for spouses of deceased veterans. ”

HEA 1546 passed unanimously out of the House and with only one dissenting vote in the Senate. The bill addresses a number of tax issues, most notably the Local Option Income Tax (LOIT) for Jackson and Pulaski counties, as well as providing benefits for surviving spouses of deceased veterans and making it easier for an out-of-state business to help with disaster emergency relief here in Indiana.

Local officials from Jackson and Pulaski counties came to the Statehouse to encourage the General Assembly override the veto.

“On behalf of County Commissioners, we appreciate the urgency that the General Assembly is placing on this issue. The funding is a vital need for our communities, and it was a necessity that this matter be solved,” said Larry L. Brady, Pulaski County Commissioner.

If the General Assembly did not reconvene to address this bill, the veto would have required over 1,000 employers in the two counties to make mid-year adjustments to their payrolls, affecting over 20,000 employees. In addition, since the two counties need to pay for the ongoing costs of operating the jail, losing funding could put jail operations in jeopardy.