IN property taxes in the LA Times

A nice little piece in the Los Angeles Times on Indiana property taxes-- with some stuff from me to supplement her work.

But it's not so much the size of the bills that has sparked the public backlash, said D. Eric Schansberg, a professor of economics at Indiana University Southeast in New Albany.

"It's the unpredictability -- of what the assessments are, of what the tax bill's going to be, of how the system even works in the first place -- that gets to people," said Schansberg, who tracks economic issues in the state.

I think I said that it was the size of the bills AND the unpredictability, but few people are talking about the latter, so I guess she liked that point...

The debate dates back to 1973, said Schansberg, when lawmakers tried to solve a similar dispute. They sought to shift the burden from property owners by increasing the state sales tax and letting local governments charge income tax.

The other beautiful point here is that Governor Bowen horse-traded with three Democrats, getting their votes while allowing collective bargaining for teachers. It was not relevant to her article, but it's an important footnote to the 1973 band-aid.